Gase & Phins Overcome Refs & Raiders To Go 3-0

Adam Gase rallied the Dolphins past the Raiders and inept refs for the win


Gase is proving this season that with the right pieces he's a superb counter puncher

Adam Gase is proving that with the right pieces he’s a superb counter puncher

Can you say 3-0, baby! Yes, sir and ma’am, the Miami Dolphins are now at the top the AFCE by 2 games. 

Phinsnews wrote that this was a crossroads game for this regime. We thought a win would go a long way towards proving that this team was finally heading in the right direction. Not cement, but add strong credence.

I’ll speak for myself now as Jimmy might have other ideas: This game ended up a far bigger win than I originally thought it would be.

This was our Pregame keys… and Miami nailed all of them:
  1. 5 or lower penalties (see below for video proof of explanation before you call me nuts).
  2. +2 or better turn over differential.
  3. Tannehill must start taking care of the ball. 4 TO’s by him in two games is far too much.
  4. DT Davon Godchaux can’t be manhandled by LG Kelechi Osemele.
  5. Limit Tight End Jared Cook.
  6. Don’t let Raekwon McMillan get exposed in pass defense.

Sunday’s tough win offered a far deeper look into this team’s psyche than an easy win would have…

…And that’s why I’m very excited about this team’s prospects.

Everything was against them.

  1. Backed into the corner, the 0-2 Raiders were desperate and dangerous. Sun Tzu’s Art of War will tell you that’s the last place you want your opponent to be.
  2. Phins were down 10 pts with 18 mins left.
  3. William Hayes, Chase Allen, Andre Branch, Akeem Spence, and A.J. Derby were sidelined.
  4. They had an enemy that you can’t beat… inept refs.

Let me take a quick tangent before I get to the most positive aspect revealed this Sunday that bodes well for the Dolphins future.

For the longest time, NFL refs have been the worst in all of the major sports.

The refs flagged Miami 9 times against the Raiders. Video proof shows at least 3, if not 5, were because of ineptitude or bias. I never go ‘X-files’ with ‘ref conspiracy theories’, but this week I couldn’t fight it. And the video below confirms the poor job of this week’s ‘hostile zebras’.

The 1st video proves that at least 3 calls were utterly inept.

Pass Interference calls on Dolphins Wide Receivers crippled their drive at the end of 2nd Quarter and their opening drive in the 3rd Quarter. Both times the Raiders DB’s move and engage the receivers. There is no reason for the penalty on Miami. But the worst penalty was the False Start when Miami was backed up in the 1st Quarter.

The Line Judge has ONE job post alignment check… and he screws it up. 

Add in a second crap call on the drive at the end of the 2nd Qtr. Funny how these Raider players aren’t called for holding… but Ted Larsen was.

Now the ejection of Akeem Spence is another curiosity. How do you explain this?

After the play is over, Spence is the first to be pushed. Osemele drives Spence back over a bent down player. Spence is gripping Osemele’s helmet when he goes over. Weight, momentum, bent over Osemele = why helmet comes off. He didn’t rip it off! Two to three refs see the whole thing and the coverage purposely omits the key point of the event, but they cover every moment before and after? Why? I don’t have a clue. But, I’m sure it was one crap day for the refs. How do you eject Spence under this circumstance?! And even if you do, how is Osemele not ejected?

Players should determine a game… not the refs.

Anyway…

…Okay back to why this was such a BIG win.

Every team gets games with these kinds of calls now then… Well, except for the Patriots that is. Maybe as they collapse the refs will give them less love–we’ll see.

But only good teams (Phins haven’t been one of them in a while) manage to overcome a case of ‘yellow adversity’. The primary reason they overcame the ton of adversity was that Adam Gase dialed up two brilliant calls and the players held their composure.

Good teams let bad teams beat themselves… even when the refs are against them.

Big plays in key moments are a sign of good coaching and good teams.

FYI: Notice for the 2nd straight week, #62 Larsen makes a huge block that allows a huge play to happen. Check this article if you missed his unheralded, crucial block against the Jets.

The Dolphins are proving week after week that they are greater than their problems… and that’s the mental toughness of winners. 

Some are getting on Gase for not having quick starts…

…I get it… and in the past, it was a gripe of mine as well. But, the Dolphins defer nearly every time they win a coin toss. This is because Gase is at his best as a counter puncher.

