The Value of Philbin's Values for The Miami Dolphins

Joe Philbin’s decision to divest himself of troubled players like Brandon Marshall, Vontae Davis and Chad Johnson may have placed Miami on shaky ground when building the roster. Athletes at this level have plenty of documented issues, but many times those same players have game changing talent. The value placed on character could be critical to the Dolphins finally making it back to the top of the NFL.

Can the Dolphins afford to cast aside troubled children to fit the Philbin mold? What value do Dolphin fans place on character? Is the Miami criterion too strict? Will it lead to an unremarkable roster? How does it affect free agency and the draft? These are the questions that will shape the future in Miami.

Looking at the dismissed players can define a set of values deemed unwanted on the roster. A “me first” attitude is at the top of the list. The one trait all three players shared was a complete self-centric view of life. This trait often leads to off-the-field issues as well as problems with teammates in the locker room, on the practice field and during games.

These behaviors frequently interconnect and create a personality profile. “Me first” in a personal relationship outside of football causes issues when the other person in the relationship does not agree. It becomes a test of wills leading to high profile altercations unrelated to football. When the volatile mixture of alcohol or drugs is introduced, better judgment is impaired and only bad things will happen in “me first” relationships. The second important value trait would then be sobriety.

Sobriety is not easy in the NFL for many players. The temptation is too great to use performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) to gain an edge. The league will allow players to take shots of Toradol to be able to tolerate the pain of playing the game, while drug testing for other substances. The expectation to play with pain, is the rite of passage in the NFL. Pain meds are acceptable in the locker room, but mix those same pain meds with alcohol at a club and foolish decisions are certain to follow. Staying away from the clubs during the season and certainly before practice days, eliminates potential issues. So a third criterion would be to avoid being a celebrity. With all the temptations, it can only lead to trouble.

The old adage, “nothing good happens after midnight,” isn’t only true for NFL players; it is true for everyone. As the night wears on the folks with better sense have gone home and police are well aware. Even though the NFL provides free taxi service to any player at any time, some will still choose to get behind the wheel. Obviously, they know calling a taxi at two o’clock in the morning through team sources will mean the team knows someone has been a bad boy. Which leads to the next criterion, beware the witching hour. Getting off the streets before midnight is a simple way to avoid trouble with the law.

These are the four traits Joe Philbin would like to avoid.

1.    Me first attitude
2.    Alcohol and drug abuse
3.    Celebrity football players
4.    After midnight
   
These traits must be measured against the questions asked above:

What value do Dolphin fans place on character?

The majority of Dolphin fans had grown tired of Brandon Marshall’s me-first antics. There were whispers that Marshall had more than a little to do with Chad Henne never gaining the confidence to break out as an NFL QB. The other side of that coin would be, if Henne could not handle Marshall’s harassment in the huddle, he would probably not make it in the NFL anyway. Having experienced the volatile mixture of Marshall and Henne, it was probably an easy decision to trade Marshall, even if doing so left Miami without a top-flight receiver.

This exemplifies the proper sequence, rookie Ryan Tannehill should gain control of the team and be comfortable in that role prior to being asked to handle a personality like Brandon Marshall. In other words, an established leader like Tom Brady can handle a me-first personality, but placing that burden on a young QB is adding to an already pressure packed position. Bill Parcells is known for preaching that QB toughness is garnered by placing those players in difficult situations, but Parcells truly only ever groomed one decent QB, Phil Simms. Has anyone ever heard Simms speak to or be seen around Parcells? Simms was the exception, not the rule. Parcells built a philosophy based on an anomaly and that is why he was unable to duplicate it.

Is the Miami criterion too strict?

Vontae Davis obviously had issues with alcohol and perhaps other substances the public is unaware of. Davis did not perform well in practice because he was often hung over from partying the night before. Joe Philbin comes off as a very up-front type of coach, a player’s coach who will say what needs to be said. By doing this, Philbin does not keep players guessing what he is thinking and does not have to remain aloof because what he thinks is unclear. Therefore, it is logical from the outside, to assume Philbin told Davis exactly what was expected of him and what Joe thought was unacceptable. Clearly, Vontae did not take heed to what Philbin expected.

