FOF4: An Alternate Reality Dynasty

[DolphinFan1]

This is a repost of my earlier dynasty. I will be reprinting my other dynasty also very soon. Stay tuned.

FOF4: An Alternate Reality Dynasty

This is a Miami Dolphins fictional FOF4 dynasty, using a OPU and starting in 1980. I will be using TCY draft files when I get to 2003. Here’s the background:

I’m not sure where to begin. I don’t think anyone will believe my story, but I will tell it anyway.
My name is C.J.Wolf. I was born in 1970 and I am 32 years old. I have been a devoted fan of the Miami Dolphins of the NFL for a long time. I grew up watching Dan Marino throw crisp, bullet passes to Mark Duper and Mark Clayton.
I know what you’re thinking. Who are these people? And this is 1980, not 2002. Well, where I come from it’s 2002 and the NFL has been around for a long time. Here, it’s 1980 and the NFL is in it’s 1st year.
I have no idea how or why I am here. All I know is that I wake up one morning and find out I am the GM of the Miami Dolphins. At first I tried to dismiss it as all a dream. But, it didn’t go away. Then I realized that it was a dream, a dream come true. How many people want to run a football franchise? To be able to make decisions about who plays or not. So many times sports fans criticize coaches of their teams on decisions. Now, someone is giving me an opportunity to run a team. Why, I don’t know. But I am going to enjoy it for as long as it lasts.
Granted, this is the NFL in it’s infancy. The players are not up to caliber of my world’s NFL. But it’s still football. Let’s see if we can win the whole thing.



MIAMI DOLPHINS 1980 PRESEASON

I start my first year right after the allocation draft. As I look over my roster I realize that winning The Front Office Bowl (That’s what they call the Super Bowl here) will be a lot harder than I first thought. Most of these players wouldn’t play on some of the college teams in my world. But, every new league has to start somewhere. Hopefully the players will have better talent in the future.
Everyone here thinks that I have always been in this reality. So, I try not to make too many changes right away. Even though as I look over the free agent list, I see quite a few players that would improve my squad.
I do cut a CB and my K who were just awful. I pick up a starting CB and a pretty good K to start out. But other than that, I will start the season with my current roster. Unless my team performs horribly. Then some changes might be in store.
We go 2-2 in the preseason. My kicker was 13 for 15 with 3 FG over 45 yards. Including a 48 yard O.T. kick against Chicago in our preseason finale. So, that looked like a good move. I should be all right at that position.
As for the rest of my offense, we need help. We only score one TD and it doesn’t come until the final game of preseason. I have a clear third sting QB and the other two will be fighting for the starting job. Neither were impressive in preseason. They both passed with 54% completions. But I will give the nod to Tubbs over Irwin to start the year. Both threw 4 picks and no TD’s, but Tubbs threw for more yards and is making a lot more money. So, we will start the year seeing if he is worth the money. But, if he makes too many mistakes, Irwin will get a shot to see what he can do.
At the RB position, we have 4 on the roster. Only one, Baker, rushed for over 4.0 Y.P.C. (4.8). He will start over Shirley even though Shirley is making a lot more money. My coaches don’t necessarily agree with me. They think unless there is a real difference in ability, then the higher paid should start. Well, that’s why I am the GM, I get the final say. I just wasn’t impressed with Shirley in preseason. That’s not to say he won’t start. He and Baker will share carries unless one plays much better than the other. Riner and Feliciano will alternate an inactive spot and will be our third RB.
Our two FB are not that good. The start goes to Jordan over Lee. Again, Lee is making twice as much as Jordan, but Jordan is a little better at run and pass blocking.
We have three TE on the roster. Clearly Wentworth is the best option, he will start. England and Alba will back up and alternate being inactive.
Our three FL are L.Jordan, Watkins and Castroll. Our two SE are Harden and Farr. Watkins and Harden are the best and will start. L.Jordan is a capable backup. Castroll and Farr are not too good and will alternate being inactive.
Our OL is our deepest position group. We have 10 on the roster and will deactivate two each week. Flynn, Carlson and Alson will rotate with one being active each week. At LT Janes will start with Ielusic backing up both T positions. I had a real problem here with my coaches. Ielusic is making over $5 million while Janes is just short of $1 million. It’s just that Janes showed more potential in preseason. If Ielusic doesn’t show a lot in a back up role, we may have to try to rework his contract next year. I don’t think he’s worth that much money. At RT we have Legette who has a lot of potential. He is also making over $5 million. And it will get worse as he has a 5 year deal. But at least he has shown in preseason that he may be worth the money. At C we have Patton and Coles. Patton will start but Coles will get some work in at both C and RG. At LG and RG we have some pretty good talent. But our starters are much better than our backups. Chrisman and Garcia will start at LG and RG respectively. Both were impressive in preseason only giving up 2 sacks in four games.
On the defensive side of the ball we have 8 DL on the roster and all will be active to start the year. I like the idea of rotating my DL to keep them fresh. Although a couple players are clearly better players and will start. Our 1st round draft pick, Fuller will start at LDE. Backing him up will be Perales. On the right side, Wiggins will start with Porter getting some playing time. At the DT position, Shapiro and Schneiderheinze will start and Livingston and Hoffman will back up. This group showed some potential in preseason.
We have 7 LB on the roster and will deactivate one each week. Andrews, Poole and Robinson will alternate that role to start the season. Randle and Nowakowski will start at OLB and Taylor will play ILB. Peterson will backup. This is a pretty average group with Randle looking like he is the best in this group.
Our secondary isn’t bad, but it isn’t great either. Thankfully no one is making over $2 million this year. Malfara, the FA I signed, will start at LCB, and I know that if he doesn’t show something my coaches will criticize any other FA moves I try to make. At RCB McInerney will start with Odell backing up both CB positions and will also be the Nickel back. Guthrie and Wheeler will alternate being deactive as there is a clear drop off in talent after our first three CB. At SS, Humphries is the best we have at DB position and will start. At FS, Fitzgerald will start with Reardon and Bishop backing up.
That’s our roster for this season. We will be running a 4-3 defense and will be trying to build a running team as clearly we don’t have the weapons at QB and Rec. positions to shoot it out with anyone. We only scored 46 points in 4 games in preseason with our K getting 13 FG for 39 of those points. So, we are going to have to control the clock.

