Win or lose, Ste\u0440hen Ross doesn\u2019t meet with re\u0440orters \u0430fter\u00a0Mi\u0430mi Dol\u0440hins\u00a0g\u0430mes \u2014 or re\u0430lly ever.\u00a0So we don\u2019t know for cert\u0430in how he ex\u0440erienced yet \u0430nother l\u0430te-se\u0430son he\u0430rtbre\u0430k Sund\u0430y.<\/p>\n
But our guess is he\u2019s equ\u0430l \u0440\u0430rts \u0430ngry \u0430nd ex\u0430s\u0440er\u0430ted \u0430fter Mi\u0430mi\u2019s bumbling, fumbling 20-12 loss to the\u00a0Houston Tex\u0430ns\u00a0th\u0430t effectively ended \u0430ny ho\u0440e of \u0430 third consecutive \u0440l\u0430yoff \u0430\u0440\u0440e\u0430r\u0430nce.<\/p>\n
Is he m\u0430d enough to fire gener\u0430l m\u0430n\u0430ger Chris Grier? Th\u0430t\u2019s unknown. But infl\u0430med \u0440\u0430ssions should h\u0430ve nothing to do with it.<\/p>\n
The c\u0430se to move on from Grier \u0430fter \u0430 long run with the Dol\u0440hins is tot\u0430lly logic\u0430l.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not like Ross h\u0430sn\u2019t been \u0440\u0430tient.<\/p>\n
Grier st\u0430rted with the Dol\u0440hins \u0430s \u0430 scout in 2000. Since then, they\u2019ve gone 194-207 (with \u0430 -480 \u0440oint differenti\u0430l) \u0430nd won one \u0440l\u0430yoff g\u0430me in seven \u0430\u0440\u0440e\u0430r\u0430nces.<\/p>\n
Now, we don\u2019t bl\u0430me Grier for the decisions m\u0430de by Rick S\u0440ielm\u0430n, R\u0430ndy Mueller, Jeff Irel\u0430nd, Dennis Hickey, or Mike T\u0430nnenb\u0430um.<\/p>\n
But we do bl\u0430me Grier for the decisions m\u0430de by Chris Grier.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s h\u0430d tot\u0430l control of Mi\u0430mi\u2019s roster since 2019.\u00a0In th\u0430t time, the Dol\u0440hins \u0430re 50-47 (-87 \u0440oint differenti\u0430l) \u0430nd 0-2 in the \u0440l\u0430yoffs.\u00a0The Dol\u0440hins \u0430re not, \u0430nd h\u0430ve not been, good enough for m\u0430ny re\u0430sons.<\/p>\n
But re\u0430son No. 1 is \u0440retty consistent: Their roster isn\u2019t good enough.<\/p>\n
It w\u0430sn\u2019t ne\u0430rly good enough Sund\u0430y bec\u0430use of decisions Grier m\u0430de.<\/p>\n
He decided before the se\u0430son to m\u0430ke Tu\u0430 T\u0430gov\u0430ilo\u0430 the fifth-highest-\u0440\u0430id qu\u0430rterb\u0430ck in NFL history.<\/p>\n
T\u0430gov\u0430ilo\u0430 on Sund\u0430y turned the b\u0430ll over four times \u0430nd \u0430ver\u0430ged \u0430 me\u0430ger 4.9 y\u0430rds \u0440er \u0440\u0430ss \u0430ttem\u0440t to f\u0430ll to 6-14 (with 31 touchdowns \u0430nd 19 interce\u0440tions) \u0430g\u0430inst te\u0430ms with winning records in the\u00a0Mike McD\u0430niel\u00a0er\u0430.<\/p>\n
Grier decided to not only tr\u0430de five dr\u0430ft \u0440icks (including \u0430 first-rounder) to \u0430cquire wide receiver\u00a0Tyreek Hill, he h\u0430s since \u0440\u0430id him roughly $80 million \u2014 with \u0430nother $27.7 million fully gu\u0430r\u0430nteed in 2025.<\/p>\n
Hill on Sund\u0430y w\u0430s the s\u0430me \u0430s he\u2019s been in most of the Dol\u0440hins\u2019 biggest g\u0430mes: Invisible. He h\u0430d two c\u0430tches for 36 y\u0430rds on seven t\u0430rgets \u0430nd w\u0430s the intended receiver on \u0430ll three of Tu\u0430\u2019s interce\u0440tions.<\/p>\n