Anyone who has ever stepped in a football locker room knows this is a land of Alpha Males dominated by “A” personalities. Coaches walk a fine line when they are considered player friendly because player friendly is often misconstrued as a sign of weakness. In a locker room, a coach must remain the one voice and when he speaks the players must listen. If a player breaks this rule and is allowed to get away with it, as Miami fans saw with Cam Cameron, the hierarchy of the locker room is broken. Davis did not listen and if the situation had not been resolved, Philbin could have lost the locker room. This means the strictness, the code, must not be broken or it will lead to 1-15 seasons. Losing Davis hurt the Dolphins in the short term, but keeping him would have been far worse in the long term.

Will it lead to an unremarkable roster?

Having a celebrity like Chad Johnson can add a name, but does not make a roster more valuable. Johnson falls into a category where his presence in the locker room was not conflicting with his coach, but once out the door the team was no longer as important as his own celebrity. Jason Taylor was a celebrity in Miami but not for the wrong reason. This is a criterion where Philbin must not allow his small town nature to dictate his roster. Michael Jordan was a celebrity but he was also the greatest basketball player of all time. Payton Manning and Tom Brady are celebrities, but they would be welcome in Miami.

This rule cannot be cut and dry, Miami needs the face of a player as the signature of the team. The problem is when the wrong player becomes the face of the franchise, as was the case with Chad Johnson. When Johnson’s antics become how the football world views the Dolphins, serious issues will soon follow, as they did before Johnson’s release. The perception of Chad Johnson could easily become the perception of the Miami Dolphins. There is a fine line when dealing with celebrity players and the line is drawn by one rule of thumb, the team must be more important to the player than stardom. In the case of Chad Johnson, the team came second or more specifically, Johnson’s value to the team was not great enough to tolerate his celebrity.

How does it affect free agency and the draft?

In review of the three questions already asked and by relating them to actual players, the value of having values is clear. Over the long term, adhering to the values will create a harmonious team from which stars will rise. The effect of not following the values leads to poor long-term personnel decisions. Knowing Brandon Marshall is a borderline personality but trading two 2nd round picks for him, led to dumping him for two 3rd round picks. Drafting Vontae Davis in the first round when he slipped in the draft due to maturity concerns led to dumping him for a 2nd round pick.

The net value was a loss for both players. When considering a player like Percy Harvin, take a look at the mistakes already made and resist the temptation to allow talent to override values. Following the value rules when dealing with players could mean a player like Ray Lewis is left on the table, but players like Lewis are few and far between. Lewis would not be considered a problem child now and he was not considered one when he was drafted. Lewis is an exception, just like Simms was an exception and exceptions should be treated with flexibility but should never be the principles that create strategic rules.

When strategic personnel rules are guided by values there is a greater chance for success in the long term. When these rules are disregarded it rarely leads to a good end. This can easily be seen when a team Like the Philadelphia Eagles dismisses its values and brings in players that do not fit the mold in the quest for a Super Bowl. The coach is fired, there is no longer a structure in the locker room and the team is in total disarray.

Patience Dolphin fans... It takes time to build from the bottom into champions. It starts with placing the proper value on values.

Joe Philbin is the Real Leader in Miami

Stephen Ross has obviously given Joe Philbin control over the players he wants on his football team and left Ireland to make the deals. It means when Philbin was hired, there was an understanding that Ireland did not have ultimate control over personnel. Regardless of how it came about, Philbin has the keys to who stays and who goes on this football team, whether good or bad, time will tell.

Brandon Marshall - Ireland trades two second rounders, Philbin sends him packing, getting only two third rounders in return. Chad Johnson - Ireland goes out on a limb to bring in the troubled wide receiver, Philbin bounces him in front of the world on Hard Knocks. Vontae Davis - Ireland uses the twenty-fifth pick in the draft, Philbin shows him the door for second and sixth round picks.