Excerpts from :
MIAMI DOLPHINS START OF THE REGULAR SEASON PRESS CONFERENCE


“Ladies and Gentlemen, the GM and Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins, C.J.Wolf and Kennedy Salcido.”
Miami Sun reporter, Thomas Landon, “Mr. Wolf, your first month on the job, you cut a CB and your K. You then sign two FA who everyone passed on in the allocation draft. What did you see that even your scouts didn’t? Also, what did your coaches think of your decision?”
“Well, I wasn’t here for the allocation draft. But after training camp, I wasn’t impressed with the two players I cut. I saw a couple of FA who had better potential. I hope the two players I cut can find work elsewhere. Nothing personal, but we are trying to build a winning franchise. As for our K, Osborne, he was 13 for 15 with 3 FG over 45 yards in preseason. I think I made the right decision there. He scored 39 of our 46 points in preseason. He was our MVP of the preseason. My coaches may not have agreed with my decision, but they are going to have to get used to a GM who is involved with the team more than signings and salary cap issues. I will also be helping with some of the play calling at times.”
Florida Sports News reporter, Angela Gibson, “Coach Salcido, what’s with the decision of starting a RB and OT who were both lower draft picks and make a lot less money than their backups?”
“Well, that wasn’t totally my decision. Our GM talked to our coaches and told us what he thought. He thought that during preseason, these players showed more than their higher paid draft picks. After his decision with our K and how it has turned out so far, I think we will listen to his hands-on approach more.”
C.J.Wolf, “I’d like to point out that my decisions aren’t being made because I desire to totally take over. I just may see a diamond in the rough and will take a chance on a potential breakout player. Especially if it means putting us over the top and we can win it all. I may be wrong on some occasions, after all I am human and will make mistakes. But I want everyone to know, players, coaches or GM’s around the league, I will do what it takes to make the Miami Dolphins a super dynasty. I thank you for your questions, but I have to go. The coaches and I have a game plan to go over. Opening day is Sunday.”

Miami Dolphins 1980 Season: Weekly wrapup

Week 1 Detroit @ Miami Final Score: Miami 12 Detroit 6 in O.T.
Game highlights: K- Osborne 2 of 4 FG (44,45) Tied game at 6 with 1:08 to go in regulation. SS- Humphries won the game on a 13 Yard fumble recovery just 2 minutes into O.T. 8 sacks by the defense.
Lowlights: QB- Tubbs was benched with 1:15 to go in the third after throwing his third Int. of the game. QB- Irwin did ok in relief as he didn’t cost us the game. Rushing game only averaged 3.7 Y.P.C. That has to come up.
Overall a good team win.

Week 2 Miami @ Indianapolis Final Score: Indy 33 Miami 7
Game highlights: QB- Tubbs threw our first offensive TD of the season and he didn’t throw a pick. 4 sacks by the defense.
Lowlights: K-Osborne missed his only FG attempt. 2 fumbles by the RB killed drives that could have gotten us back in the game.

Week 3 N.Y.Jets @ Miami Final Score: Miami 24 Jets 3
Game highlights: Scored TD on a 4th and goal at the Jets one yard line on the first drive of the game. K-Osborne was 1 for 2 on FG but hit another FG over 45 yards (46). Team rushed for 147 yards. QB- Tubbs was efficient as he was 18 for 24, 204 yards and he threw 2 TD passes and no Int. 7 more sacks by the defense. They have 19 in three games so far. That’s better than I expected.
Lowlights: Just one glaring stat., RB- Baker fumbled again when we were in the redzone. At the time the game was still close. Could have turned the game around, but the defense stood tall.
Notes: On the 4th and goal call, the coach was going to take the FG. I called him and told him we needed to make a statement and punch it in. We needed a TD not a FG. I called a power run with our FB. I guessed right. This was clearly our best game so far in this young season.

Week 4 Miami @ K.C. Chiefs Final Score: Miami 27 K.C. 24 in O.T.
Game highlights: K-Osborne hit a 18 yard FG in O.T. to win the game. MLB Taylor had a 41 yard Int. return for a TD in the second quarter to tie the score at 14. Defense had 4 Int. and 4 sacks. They have 23 sacks on the year which is second in the league, (St. Louis 31). Offense rushed 44 times for 188 yards. We were 8 for 17 on 3rd down conversions. OL had 20 key run blocks as a unit and only allowed 2 sacks.
Lowlights: QB- Tubbs looked horrible, he threw 2 picks early and we got off to a 14-0 deficit. One Int. was returned for a TD. K-Osborne missed a 48 yard FG. But he hit 2. He’s 5 for 10 on the year. CB- Malfara fumbled a PR late in the 4th which could have been disastrous. He made up for it with an Int. a couple plays later. But it could have cost us the game. Our passing was horrendous, 9 for 25 and only 104 yards.
Notes: Team showed great resilience being down 14 points early and not panicking. I took over the play calling late in the 2nd quarter. I didn’t like the run/pass ratio as it was clear early on that Tubbs was having an off day. Two of our OL made the Players of the Week honors. C-Patton had 6/12 run blocks and LG-Chrisman had 4/8. LT-James had 5/8 but gave up a sack so he failed to make the list. But these stats weren’t good enough to earn the top honors for the week. Still, the OL had a great day.
One other thing, I make a trade with Arizona. I gave them our 2nd round pick in the 1981 draft for their 3rd and 4th picks in the 1981 draft. My coaches wondered why I did this so soon and didn’t wait until the off-season. I told them I wanted an extra draft pick now so I could start looking at our roster and see where we might need improvement. I need to know how many picks I have. I also think that giving up a 2nd round pick for two picks is ok in that I want as many picks as I can get. I am not the conventional GM.

