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First of all, let me start off by saying that the AFC East is looking like the wackiest, sloppiest, and most exciting division in the AFC. I look forward to analyzing its events in the coming weeks, I must, however, begin with a biased rant on one Daunte Culpepper after a brief division overview.
We have seen in week two what we expected from New England, ugly wins with a bunch of “no names” on their team. As much as I want to discredit their off-season moves this past summer, somehow they get it done, although watching New York run up the score on them in the third and fourth quarters on Sunday has me thinking they aren’t necessarily the show-in for the division title like many probably assumed.
The New York Jets, on the other hand, come to us with an element of surprise heading into week three. Tisk, tisk to all those who stomped on the idea of Chad Pennington returning (including myself); He is looking like the sharp quarterback he was a few years ago before repeated shoulder problems. Yet it seems his 60% completion rating and 300 plus yards won’t be good enough for the Jets to succeed week in and week out. New coaching staff and all, this team still struggles with their defensive woes; a problem inherited and passed on by Herman Edwards (who is now showing the Kansas City Chiefs organization why it was such a bad idea to hire him as Head Coach).
In sharp contrast from 2005, the Buffalo Bills look like they could be contenders this year even though J.P. Losman has looked average at best (83 yards, 1 TD on Sunday). What observers must keep an eye on is Buffalo’s defense, which has found life in defensive end Ryan Denney, who had three sacks against Miami, his total in all of 2005. Players like rookies Ko Simpson and Daunte Whitner looked smooth in their opening start against Miami on Sunday, much to the delight of Bills fans who had suffered the loss of safety Troy Vincent ( placed on IR) and Takeo Spikes in the previous week. The Bills will make some noise in this division as long as they do not need to rely on Losman to do it. That statement comes bitter sweet for Bills fans, as they had hoped Losman’s “rookie” rust would disappear in the 2006 season.
The title of this commentary says it best, you are reading the words of a disgruntled, confused, and upset Miami Dolphins fan. A loss against the defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers is acceptable, after all the ‘Phins had been dominant until a complete melt down in the third quarter. What bothers me and many Dolphins fans around the country is a disappointing loss to Buffalo on Sunday. The Bills did what they had to do, which is win a game that the Dolphins painstakingly gift-wrapped for them while including a card that read “This one’s on us- Miami Dolphins Offense”. It seems as though many in South Florida are wondering whether Daunte Culpepper is the answer for Miami. In hindsight, maybe Drew Brees would have been the better option for Nick Saban in the off-season ( 63%, 353 yards, 2 TDs), but hindsight is 20/20 and they are where they are. Culpepper’s stats on Sunday lie in that he had a 70% completion rating as well as 250 yards and a nice touchdown pass to Chris Chambers which was too little too late in the winding moments of the fourth quarter. The stats fail to show Culpepper’s decisive problems with the football, fumbling twice and throwing an abominable interception on Buffalo’s 6 yard line during what looked like a scoring drive for the Dolphins. Is Culpepper overrated? Is he nothing without Randy Moss ripping his passes from the sky? These and other questions cannot be answered by myself or any other writer who claims to know the answers, they will come as the weeks pass by and Culpepper shows what he can do on the field. A valuable lesson, would be to understand what the quarterback’s problems are. To begin with, a mediocre offensive line that has been devastated by a number of injuries including center Seth McKinney and rookie guard Joe Toledo. This has forced Nick Saban’s Dolphins to pursue experimentation with the new offensive line they have come up with, which will take some time to develop. The offensive line is the first and only excuse that Culpepper has for his indecisive and inconsistent play in the first two weeks, the other reasons lie within the quarterback himself. Apart from a tendency to hold on to the ball too long or let it go into heavy traffic, Culpepper seems to be plagued by too much motivation. After a dismal exit from Minnesota and his worse season in the NFL in 2005, Culpepper has vowed to prove himself capable for the Miami Dolphins, what may seem like a good thing has turned into Culpepper’ problem: He is way too anxious to make a play. Many will point out that Culpepper is not 100% after tearing three ligaments in his right knee during his last year with the Vikings. As much as Culpepper would like to say he is about 90%, I would argue he is somewhere around 75%. A leaner, faster Culpepper should be showing his mobility, instead the quarterback has looked slow in the opening weeks. Consensus is simple around many Dolphins fans: Play Joey Harrington! Yet this is a rash, fair-weathered panic attack, for these same fans were praising the Culpepper signing when it happened. To all those Dolphins fans and Culpepper haters alike I give you a piece of advice: Do not count Culpepper out just yet, after all, which one of his vices do you think will outlast the other one? The indecisiveness and over-excitement, or the willingness to prove everyone wrong? (including the Vikings, who the Dolphins will meet in week 11). You be the judge.
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