What all these moves point to is, while the Dolphins do not claim to be rebuilding, they are certainly getting rid of personnel that Joe Philbin does not think will blend well in his mix. The question that begs to be answered is, will a player like Brandon Marshall ever be a leader on a Super Bowl caliber team? Will Chad Johnson ever possess the veteran leadership a coach wants other players to emulate? Is Vontae Davis the type of player to lead a secondary?

Once these questions are presented, it becomes obvious where the Dolphins are going, and it is going to take some time to get there. The one thing these players have in common is they are all completely self-centered. They place themselves above the concept of team, while claiming to embrace the team, their actions speak much louder than their words.

Players who do not come to work as a team may as well start thinking of a new city because Philbin is not going to tolerate it. The indictment against Ireland is, what led him to draft, sign or trade for these players? But it should be pointed out that Ireland does not make any of these transactions in a vacuum, therefore Sparano and Parcells had input in trading for Marshall and drafting Davis.

As Ireland said, "We know a lot about our players, some of that includes things you don't know about them or isn't seen by the public ..." Coaches many times think they have a magic power over players and can change the attitude and actions through their ability to communicate. Most likely, Ireland was aware of the physical gifts of these players, but also informed the coaches there were attitude issues.

Brandon Marshall was not drafted until the fourth round because his personal issues overrode his ability. Vontae Davis fell to the twenty-fifth pick because there were concerns about his attitude. Cincinnati let Chad Johnson go because his performance no longer overshadowed his eccentric personality. It all means that Sparano and Parcells, like many other coaches and czars think they can change a spade to a diamond. Sometimes they can, but not very often and not over the long term.

In a sense, the Dolphins are rebuilding, they are rebuilding the personality from a team led by individuals to a team led by players that embrace the team concept. It means there will be no trades for disgruntled players, no high draft picks on falling problem children and no chances taken on eccentric personalities. Joe Philbin is not trying to rebuild the roster; he is trying to change the culture.

For Miami Dolphin fans it could be a long season, but once a team starts to play like one, players will emerge. Great teams are not built through trades or free agents. Great teams are built from an attitude that together we stand taller than any individual among us... 

Right now, it is Joe Philbin and the Miami Dolphins against the world.

Miami Dolphins Release Chad Johnson

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Chad Johnson has officially been released by the team, according to Jay Glazer.

This comes less than 24 hours after Johnson was arrested for a domestic violence charge. Johnson was released from jail this afternoon after posting bail.

This puts an end to our discussions earlier. I have no problem at all with the releasing. The Dolphins obviously did their due diligence on the situation and felt it was the best move to remove Johnson.

As a kind of funny side note, during the first episode of HBO's Hard Knocks Chad Johnson said this as he was leaving the practice facility:

"I promise I'm getting arrested while we're off."

While he didn't technically get arrested during the day off like he said that he would it is still kind of funny that that was the last thing he said on Hard Knocks before he was actually arrested.

Now it is going to be interesting to see who replaces Johnson in Miami. If I had to bet on it I would say Roberto Wallace, but we'll just have to see. Miami has a good stable of wide receivers who could potentially replace Johnson.

This move is a statement by Miami Dolphins new Head Coach Joe Philbin. He wanted high-character players on his team, and Johnson obviously didn't live up to that requirement.

Thanks for stopping by. Let me know what you think.

Email me at paul@dolphinshout.com. I'm on twitter @PaulDSmythe.
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Chad Johnson: Let's Wait until We Hear the Truth before We Crucify the Dolphins Receiver

The truth is that we don't know the truth yet

Let's slow down a little bit here guys. Before we decide that Miami Dolphins receiver Chad Johnson is guilty of head-butting his wife let's wait until he's actually convicted. I'm guilty of plenty of knee-jerk reactions myself. I reacted too quickly when I first heard Johnson was arrested.

The truth is that we don't know the truth yet, so we need to wait

Here is what we know so far, all per the Sun Sentinel:

Evelyn Lozada's side:

"Johnson began screaming and Evelyn attempting to calm Johnson down. He began screaming, "I don't give a f---! I don't give a f--- about my career." Evelyn then fled on a neighbor's house to get away from Johnson. Johnson began driving the neighborhood looking for Evelyn."