Week 5 N.E @ Miami Final Score: Miami 34 N.E. 6
Game highlights: RB- Shirley had a breakout game when RB- Baker wasn’t getting it done early. He rushed 23 times for 191 yards and a TD. He had a 54 yard run which is the longest run this season for the team. K- Osborne was 2 for 2 on FG(47,52). QB- Tubbs was 13/23 for 156 yards, 1 TD and 0 INT. He was 4/8 for 59 yards on the first drive of the game which resulted in a TD run.
Team stats:
4 for 5 in the red zone. 48 rushes for 243 yards(5.0 Y.P.C.). 4 sacks by the defense. Defense kept N.E. out of the end zone. 10/16 on 3rd down conversions. Total yards 452 to 214. 36 minutes T.O.P. No Turnovers by the offense.
Lowlights: A couple key penalties killed some offensive drives.
Notes: RB- Shirley and FS- Fitzgerald were nominees for players of the week. We still haven’t had a player named the Player of the Week yet. But this team is showing a lot of heart. I don’t think they care about the individual accomplishments. They just want to win, and they realize that you do that as a team. RB- Shirley will start in place of RB- Baker who just wasn’t getting it done. One other note, OLB- Randle sprained his ankle in the game and is probable for next week. But the coaches have decided to deactivate him for one game. It’s a non-division game and we don’t want to lose him for a long period of time. He has been a pleasant surprise at LB.

Week 6 Miami @ Denver Final Score: Miami 27 Denver 13
Game highlights: QB- Tubbs was good again as he went 12/20 for 154 yards, 1 TD and 0 INT for the second straight game. K- Osborne was 2 for 2 on FG which he hit in the 4th quarter. CB- Malfara had a 77 yard Int. return for a TD. RB- Baker came off the bench when RB- Shirley struggled and had a 56 yard TD reception on a screen play. CB- McInerney had a fumble recovery deep inside Denver territory. Defense recorded 6 sacks. They are on a tear and have recorded 33 on the year. DE- Porter, OLB- Robinson and SS- Humphries each recorded a sack on Denver’s last drive when our lead was only 7 points. Porter and Robinson each were nominees as players of the week. Robinson played well in place of the injured Randle. He recorded 8 tackles, 2 sacks and a Forced Fumble.
Lowlights: WR- Watkins fumbled the ball after a nice 35 yard reception to kill a drive. RB- Shirley also fumbled. The team commited 10 penalties for 77 yards. The penalties killed the first drive of the game and two holding penalties on a drive in the 4th quarter took us out of FG range when we only had a 1 point lead. Fortunately, the defense bailed us out.
Notes: OLB- Randle is still a little sore from his sprained ankle. He is probable, but seeing as OLB- Robinson played so well in place of him, I will talk to the coaches about letting him heal before putting him back in. QB- Tubbs also sprained his ankle in the win at Denver. But I think he should be ok to start. It will be a game-time decision.

Week 7 Buffalo @ Miami Final Score: Buffalo 26 Miami 16
Game highlights: There weren’t many. The defense got 5 sacks. We only committed 4 penalties for 30 yards. OLB- Robinson played his second good game in a row in place of the injured Randle. He finished the day with 5 tackles and 2 sacks. Also nominated for player of the week again.
Lowlights: This was a team loss. OL gave up 7 sacks. Our rushing game was anemic. QB- Tubbs’ ankle was bothering him, but he started anyway. He was 4/13 for 35 yards, 0 TD and 1 INT before he was benched. QB- Irwin wasn’t much better. His first pass was picked off. He finished the day 13/26 for 192 yards, 1 TD and 2 INT. But most of those yards came after we were down 26-7. Our PR are nonexistent. This is definitely an area we need to look into during the off-season.
Notes: RG- Chrisman was injured in the game. He sprained his ankle. Seems to be a lot of that going around lately. Our trainer lists him as questionable and says he estimates him to be at full strength in about 3 weeks. Thankfully we have a bye this week. Maybe it will heal sooner. We need him on the OL. He has been a solid run blocker this season.

Week 8 Bye week:
Injury update: QB- Tubbs and OLB- Randle are fully healed from their recent injuries. RG- Chrisman is listed as Probable and full strength in about 2 weeks. He’ll play, but sparingly. Well, with our 4 game winning streak history, we are going to have to start another one. Off to Green Bay.

Week 9 Miami @ Green Bay Final Score: Green Bay 13 Miami 10
Game highlights: The team started out with a 7-0 lead late in the 1st quarter. RB- Shirley was 21/94 with a 7 yard TD run. The defense only gave up 13 points and recorded 6 sacks. They have 44 on the year. Our run defense was solid, only giving up 31 yards on 16 carries.
Lowlights: K- Osborne missed 2 FG. The offense turned the ball over 4 times. RB- Baker fumbled in the red zone. QB- Tubbs struggled as he was 12/26 for 173 yards with 0TD and 2 INT. RG- Chrisman clearly was showing signs that he was bothered by his sprained ankle. He was only 1 for 2 on key run blocks and he gave up a sack, his first of the year, on the first drive of the game.
Notes: We did come away from the game without further injuries. Chrisman will play next week as he seems to be getting better. We had 4 players nominated for the player of the week. OLB- Nowakowski had 6 tackles and 3 sacks, RB- Shirley, WR Watkins had 6 catches for 106 yards and OLB- Randle played well in his return to lineup after his injury to record 4 tackles, 1 assist, 1 sack and 1 pass defended. We probably should have won this game as the defense kept us in the game. But the offense kept turning the ball over. We have got to stop the turnovers.