Every tactician has a mode of operation. Some attack, some defend, some like an early lead… and some counter punch. It’s not to say Gase is not trying to score early. When you go over the film, opening drives have plenty of player mistakes that are the primary reason they fail. If a player doesn’t perform his assignment than it isn’t on the play or Gase. You could blame Gase for putting the player in there, but benching Drake, Tunsil, Stills, or Tannehill is going to happen… all three prove their worth later in the game.

As an example:

This week, 2nd Down was screwed up by Stills picking up the wrong player to block. The run play nets 3 yards. It should have netted 6+… if Stills makes the right block.

As for the 3rd and 6 on the opening drive, Tannehill had a chunk play or TD if he drops the ball in right. Stills has the top of the corner and the Safety coming late. If Tannehill leads Stills the chances are good there’s a big play. Either way, this drives off the Safety for later plays and give future Defensive Coordinators something to chew on.

Gase has attacked the edges and the top on the opening drive. This stretches a defense and opens them up for later attacks and gives Gase a look at how they respond.

I’m not saying bet with pay per head services that this is a Superbowl run we are seeing and Gase is the next Don Coryell. What I am saying is that Gase finally has a team that fits his slow-cook style. Over time everything will sink up and the early leads will come… and that’s when the blowouts will happen. In a dream scenario that will occur this week in Foxborough. But those lofty expectations are for later in the week… Right now, it’s time to just enough being 3-0. Go Phins!!!

Tip:

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9 comments

  • Fritz

    Excellent article. Please keep them coming!

  • Lindsay

    Not that surprising that Gruden got a lot of calls in this game. And the camera seemed to be on him a lot of the time. His return is a big story in the league, and he seems very well connected. The two offensive pass interference calls were outrageous.

    • admin

      That’s something that ran through my head, Lindsay. I do love Gruden… maybe they do too. I hate to dig that hole too deep… it might ruin football for me. I don’t know what the reasons are for the bad calls… I just want them to at least not be so obviously poor. wished they’d at least try and trick me

      • Pamela Cairns

        Omgoodess yes. I have been saying the same thing. It IS TAKING A LOT OF THE FUN out of the game. I am just fuming through most of the game because it is so obvious and nothing is being done about it. Those refs should be fired. The problem is I believe the the nfl is sanctioning it. The acronym not for long will come true if they don’t stop. Fans have to let them know and then be prepared to hit them in the wallet…the only thing they really care about.

      • Dunner

        3-0
        The thing about those (phantom) calls, is that New England is the King of picks (illegal picks), so lets see if they get flagged for any Sunday? I would bet not, even though they will probably be much more obvious than the phantom ones called on us.
        Another good win. Love the explosive plays, love the play design’s and the timing/execution. Last years team would not have overcome majority of the adversity faced this year. Liking this team, this roster, more and more each week. I wish we were full strength going into N.E., but this is the NFL and very few teams are full strength on a weekly basis.
        This team has a bunch of YOUNGSTERS coming into their own. Future looks bright. They could really stun the national audience with a win this Sunday vs the Pats. It wouldn’t be the national audience that I would be glad to snub as much as it would be coming out of N.E. with a 3 game lead on the Pats. That is right, a 3 game lead. Regardless if N.E. plays its best ball coming Nov. and Dec., a 3 game lead is a 3 game lead and Miami could be sitting in a GREAT position if they pull off the upset!
        Big weekend, even bigger for the Pats! Go Fins!!!

        • admin

          I like the aggressive, fast play on both sides, Dunner. Gase has so far shown he can run a tight ship and make the right calls. Unless things go south super hard, I have to say he is the coach and Grier is the talent finder of the future… and the future does look bright.

    • Pamela Cairns

      You are so right! But there were so many other blatant calls along with the lack of calls against the raiders. I feel like and see with my own 2 eyes that the Dolphins are always called for crap and other teams like the cheats and the stillers get away with murder. I’m sick of it

      the little math problems for captcha are hysterical.

      • admin

        I hate those things… I try to login pre-coffee and sometimes it takes me a few tries :O I’ve been telling Jimmy to get us on discus… He said he’d look into it. Maybe the powers that be will move off the Pats? It will be a very interesting game on so many levels.