Chad Johnson's side:

"Johnson confirmed that he and Evelyn were arguing regarding a sales receipt. During the argument, she began yelling, "F--- it!" She then head-butted Johnson. This caused the laceration on her forehead. Johnson seeing how upset she was went for a drive to give her time to calm down."

Let's say this first. Chad Johnson may be eccentric at times, he may curse a lot, and he may be seen by a lot of people as a diva, but the truth is that he has been relatively harmless during his 12-year NFL career.

He's never been arrested in that time (which is something that he was very proud of), he doesn't drink alcohol, and he has always been wonderful about giving back to his fans and the community. Slam him all you want. Talk down about him all you want, but everything I just said is true. He has treated a lot of fans to dinner multiple times. He's bought a lot of tickets for a Bengals game before to prevent a blackout and then gave all of them away. He has been a great guy for almost 12 years now. I'm not sure if that's changed.

I'm not saying that Johnson is innocent. Not at all. I'm saying that we can't just instantly assume that he's guilty. Just because some of us don't like him doesn't mean that we should assume that he did it.

Were there lacerations on Lozada's head? Yes, but the only thing that tells us with absolute certainty is that Johnson and Lozada hit heads. It doesn't tell us who the aggressor was and who the victim was. That's what the police investigation will tell us, so until then we can't just assume that he did it.


Another thing that I want to get to. This part is pure speculation, but look at what Evelyn Lozada said that Johnson said before the head-butt. The quote was:

"I don't give a f---! I don't give a f--- about my career."

Something about that sounds off to me. Everything I have seen Chad Johnson say and do makes me think that he cares about his career a whole lot. During his last profanity-laced press conference he defended his career saying, "I handled my business for a decade straight. A lot of us tend to forget that." He was very proud about what he has done to this point, and he seemed determined to keep working and do something more. Nothing he has done makes me think he doesn't care about his career.


So please, let's wait to judge until we learn the truth. Remember, the truth is that we don't know the truth yet, so let's wait until the conclusion of the police report comes out.

Thanks for stopping by. Email me at paul@dolphinshout.com. I'm also on twitter @PaulDSmythe.

Chad Johnson Arrested on Domestic Violence Charge

Miami Dolphins receiver Chad Johnson has been arrested for domestic violence on Saturday night, according to the Sun Sentinel.

According to the report Johnson allegedly "head-butted" his wife Evelyn Lozada during an argument. This news is somewhat surprising considering that Johnson hasn't been arrested during his entire NFL career.

Johnson, who recently changed his last name from Ochocinco, is coming off of a somewhat poor preseason showing against the Buccaneers on Friday where he dropped the only pass thrown his way.

Johnson was considered to be the Dolphins top receiving option this season.

This is more bad news for Miami. Just yesterday it was announced that David Garrard will miss 2 to 4 weeks due to arthroscopic knee surgery. Now, it appears unlikely that the Dolphins will keep Johnson, whose contract is not guaranteed.

Thanks for stopping by everyone. Isn't it wonderful getting news like this on a Saturday night?

Email me at paul@dolphinshout.com. I'm on twitter @PaulDSmythe.

Miami Dolphins Receiver Chad Johnson's Hilarious Media Session [Audio]

I figured this would be a fun little clip to listen to. Miami Dolphins receiver Chad Johnson had a question and answer session with the media this morning after practice. I have embedded the video below, and I really encourage you guys to watch. It is 12 minutes long, but I promise you if you listen to the whole thing you will be thoroughly entertained.

Here's the audio:
[WARNING: The audio does contain language and some inappropriate topics, so please do not watch if you will be offended and/or don't want to listen to profanity.]

The audio is courtesy of Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. I encourage you guys to check out his latest work. He just put up a play-by-play of each quarterback, which I can assure you was no easy task. Show him some support and check it out. Here's the link: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/dolphins_in_depth/.

Thanks for stopping by. What do you think about Johnson's little Q&A session?