Miami Dolphins 1980 Mid-Season Report

Here are some team stats through 8 games:

Team record: 5-3 2nd in the AFC East Buffalo is 1st with a 6-3 record
Points scored: 157 Tied for 1st in the AFC and Tied for 3rd in the league
Points allowed: 124 Middle of the pack
Offensive team stats: 1109 rushing yards is 4th in the league
1588 passing yards is 7th in the league
40.4% 3rd down conversions is 1st in the league
19.6 points per game is 2nd in the league
TO margin is -9 which is 29th in the league
Defensive team stats: 651 rushing yards allowed is 4th in the league
1281 passing yards allowed is 4th in the league
26.6 % 3rd down conversions allowed is 3rd in the league
15.5 points per game allowed is 16th in the league
Offensive line has only allowed 20 sacks and the Defense has recorded 44 sacks.
Individual team leaders:
QB- Tubbs 100/194 1258 yards 5 TD 8 Int
QB- Irwin 23/46 330 yards 1 TD 2 Int
RB- Shirley 132 rushes 568 yards 4.30 Y.P.C. 4 TD
RB- Baker 103 rushes 373 yards 3.62 Y.P.C. 1 TD
WR- Harden 22 Catches 349 yards 1 TD
WR- Watkins 25 Catches 405 yards 2 TD
TE - Wentworth 20 Catches 254 yards 0 TD
WR - Jordan 7 Catches 134 yards 1 TD
RB - Shirley 15 Catches 119 yards 1 TD
FB - Jordan 9 Catches 62 yards 0 TD
RB - Baker 8 Catches 114 yards 1 TD

SS - Humphries leads the team in Tackles with 40 and assists with 13
Team leaders in sacks are: OLB - Robinson 6.0, OLB - Randle 5.0, OLB - Nowakowski 5.0
DE - Porter 4.5, DE - Perales 4.0
Team leaders in passes defended are: CB - McInerney 7, S- Bishop 4, CB - Odell 3
Our P- Morton leads the league in punting average with 41.5
Our K - Osborne is 11/18 with a long of 52 and 16/16 on point afters
Offensive Line run blocking: C - Patton 21 for 56 with 2 sacks allowed
G - Chrisman 17 for 47 with 1 sack allowed
T - Janes 15 for 55 with 3 sacks allowed
G - Garcia 13 for 46 with 3 sacks allowed
T - Legette 11 for 35 with 5 sacks allowed

Other stats: RB- Baker and RB - Shirley have each fumbled 3 times
CB - Odell has 3 forced fumbles
KR - WR -Harden has a 22.6 return average
PR - WR - Harden 5.0 on punts and CB - Malfara 4.4 on punts are just awful.

Analysis on the first half:

We are 5-3 and are near the top in both offensive and defensive stats. We probably could be a lot better if our PR were better and our turnovers are bad. We are at -9 and it’s time for a change at QB. Irwin will get his shot to see what he can do. Tubbs has thrown 8 Int and that can’t happen. RB- Shirley will start since he has had a better Y.P.C. than Baker. Everything else will stay the same for now. The team has played well as a whole. Let’s see what the second half brings.

Miami Dolphins 1980 Second Half Weekly Wrap Up

Week 10 Miami @ N.Y.Jets Final Score: Miami 24 N.Y.Jets 14
Game highlights: RB- Shirley showed what he was made of with a 24 carry, 177 yard and 1 TD performance. G-Garcia had 5 key run blocks in 11 opportunities and 0 sacks allowed. We won the TO battle 4-2. The team rushes 48 times for 253 yards. OL didn’t allow a sack.
Lowlights: QB - Irwin was pulled after just two possessions. He threw two INT on two of his first three throws. QB- Tubbs didn’t have a great day, just 9/24 for 110 yards. But he had one TD and 0 INT. Defense only had 2 sacks. Far from their pace of 5 per game. Offense put us in a hole 14-0 again with the INT. Our defense bailed us out again. PR again were just awful.
Notes: Player of the week nominees were G-Garcia and RB- Shirley. Defense turned the game around with 3 turnovers on the first three drives of the second half. Our experiment with a new QB didn’t turn out so well. We’ll stick with Tubbs for now. Irwin just didn’t play like a starter. OLB - Randle played well and seems to be fully recovered, he had our only 2 sacks. I have been taking over the Defensive play-calling during the games. Our defense has been giving up a lot of yards and early scores. We can’t keep coming from behind all the time.

Week 11 Baltimore @ Miami Final Score: Miami 34 Baltimore 17
Game highlights: QB- Tubbs had a good day. He went 17/28 for 283 yards, 2 TD and no INT. OLB - Randle continues to shine with 5 tackles, 2 assists, 2 sacks and an INT. We won the turnover battle 3-0. The defense had 6 sacks. They have 52 on the year. That’s 2nd in the league.
Lowlights: K-Osborne hit 2 of 3 FG, but missed a 37 yarder on the second drive of the game when it was still scoreless. We had 7 penalties for 71 yards.
Notes: 3 player of the week nominees, QB-Tubbs, OLB- Randle and WR- Watkins who had 3 catches for 91 yards. No injuries to report.

