Give Brian Flores a Chance Before Crowning Him a Dolphins Failure

If you’ve been a Miami Dolphins fan for the last 10, 15, or 20 years, you’ve probably become a skeptic when it comes to potential changes in the front office. Cam Cameron was going to revitalize the Miami Dolphins offense.  The late Tony Sparano was going to bring some of the Dallas Cowboys magic to the Dolphins franchise. Joe Philbin brought a skill of cleanliness and organization that was needed with the Dolphins, and Adam Gase was the “quarterback whisperer” that the Dolphins longed for. It’s very easy to understand fan’s skepticism, but there are reasons to give new Dolphins Head Coach Brian Flores a chance to succeed before calling him a “bad hire” or “another failure in a long list of Dolphin’s coaching failures”.

First, the pedigree that Brian Flores brings to the Miami Dolphins is the best for a new coach for the Fins since the hiring of Jimmy Johnson. Flores joined the New England Patriots in 2004 as a scouting assistant and held various roles during his 14-year tenure with the Pats. Along the way, he collected 14 AFC East titles, seven AFC Conference Championships, and four Super Bowl Rings. No other Head Coach has brought this type of resume’ with them to the Dolphins organization since Jimmy Johnson. The Dolphins have talked about shifting the culture from a losing mentality to that of a winning mentality. You won’t find many coaching candidates with a tenure, winning percentage, and hardware that Flores brings along with him.

Second, the reset is here and it’s probably a few years overdue. The front office pretty much got cleared out. Gone are the days of the three-headed front office monster of Dennis Hickey, Dawn Aponte and Mike Tannenbaum, and gone are the days of Mike Tannenbaum overpaying for aged veteran free agents. Between Chris Grier and now Brian Flores, who has four years of scouting experience, they will be able to bring in young guys that they can develop, including a new quarterback. Plus, the coaching staff has pretty much undergone a full overhaul.  Coach Flores will now have the opportunity to shape the Dolphins roster with coachable, effective, and efficient players that will each be challenged to “do their job” (sound familiar?).  

Oh, and don’t believe the hype about the Dolphins supposedly “tanking” during the 2019 season. It’s not going to happen. No coach in their right mind, let alone a coach coming from the most respected franchise in the country, would want to join a team with the direction that they lose. Reread that statement again. It makes no sense. What will most likely happen is that the older, high priced players will be replaced with younger, less expensive players. This will allow for a team rebuild that will not just be a one-year fix but a long-term solution, which is something the Dolphins have not been able to accomplish for a long time.  It may lead to a challenging 2019 season because of this approach, but, if the young guys step up, it may not be as challenging as some may anticipate.

Lastly, Brian Flores is a different guy than what we’ve had in the past.  The Miami Dolphins have been searching for another Don Shula since the last time Coach Shula stepped off the field in 1995.  The Dolphins have had 10 coaches in the last 24 seasons. And they all have not fit the bill. Eventually, though, the Miami Dolphins are going to get it right, and Brian Flores is going to get his shot to be the right guy!

In closing, a lot of changes are coming the Miami Dolphin’s way! We’ve seen the change in coaches already, with more to come; player changes are coming as well, with upcoming free agency and draft; and then, the play on the field will be changing also once the season begins. A lot of changes are heading the Fins way and the fan skepticism is understandable. Some changes that fans will like and other changes that fans will hate. At the end of the day, Brian Flores is the 13th Coach of the Miami Dolphins. He’s different, he’s motivated to succeed, and he’s here, like it or not. Maybe being the 13th coach will bring a little magic like another prior Dolphin with the same number. Give the man a chance.

This article was written by Ian Berger. Follow him on Twitter: @ian693