Dolphins Friday Post-Bills Game Mailbag: Tua, Sieler, McDaniel, and More

Part 1 of a post-Bills game Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Mark Lever:

Any way we can save the season or is it over?

Hey Mark, the big question here is, what do you mean by saving the season? If you mean make the playoffs, yeah, it’s almost over. From 1990 through last season, 165 teams started 0-3 and only four made the playoffs (so one out of 41). Not good. But the Bengals almost did last year when they finished 9-8 and still were in contention heading into Week 18. It might not be long before the focus needs to be on developing young players for the future.

From Ed Helinski:

Do the Dolphins redeem their season with some wins in the next four games against the Jets, Panthers, Chargers and Browns? Do they run the table, split or go 3-1?

Hey Ed, you’re asking me to look into my crystal ball up to a month in advance. Sorry, can’t do that. I would say the next two games will tell us what we need to know because the Dolphins absolutely have more talent than either the Jets or the Panthers.

From Jason:

Not to say I want it to happen, but after this season, can the Dolphins trade/cut Tua?

Hey Jason, Tua’s contract obviously complicates things. I have a hard time seeing a team being willing to take on his contract if the Dolphins decide he’s not the answer anymore. As for an outright release, this will come down to whether Miami is willing to do what Denver did with Russell Wilson because Tua would carry a cap hit of $67 million even if he’s not on the roster and with a post-June 1 designation.

From Brian Silver:

What’s your most positive and negative takeaway from game?

Hey Brian, the most positive probably was the running of Ollie Gordon II and the Dolphins converted two third-and-short situations on the ground. The biggest negative takeaway probably was the killer interception when the Dolphins looked ready to tie the score because it continued Tua’s late-game struggles.

From Emilio:

When is Mr. Ross selling the team?

Hey Emilio, there has been no indication whatsoever that Stephen Ross will do anything other than hand the franchise to his daughters.

From Prince-Bishop Militantly Aardvark:

Hi, Alain, could we be seeing the Dolphins turning things around in a more sustainable way? The team looked tougher and more competent in this game than many predicted. A loss, but not a blowout. Are the pieces coming together?

Hey PBMA, yeah, I absolutely do think there were enough positive signs in the Buffalo to believe the Dolphins could go on a mini-run but there also were enough warning signs that they still might have a tough time competing against the better teams.

From finsfan4life:

Why is Sieler playing special teams? I don't blame him on the roughing kicker, but he's one of our top 3 D players. He should not be out there.

It’s really not uncommon for top defensive linemen to play on punt block or field goal block, and here’s an interesting stat: In the first three games, Sieler played 38 of the special teams snaps, which is the exact percentage he played last season.

From Teej:

Outside of the big contract players, what stars are rising & falling on our O & D?

Hey Teej, tough to answer this without knowing your definition of “stars,” so I’ll just go with any old player on the roster and the guy on offense I feel is rising is Malik Washington, who continues to deliver every time his number is called. It’s tougher on defense because that unit hasn’t been very good all season. If I have to name somebody, I’d say I’ve liked what I’ve seen at times from Jack Jones, understanding that he hasn’t been perfect. But there is playmaking ability there.

From David Campbell:

Greetings Alain! No matter what, I remain a fan of the Dolphins (wife says I'm a glutton for punishment) & I'd never call for anyone's firing, having been fired myself. But as everyone says ain't no such thing as a moral victory. Defense finally gets a stop & a seasoned veteran makes a bonehead mistake. Possible game tying-drive stopped again by an INT! Didn't see much pressure on Tua, seems like it's on him. Special Teams coaching? This season seems you can count on at least one Tua INT a game, especially in critical situations. Team psychologist time? More time with QB coach on fundamentals!? Combination or just a good-old fashioned Shula butt chewing? I'm a little tired of the " learn from it " phrase TBH. This week's podcasts should be real interesting.

Hey Dave, first off, there was pressure on Tua on the interception, though it didn’t stop him from making an easy throw; this was just an issue of Terrel Bernard reading the play and jumping in front of Jaylen Waddle. Mike McDaniel isn’t really the butt-chewing type, so I’d be on board with the combination of team psychologist or more time with the QB coach. Tua simply doesn’t seem to be seeing things this season as well as he has in the past, and the Dolphins have to find out what that’s happening to try to eliminate that problem.

From Damian Werts:

Mr. P, something I was thinking about, was wondering your perspective.... as we all watch the (likelier than not) end of the Tua/McDaniel/Grier era, I think that there's a tremendous amount of vitriol, often personal, being slung at McDaniel. (For example, Rex Ryan.) I understand the disappointment and his inability to evolve and counter-punch defenses has been maddening. Does his seat deserve to be hot? Yes. But I feel like the attacks on him (and MIA, writ large) are way over the top. Some of it almost seems gleeful. What can you make of this? Is it just because he's quirky? Or is he prickly behind the scenes? I don't get it. Anyway, if you had some thoughts, I'd be interested.

Hey Damian, yes, some of the criticism has been over the top, and in the case of Rex Ryan, one can help but wonder whether he’s still bitter at the Dolphins not giving him a shot whenever they’ve been looking for a head coach. As for the idea of McDaniel maybe being prickly behind the scenes, I find that hard to believe based on all the interactions I’ve had with him. It’s just not who he is. He’s a good guy. Yes, very quirky, but that wouldn’t be justification for taking cheap shots.

From Paul Trust:

Hey Poup, Listen to you almost every morning on the way home from school dropoff. Don’t you think it’s pretty stupid to talk about firing McDaniel/Grier midseason? If the defense was playing great and you wanted to give Weaver an interim test flight it would make sense, but that’s not the case. Correct me if I’m wrong but you can’t interview prospective candidates that are either active coordinators or college coaches until the end of their seasons anyway? Seems like firing mid season would just be a show to put on for the fans.

Hey Paul, no, you cannot interview active coordinators during the season but don’t know about rules regarding college candidates. And the reason you make an in-season coaching change is to try to salvage the season and in some cases to not lose the fan base. Another reason is to start putting emphasis on evaluating players for the future with the combination of knowing already you’ll be making a coaching change, the idea being that an interim coach would be OK with that job requirement and a head coach on his way out the door would not.

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