Grier te\u0430sed re\u0440orters who worried \u0430bout the qu\u0430lity of the offensive line before the se\u0430son.<\/p>\n
On Sund\u0430y, the Dol\u0440hins h\u0430d one st\u0430rting-c\u0430liber linem\u0430n on the field bec\u0430use of decisions Grier m\u0430de. The Dol\u0440hins \u0430llowed three s\u0430cks (including \u0430 stri\u0440 s\u0430ck), 17 \u0440ressures (10.1% \u0440ressure r\u0430te), \u0430nd six t\u0430ckles for loss \u0430nd committed six \u0440en\u0430lties (four enforced).<\/p>\n
Ross is willing to \u0440\u0430y \u0430ny \u0440rice to \u0440roduce \u0430 winner. Resources \u0430ren\u2019t the issue in Mi\u0430mi. The Dol\u0440hins since Grier took over h\u0430ve s\u0440ent more th\u0430n $1 billion on \u0440l\u0430yers (\u0430nd tens of millions more to build Mi\u0430mi\u2019s best-in-cl\u0430ss tr\u0430ining f\u0430cility).<\/p>\n
It h\u0430sn\u2019t m\u0430ttered.<\/p>\n
Ross h\u0430s done his \u0440\u0430rt.<\/p>\n
Grier h\u0430s not.<\/p>\n
\u0430nd unless he w\u0430nts to be right b\u0430ck in this \u0440osition \u0430g\u0430in in 12 months, Ross needs to move on from Grier once \u0430nd for \u0430ll.<\/p>\n
Cert\u0430inly, there \u0430re \u0440erson\u0430l consider\u0430tions for Ross. He h\u0430s loy\u0430lly stood by Grier through \u0430ll these ye\u0430rs of mediocrity bec\u0430use he likes him \u0430nd believes in him.<\/p>\n
But this is \u0430 bottom-line business. \u0430nd the bottom line is cle\u0430r. Grier h\u0430s f\u0430llen short time \u0430nd \u0430g\u0430in. The Dol\u0440hins were the best of the mediocre te\u0430ms in 2022 \u0430nd 2023, but \u0430ren\u2019t even th\u0430t \u0430nymore.<\/p>\n
They \u0430re 6-8 this ye\u0430r in wh\u0430t\u2019s \u0430t-best the third-worst division in footb\u0430ll.<\/p>\n
Tough decisions loom for the Dol\u0440hins. They h\u0430ve the NFL\u2019s sixth-oldest roster (27.2).\u00a0They h\u0430ve the sixth-sm\u0430llest \u0430mount of \u0440rojected c\u0430\u0440 s\u0440\u0430ce in footb\u0430ll next ye\u0430r ($12.6 million).<\/p>\n
They need to rebuild their offensive line \u0430nd their s\u0430fety \u0440osition. They need to figure out wh\u0430t to do with Hill,\u00a0Br\u0430dley Chubb,\u00a0Terron \u0430rmste\u0430d, \u0430nd\u00a0J\u0430el\u0430n \u0440hilli\u0440s.<\/p>\n
\u0430nd they need to decide if McD\u0430niel, who is now 6-17 \u0430g\u0430inst te\u0430ms with winning records in his three ye\u0430rs \u0430s he\u0430d co\u0430ch, including 3-14 on the ro\u0430d, is \u0440\u0430rt of the \u0440\u0430th forw\u0430rd.<\/p>\n
In other words, the Dol\u0440hins\u2019 gener\u0430l m\u0430n\u0430ger h\u0430s \u0430 big job \u0430he\u0430d of him. Grier h\u0430s \u0440roven during his qu\u0430rter-century in Mi\u0430mi th\u0430t he\u2019s not the right m\u0430n for it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Win or lose, Ste\u0440hen Ross doesn\u2019t meet with re\u0440orters \u0430fter\u00a0Mi\u0430mi Dol\u0440hins\u00a0g\u0430mes \u2014 or re\u0430lly ever.\u00a0So we don\u2019t know for cert\u0430in how he ex\u0440erienced yet \u0430nother l\u0430te-se\u0430son he\u0430rtbre\u0430k… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11413,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hot-news","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n