Week 12 San Diego @ Miami Final Score: Miami 22 San Diego 21
Game highlights: QB- Tubbs shook off a shaky start to go 16/29 for 152 yards. RB- Shirley also recovered from an early fumble to have 125 yards on 21 carries. The defense had 6 sacks and held San Diego to 71 yards rushing. We had a 345 to 218 yardage edge. K-Osborne hit 3 of 5 FG. He missed 2, but one was a 55 yard try at the end of the 1st half. He hit the game winner halfway through the 4th quarter. Defense made some key stops to keep the game close until the offense started to click. We were 8/16 on 3rd downs, and the OL only gave up 1 sack.
Lowlights: We turned it over 3 times and only had 2 takeaways. So even though we had a big edge in yardage, the game was closer because of tunovers. There were some mental lapses on defense after we scored a couple times. We have got to shut people down after a score to build a lead.
Notes: 3 player of the week nominees, G- Garcia 5/12 run block opportunities with 1 sack allowed, C- Patton 6/7 with no sacks and RB- Shirley. We are still healthy and everyone is playing pretty well. We now have a 2 game lead in our division with an 8-3 record. Buffalo is 6-4 and we play them at their house this week. A chance to have a 3 game lead with 4 to go. We already lost to them, so we really need to win or the division could get close.

Week 13 Miami @ Buffalo Final Score: Miami 6 Buffalo 3
Game highlights: In a defensive game, we won the turnover battle 4-2. DE- Wiggins recovered two fumbles, while CB- Malfara and FS- Fitzgerald each had an INT. K- Osborne was 2 for 2 on FG, (40,46) which turned out to be the difference. Defense had 5 sacks.
Lowlights: Basically the whole offense struggled. We only had 145 yards of total offense. QB- Tubbs was pulled to start the 3rd quarter after a dreadful half. He was 1/10 for 6 yards. QB- Irwin wasn’t any better, with a 2/9 for 15 yards with 2 INT. We were only 3/16 on 3rd downs and we lost the T.O.P. 37 minutes to 23.
Notes: We were lucky our defense showed up, because clearly our offense didn’t. Only one player of the week nominee, OLB- Robinson with 5 tackles. We had three injuries, FL- Watkins strained his rotator cuff and will be out at least one week and up to three. We also lost OLB- Nowakowski to a strained calf muscle and will be out one week. Our other injury was to our backup LCB- Wheeler, who will miss up to 4 weeks with a sprained thumb. Thankfully none of these injuries look too serious and with a 3 game lead with 4 to go there is no need to play these guys hurt. We will need them come playoff time. FL- Jordan will start in place of Watkins, and OLB - Robinson will start in place of Nowakowski. He played well when OLB- Randle was hurt early in the year. Watkins will be the most missed. We are not very deep at the receiver position. A good defensive win for this team.

Week 14 Chicago @ Miami Final Score: Chicago 28 Miami 23
Game highlights: WR- Jordan had a good day in place of the injured Watkins. Jordan had 6 catches for 138 yards and 2 TD’s. The defense had 5 sacks. QB- Tubbs had an erratic day. He was 23/37 for 285 yards, 2 TD’s and 3 INT. CB-Odell had a blocked punt returned for a 17 yard TD.
Lowlights: Where to start. Playing at home with a chance to possibly lock up the AFC east, we didn’t show up until we were down 28-9. Our running game never got started and only gained 71 yards. We lost the turnover battle 0-3. We were 3/12 on 3rd down conversions and lost the T.O.P. 36 minutes to 24. We even missed an extra point.
Notes: Even as bad as we played, we had a chance to win. The defense shut down Chicago with 6 minutes to go in the 3rd. We were only down 5 when we got the ball back at our own 41 yard line with 1:17 to go. But it wasn’t to be as Tubbs threw 4 straight incomplete passes. We get OLB- Nowakowski back from injury, but CB- McInerney was injured in the loss. He has a broken finger and is expected to miss at least 2 weeks. We are getting thin at the CB position. Backup CB- Wheeler is still out with a sprained thumb. FL- Watkins will miss at least one more week, possibly two. Turnovers killed us again. I thought we cured that problem. We are at -6 for the year. Well, that’s better than the -9 we had at the halfway point of the season. Still, I’d like to turn that into a positive. That will kill us in the playoffs. Of course, we have to make the playoffs first. N.E. won and now are only 2 games back with 3 to go. And we still have to play them up there in the season finale. Let’s hope the division doesn’t come down to that game.

Week 15 Oakland @ Miami Final Score: Miami 17 Oakland 10
Game highlights: RB- Shirley had a great 2nd half when we were down 7-0 with 2 TD’s, one rushing and one receiving. He finished with 26 carries for 137 yards and had 2 catches for 22 yards. G- Garcia had a good day with 7 run blocks in 11 opportunities with 0 sacks allowed. FL- Jordan recovered a fumble by Baker that saved a drive and resulted in a 1st down. The defense had 4 sacks.
Lowlights: QB- Tubbs didn’t have a good day. His 1st 2 passes were interceptions. He finished a meager 11/20 for 111 yards with 1 TD and 2 INT. RB- Baker fumbled when trying to give Shirley a break. Thankfully Jordan was there to avert disaster in a close game in the 3rd quarter. We were 3/14 on 3rd downs. We had a -2 turnover ratio and had 8 penalties for 75 yards.
Notes: We won, but so did N.E. We still have a 2 game lead with 2 to go. We have to keep winning with N.E. as the last game of the season. We had a couple of key injuries in the Oakland game. C-Patton has a severely sprained thumb. He can play but he won’t be 100% until next season. MLB- Peterson (used primarily to spell MLB- Taylor a rest), was lost for the year and maybe next with a torn patellar tendon. He was put on IR and we signed a FA, MLB- Mercury Garrett. FL- Watkins will be out another week as will CB- Wheeler. CB- McInerney can play with his broken finger and will get some time in. 2 player of the week nominees were RB- Shirley and G- Garcia.

