We've reached the close of another week. Anybody having Senior Bowl or Pro Bowl parties this weekend? Didn't think so. After all, Pat White was the Senior Bowl MVP a couple of years ago. That tells you all you need to know about the Senior Bowl. In fact, most of the scouts go home today - choosing not to even attend the game itself. It's the practices that people want to see - not the game.
On to this week's Five.
1. This is quite the coaching staff that Tony Sparano put together this week. Could the staff be any more inexperienced? Everybody seems to be making a big deal out of Tony hiring his son, Tony Sparano Jr, but overlooking perhaps the biggest problem with this coaching staff. As far as "Junior" goes, he is only the offensive quality control coach. Does anyone know what an offensive quality control coach does? It really isn't much. It's an entry-level coaching position. They break down film for the offensive coaches - often times their own game film used for internal scouting/breakdowns and statistical breakdowns of upcoming opponents. They assist with the organization of practices. So let's not make the hiring of Tony's son a bigger deal than it should be.
The biggest issue I see with the new offensive staff is inexperience. Brian Daboll has just two years experience as a coordinator. New TE coach Dan Campbell is a former player who has never been a position coach before. New WR coach Steve Bush has never held this position at any level of football. New WR assistant coach Ike Hilliard has never coached at all except for in the UFL. And the biggest decision of them all? Promoting former WR coach Karl Dorrell to QB coach despite having no real experience teaching quarterbacks before.
Sure, Dorrell has been around this team for a few years now. He was an offensive coordinator at the college level - as well as UCLA head coach. But does he really know anything about developing a quarterback? He better. That's his most important responsibility and the entire regime's future could depend on it.
Considering Sparano himself is still a rather inexperienced head coach in this league, you have to wonder about his decision to not surround himself with some experienced assistants on the offensive side of the ball.
2. What a ridiculous move by Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams. What else is there to say about his decision to fire head coach Jeff Fisher after the other 31 NFL teams all had their head coaching situation figured out. Maybe I'm reading too much into the firing. Maybe we'll learn that there was some kind of incident between Fisher and Adams recently. Or maybe this move will just reconfirm what many league insiders think - that Adams might be losing his mind a little (a la Al Davis).
Of course, for us Dolphin fans, you have to wonder if Fisher would have been on owner Stephen Ross' radar if he had been available a few weeks ago. Marc Kohn seems to think so. With Fisher now likely to either sit out the 2011 season or take a coordinator role with a team that has an opening (like the Eagles, for example), it's probably safe to assume Tony Sparano now has another reason to worry.
3. Everybody made a big deal out of Jeff Ireland giving Chad Henne a small vote of confidence this week. But the most important thing he said was that the Dolphins are clearly looking to trade down out of pick 15 and recover the second round pick they had to give up to Denver last offseason. The statement from Ireland shouldn't come as any real surprise. But trading down from the 15th overall pick in hopes of picking up a second rounder means the Dolphins will have to move pretty far down into the bottom of the first round - essentially eliminating the Dolphins from having a shot at the five big names that most fans want to see the Dolphins draft: the four top quarterbacks and RB Mark Ingram.
4. Will you watch the Pro Bowl? Do you even care that the Dolphins sent four players to the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2003? When Randy Starks got added to the Pro Bowl as a "Super Bowl replacement" this past week, he joined Jake Long, Cameron Wake, and John Denney - giving Miami four Pro Bowlers for the first time since 2003. Think about that - the 7-9 underachieving Miami Dolphins have four Pro Bowlers. And they expect people to take this game seriously? Trivia question for all of you: name the four Pro Bowlers from 2003. First one to get it wins...well, nothing.
5. I have to give Mark Sanchez some props for his performance on Sunday. No, not for his play - though he does deserve some respect for leading that second-half rally. But how about his ability to wipe some snot on another grown man and not get knocked out. What was Mark Brunell doing? How did he let Sanchez get away with that? Or maybe it's just me. Maybe I just don't have any close friends that would be willing to act as a human tissue. That must be it.