Tony Sparano’s swim with fishes a hard but effective one

By Adam Sweeney  |   Wednesday, November 05, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

Miami Dolphins
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans!

In the college ranks, USC Trojans head coach Pete Carroll is renowned for his intense practices, but there's no West Coast bias when it comes to hardcore workouts. At the NFL level, Miami is bringing the pain day in and day out. It starts with head coach Tony Sparano, a disciple of Bill Parcells, who sets the tone each day. Experts are applauding his ability to get the best out of a group that was 1-15 last season. Much of the success comes from a grueling practice regimen that has put pressure on players to perform while also allowing the coaching staff to see which bad apples need to be picked from the bunch.

Commentary: Anybody who questions the results only needs to look at the difference in turnover ratio for the Dolphins. This season, the Dolphins are second best in the AFC with a plus-9 margin. Compare that with a minus-7 margin in 2007 and it's clear that practice is making perfect for Miami, which is a surprising 4-4. Every coach I have ever played under told me that your performance in practice will set the bar for how you play. The bar at the moment is relatively high for a team that had the top pick in last year's draft. As long as Miami commits to hard practices, it will continue to put out a playoff-worthy effort.

Fan Pulse: Dolphins fans are shocked to see that Miami is such a heavy favorite this weekend against the Seattle Seahawks. How quickly the tables have turned.

Fantasy Football Impact: Ladies and gentlemen, the Dolphins now have three legit fantasy starters. Running back Ronnie Brown, quarterback Chad Pennington and wide receiver Greg Camarillo all are great starts this week against Seattle.

Injury Watch: The Dolphins should lend some trainers to the Seahawks. They don't need them this week as all starters are healthy and ready to play Sunday.
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans! (1)

About Adam Sweeney

Adam Sweeney spent 4 years as an opinions and arts & entertainment columnist with the Lone Star Lutheran, also working with Sports Illustrated.com. Along with his work on Realfootball 365 he currently is a contributor for Film School Rejects, SLAM Online, Talkhoops.net, and C-Heads ...
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report