Week 16 Miami @ Minnesota Final Score: Miami 12 Minnesota 0
Game highlights: In a game in which we could wrap up the division, it was the defense that came through. RB- Shirley was solid again with 28 carries for 139 yards. G- Garcia was a force also with 5 for 9 run blocks and no sacks allowed. The defense had 6 sacks and we were 8/18 on 3rd downs. K-Osborne was 2 for 2 on FG.
Lowlights: QB- Tubbs was ok, but not great. He was 13/22 for 101 yards, 0 TD and 1 INT. A fumble by SE- Harden on a PR @ our own 23 with only a 12-0 lead early in the 4th quarter was overcome by a superb defensive stand. We were helped by an intentional grounding call that took Minnesota out of FG range.
Notes: Our new MLB- Garrett filled in nicely as a backup, recording 3 tackles, 3 assists and a sack. The defense had a couple of key stops in the game. After the first drive of the game by us resulted in a FG, Minn. Proceeded to pass at will down the field. They got to our 15 before MLB- Taylor intercepted a pass to stop that drive. 2 player of the week nominees again were RB- Shirley and G- Garcia. With the division wrapped up, we will go to N.E. and rest some of our players. Our starters will play, but only about a quarter and a half. We don’t need any more injures going into the playoffs.

Week 17 Miami @ N.E. Final Score: N.E. 22 Miami 20
Game highlights: We had 6 sacks by the defense. Came back and almost won the game after being down 15-0 and 22-13. Starters played a half and the reserves came in and played well. DT- Livingston had a INT return for a TD to get us back in the game in the 4th quarter.
Lowlights: Our starters did nothing while they were in there. N.E. came out with a purpose and had the ball the entire 1st quarter save a 3 and out by our offense. We were outgained 213-13 in the 1st half and they had 15 1st downs to our 1. But we were only down 9-0. We had 2 turnovers and the T.O.P. was 38 to 22 in their favor.
Notes: The game didn’t mean a whole lot as we had already won the division and a 1st round bye. We finished the season at 11-5 and only Jacksonville was better @ 12-4. So, we get to rest our injured for one week as we have a much needed week off. CB- Odell was a nominee for player of the week. He had 3 tackles, 2 assists and 2 sacks.

End of regular season stats:

Team: 11-5 1st place in AFC east.
Rushing Y.P.G. 144.1 1st
Defense Y.P.G. 99.2 11th
36 sacks allowed 2nd
82 sacks defense 2nd
-9 TO ratio 26th
3rd down conversions 37.7% 3rd
PPG offense 19.6 2nd
PPG defense 14.9 14th

Individual stats: QB- Tubbs 193/373 51.7 % 2320 yards 11 TD 16 INT 63.0 rating
RB- Shirley 298/1361 yards (4.5) 7 TD 2nd in league in yards
RB- Baker 175/610 yards (3.4) 2 TD
FL - Watkins 33 rec. 568 yards 2 TD
SE- Harden 32 rec. 465 yards 2 TD
TE- Wentworth 35 rec. 398 yards 1 TD
K- Osborne was 23/36 with a long of 52 and 30/31 on PAT
PR - Harden was 6.6, and Malfara was 4.1
KR - Harden had 22.2 on returns
P- Morton had a 41.3 average which was 2nd in the league
Tackle leaders:
S- Humphries 69 tackles 27 assists
OLB- Randle 63 tackles 13 assists
MLB- Taylor 59 tackles 23 assists
CB- Odell 59 tackles 13 assists
S - Fitzgerald 54 tackles 16 assists
CB- Malfara 51 tackles 17 assists

INT leaders: Malfara 4 Int and 1 TD with 5 passes defended
Fitzgerald 3 Int and 1 TD with 3 passes defended
McInerney 1 Int with 8 passes defended
Bishop 7 passes defended

Run blocking leaders: G- Garcia 44/116 with 6 sacks allowed. T-1st in league for run blocks.
C- Patton 41/107 with 4 sacks allowed. 2nd in league for run blocks.
G- Chrisman 26/82 with 2 sacks allowed.
T- Janes 25/97 with 9 sacks allowed.
T- Legette 18/62 with 7 sacks allowed.

Sack leaders: OLB- Randle 13.0, OLB- Robinson 11.0, OLB- Nowakowski 6.0, DE- Porter 5.0, DE- Perales 4.5.


1980 Playoffs:

Wild Card Round:

Arizona 21, Chicago 16 Detroit 6, Seattle 0 N.E. 12, Baltimore 7 Oakland 15, Tennessee 6

Conference Semifinal Round:

Tampa Bay 26, Arizona 14 Detroit 34, Washington 10 Jacksonville 23, N.E. 19

Oakland @ Miami Winner to face Jacksonville in the Conference Finals

We faced Oakland 4 weeks ago and escaped 17-10. So, this should be another tight game. Oakland wins the toss and receives. They go 3 and out. We get the ball at Oakland’s 47 and RB- Shirley rips off 3 runs of 11,19 and 6. We get to the Oakland 8 yard line and have a 4th and 1. I tell the coach to go for it. We get the 1st down. Just when I think we are going to score a TD, we bog down and have to try a FG. An automatic 26 yarder is missed by Osborne. Not a good way to start.
Oakland takes over and goes 3 and out again. We get the ball at our own 49. We only get one 1st down and are forced to punt. Oakland goes 3 and out again. This time we get the ball at our 39. Our field position is getting worse. A couple of nice passes and we get stopped at the Oakland 7 yard line. This time Osborne hits the FG from 24 yards and we have a 3-0 lead. That ends the 1st quarter.
Oakland proceeds to go down the field and get a 30 yard FG, Score 3-3. A couple of drives by both teams end in punts. We had one drive killed by 2 false start penalties. We get the ball at our own 34 with 1:53 to go in the half and 3 timeouts. We go down the field and get a 41 yard FG with 21 seconds to go in the half. Half-time score is: Miami 6 Oakland 3
We get the ball to start the second half and go 3 and out. Oakland starts at their own 39 yard line and get a 12 yard run but fumble the ball. We recover at our 49. We go 3 and out. We are getting a lot of chances, but can’t cash in. The defense is playing well.
On Oakland’s next drive, CB- Malfara intercepts a pass and returns it 56 yards to the Oakland 16. QB- Tubbs throws an 8 yard TD pass to RB- Feliciano and we go up 12-3. Osborne misses the extra point. I hope that doesn’t come back to haunt us.
Oakland’s next drive stalls and we start at our own 1 yard line. We get one 1st down, but Tubbs then throws an interception which is returned to our 29 yard line. Oakland proceeds to squander a golden opportunity and only get a FG out of it. Still, at the end of the 3rd quarter our lead is cut to 12-6.
We go back and forth punting for a few possessions. We then get the ball at the Oakland 47 with 6:00 to go in the game and a 6 point lead. We are able to run out the clock. We win 12-6!!!!

