The Phasing Out Of The Wildcat -- And What It Says

December 9, 2009|Posted by Dave Hyde on December 9, 2009 10:50 AM

Let?s talk Wildcat.

Well, first, let?s talk about the post-Don Shula era of Dolphins offenses. Remember how numbingly dreadful it was to watch for years? There was the Jimmy Johnson handcuffing of an aging Dan Marino while surrounding him with little talent. There was the uber-conservatism of Dave Wannstedt that rode Ricky Williams into self-exile. There was the futile search for quarterbacks under Nick Saban and Cam Cameron.

Finally, with Tony Sparano and Dan Henning, the Dolphins not only get to watch a real NFL offense (starting with real quarterbacks) but an imaginative one, too. And how are people reacting?

By complaining.

It?s like we?ve gone from a black-and-white world to color in the past couple of seasons and people say the shade of green is a bit off. The time management issues are dumb (New Orleans was the only valid issue). The pass play by Ricky Williams on the goal line was dumb (OK, it was).

Here?s the larger point: If you don?t recognize this is good coaching, you never will appreciate good coaching. Coaching matters in football, too. It?s chess, not checkers, as in a sport like baseball or basketball where individual players win more than schemes built for talent.

Let?s make this simple. Let?s say why this regime is making the best use of its talent ? and why it will be fun to watch if they ever get a top receiver on the roster.

Let?s talk Wildcat.

Everyone knows it started last season when, at 0-2, Sparano said he had to do something and allowed the Wildcat to start. The thinking was to get the best two playmakers ? Willians and Ronnie Brown ? on the field at the same time. And it worked. The Dolphins ran 90 plays for a 6.4-yard average.

The first four games this season, the Dolphins ran 46 Wildcat plays for a 7.1-yard average. That made sense, as they adjusted the Wildcat some over the off-season, the main thing being the line stayed in a conventional formation rather than last year?s moving of tackles to the same side.

Teams reacted. They saw they had to gameplan to stop the Wildcat. Against New Orleans and the Jets, the Wildcat was run 20 times for 37 yards.

Then came the injury to Brown against Tampa Bay. And the aftermath tells the Wildcat was exactly what good coaching is: It has been downsized to the point it wasn?t run against New England on Sunday.

The idea of the Wildcat was to take advantage of the twin talent of Williams and Brown. Without Brown, it?s not as effective. You?ll probably still see it on occasion ? Williams ran it for a touchdown against Carolina ? but it probably won?t be a major point of the playbook the rest of the season simply because one of its prime motors isn?t around anymore.

Instead, what does Henning do on Sunday? He surprises everyone (at least me) by putting the game in Henne?s hands to take advantage of New England?s pass defense.

I sat through the Jimmy offense with Kippy Brown. It got worse with Wannstedt. He had one good year, his first, when Jay Fiedler was a first-year starter and Lamar Smith the starting running back. But who knew that conservative gameplan was his philosophy?

Saban couldn?t find a quarterback. Ditto Cameron.

Analyzing sports isn?t a static thing. You react to what happens. But as the phasing out of the Wildcat shows, these coaches aren?t forcing some single-minded philosphy of winning.

They keep reacting to their talent, week-to-week. That?s all you can ask.

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