Team stats: T.O.P. was 37 minutes to 23 minutes in our favor.
QB- Tubbs was 13/26 for 132 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT.
RB- Shirley 26 carries for 92 yards, RB- Baker 11 carries for 36 yards and RB- Feliciano 8 carries for 29 yards.
K- Osborne was 2 for 3 on FG and 0 for 1 on extra points.
T- Legette was 4 for 9 on key run blocks.
The defense had 3 sacks and we won the turnover battle 2-1.

Notes: RB- Shirley was a nominee for player of the week. One serious injury in the Oakland game. MLB- Taylor suffered a sprained knee and is Questionable. FA pickup MLB- Garrett will start in place of Taylor. Next week we go to Jacksonville with the right to go to the Front Office Bowl. Great defensive win.

Conference Finals: Tampa Bay 19 Detroit 13
Miami @ Jacksonville

Jacksonville wins the toss and gets the ball first. After 5 plays they have to punt. We go right down the field and score a TD. Miami 7-0. The drive was 9 plays, 66 yards and took 4:52. RB- Shirley had 5 rushes for 38 yards on the drive. QB- Tubbs was 3/3 for 26 yards and FB- Jordan punched it in from 2 yards out. Good way to start the game.
Jacksonville responds with an impressive drive of their own. They go 78 yards in 10 plays and eat up 5:57. Tied 7-7.
We get the ball and go 3 and out. But the punt goes to the Jacksonville 3 yard line. They move the ball a little until MLB- Taylor, (playing sparingly due to his injury), intercepts a pass and returns it to the Jacksonville 12 yard line. We then squander the opportunity by going backwards and then RB- Feliciano fumbles the ball at the Jacksonville 22. The defense holds them to a 3 and out. The rest of the first half was like that, 3 and out, punt. Then just before half-time, Jacksonville moves the ball and they try a 41 yard FG. They miss it and we go into half-time tied 7-7.
We get the ball to start the 2nd half and proceed to do nothing. We go 3 and out and punt. The next 6 possessions are 3 and outs save one 9 play drive by Jacksonville which still results in a punt. The defenses are dominating the game. Then with 12:32 to go in the 4th quarter, Jacksonville drives to our 13 yard line only to miss a 30 yard FG.
We can’t move the ball past our own 26 and punt. 9:42 to go, tied 7-7.
We both punt our next time we have the ball. Jacksonville gets the ball at their 24 with 5:08 to go. They go 3 and out. We have the ball at our own 33 with 4:34 to go and go 3 and out. Neither offense is capable of doing anything. This game could go all night. We do get a good punt down to the Jacksonville 7 yard line with 3:01 to go. They help out our cause and go, you guessed it, 3 and out. For once we get a good PR to the Jacksonville 49 with 1:03 to go and 3 timeouts.
Our 1st play is an incomplete pass, but Jacksonville commits and unsportsmanlike conduct penalty which gives us a 1st down at their 34 yard line, 58 seconds to go.
Our next play we throw a screen pass to Shirley for 3 yards. Jacksonville 31 yard line, 49 seconds to go and a Miami timeout.
A 2 yard run by Shirley puts us in a 3rd and 5 from the Jacksonville 29 with 42 seconds to go.
We chose the safe route with another run for 2 yards and have to settle for a 44 yard FG try with 24 seconds to go. With Osborne’s erratic kicking the last few games, I would have rather have got it closer or scored a TD. But, the game has been defensive all day. So, we line up for the FG from 44 yards and Osborne nails it. We take the lead 10-7 with 18 seconds to go.
Jacksonville fields the kickoff and runs two pass plays, but our defense holds and we win 10-7.
We are headed to the Front Office Bowl against Tampa Bay.

RB- Shirley had 20 carries for 85 yards, Nominee for player of the week.
OLB- Nowakowski had 3 tackles, 1 assist and 3 sacks, Nominee for player of the week.
SS- Humphries had 12 tackles, 3 assists and 1 pass defended, Nominee for player of the week.

Other notes on the game:

QB- Tubbs was ok from a passing % standpoint, 13/22, but he only had 53 yards.
P- Morton had 12 punts and a 46.0 yard average. He was a big reason we won the game. He kept pinning Jacksonville deep. He had 6 punts inside the Jacksonville 20 yard line.
Our other stats weren’t too good. We were 2/14 on 3rd down. We lost the T.O.P. battle 34 minutes to 26. We also had 7 penalties for 50 yards. It’s amazing we won the game. This team just won’t quit. Even when we don’t move the ball the defense picks it up.
We did have a couple of key injuries in the game. FL- Watkins broke his clavicle and is out for the season. OLB- Randle sprained his knee and is questionable for next week. He may play. After all it’s the last game of the season. MLB- Taylor is still hurt but played this week. He should play next week. One more injury was to DT- Shapiro who sprained his thumb but will play.
Well, let’s see if we can keep it going and beat Tampa Bay for the Front Office Bowl Championship.

Front Office Bowl 1980

Miami vs. Tampa Bay

We win the toss and receive and go 3 and out. Punt to T.B. 24 yard line. They drive down the field and stall at our 11 yard line. They hit a 28 yard FG to take an early 3-0 lead..
Our next drive, QB- Tubbs hits three straight pass plays and puts the ball at the T.B. 46 yard line. Then RB- Shirley breaks one for a 46 yard TD run. We take the lead 7-3.
But the lead is short lived as Tampa goes down the field for a TD to take a 10-7 lead. They are passing at will on our defense. Our answer is a drive to their 44 and we have to punt. It is a touchback.
Not happy with our defensive play calling, I take over the calling the plays. Their first play is a 55 yard bomb that puts the ball at our 25 yard line. That kind of shakes my confidence of calling plays, but I continue. Our defense holds them to a FG and they lead 13-7. Their QB is 13/13 for 170 yards and a TD. We have got to find a way to stop him.
We need an answer and Shirley obliges by ripping off runs of 11,12 and 5 yards to the T.B. 32 yard line. A couple plays later Shirley runs it in from 7 yards out. But we miss the extra point. The game is tied 13 all. This was Shirley’s drive all the way.
Our defense finally makes a stand and after 4 plays, Tampa has to punt. We have the ball at our own 27 with 52 seconds left in the half and 2 timeouts. We only move the ball 12 yards and Tubbs throws a hail mary pass for an INT to end the half. Score 13-13.
Considering how hot their QB was in the first half, going in tied isn’t too bad.
T.B. starts the 2nd half passing at will again. Finally our defense makes a play and intercepts a pass @ the T.B. 49 and returns it to their 5 yard line. MLB- Garrett made the interception. Well, he certainly was a good FA acquisition.
Shirley responds after the interception with a 1 yard run and a 4 yard TD run. Extra point is good this time and we lead 20-13. Shirley has 13 rushes for 108 yards and 3 TD.
Tampa Bay responds with a drive to our 12 yard line and have to settle for a FG. The score is 20-16 us. Their QB is still tearing it up. He is 25/28 for 268 yards.
Our next drive is a 3 and out. They drive to our 44 yard line and punt. The ball is downed at our 1 yard line.
With our backs in the end zone we need to move the ball. Shirley runs for 2 yards, then breaks one for 14 yards. So, at least now we have some breathing room. We move to our 26 and have to punt. Morton gets off a good kick for 52 yards and a -1 on the return.
We stop them 3 and out. It’s about time. We get the ball at our 46 after the punt. We don’t do anything with it however and go 3 and out. We have a 4th and 2 at their 46. I don’t even hesitate to punt. Now is not the time to be taking chances. Good gamble as Morton punts to their 4 yard line.
They can’t move the ball and punt. We have the ball at our 37 with 5:52 to play and leading 20-16. So, let’s try to use some clock. Our first play goes for 1 yard. Then we have a false start. Then another run for 1 yard. Now we have a 3rd and 13. We gamble on a big pass play and hit a 24 yard pass to SE- Harden. 1st down at the T.B. 42 yard line. A 5 yard run by RB- Baker, 3 more and 0 on 3rd down and it’s 4th and 2 at their 34 yard line. With 3:19 to go and leading by 4 points, I elect to try a 51 yard FG to make it a 7 point game. We commit a false start, so now the ball is at the 39 yard line. What a bad penalty. Not wanting to risk missing a 56 yard FG and give them the ball at the 46, we punt and it’s a touchback. There is 2:50 to go in the game.
T.B. has the ball at their 20 yard line with 2:45 to go and trailing 20-16. Their first play goes for 0 yards. Then they complete a short pass for 2 yards. Their 3rd down play goes for an incomplete pass. But on 4th down, we can’t stop a 9 yard completion for a 1st down. The next play is a 33 yard pass to our 36 yard line. There is 1:06 to go and a Tampa timeout. This is getting dicey. Their next play is incomplete. Then on 2nd down from our 36, CB-Malfara intercepts a pass at our 1 yard line. He saved the game. We run out the clock and the Miami Dolphins are the 1980 Front Office Bowl winners, 20-16.What a game.

Defensive player of the week was MLB- Garrett. He had 7 tackles, 2 assists, 1 sack and 1 interception. The offensive player of the week was no surprise. He almost single handedly beat us. QB- Lang of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was 30/39 for 324 yards with 1 TD and 2 INT. RB- Shirley had 21 carries for 143 yards and 3 TD’s. C- Patton had 5 key run blocks in 10 opportunities with no sacks allowed. They were nominees for players of the week.

Some of my FA signings came through in this game and during the season. K- Osborne had a good year. CB- Malfara had some good games, but none will top the interception with the game on the line in the Front Office Bowl. MLB- Garrett played well the last few weeks in place of the injured Taylor.

We had 5 guys make the 1st string season awards list. TE- Wentworth, C- Patton, G- Garcia, T- Janes and CB- Odell.
My end of year evaluation is: Performance 100, Franchise value 34, Profit/Loss 70, Roster strength 21 for a score of 59.

Special announcement from the NFL commissioner:

“I regret to inform you that their will be no 1981 NFL season. The attendance at most of the stadiums just wasn’t there. We won’t be able to run a league and generate a profit like that. Maybe in the future we can find a way to have more of a fan base. But, for now there will be no more NFL. Congratulations to the Miami Dolphins on being the first Front Office Bowl winner. I’m sorry that we won’t be able to see them defend that title. Good luck to all the players, coaches and GM’s out there. May you find something in life to fulfill your dreams.”

So, the NFL goes defunct in 1981. But, please look for the new league to start up in 2002. The title of the thread will be: FOF4: C.J.Wolf and the Miami Dolphins return.