What might have been with Daunte Culpepper

Daunte Culpepper is still unemployed today.

Only two weeks from the start of NFL training camps and he has yet to find a suitable team to continue his once stellar but now sputtering career. Late last month he confirmed to various media outlets that he turned down a 1-year, $1 million contract from the Green Bay Packers.

Culpepper declined to say why he turned down the opportunity, but with the Brett Favre's career in resurrection mode of late, one might guess Culpepper saw this scenario coming a few weeks ago and wanted no part of it.

So he is still out there. And that leads me to wonder what might have been for Culpepper in Miami if only.

You should remember that Miami is where Culpepper wanted to play. Florida is his home and he felt like South Florida was a great place for him. But after coming to the Dolphins in a trade in 2006, Culpepper was never healthy.

Last offseason, the Dolphins cut Culpepper simply because new coach Cam Cameron was convinced Trent Green was better, healthier and more likely to bring the team some success. So much for those plans.

Anyway, Cameron promised Culpepper a quarterback competition but never delivered on that promise, cutting the player before he really had any chance to practice.

I did not then and don't now disagree that Miami needed to cut Culpepper if he wasn't healthy and couldn't compete. The Dolphins needed to move on if that was the case. My problem with the scenario as it happened was not allowing the competition to actually happen as promised.

If that competition would have happened, I wonder how Culpepper would have done. I wonder if he would have proved himself better than Green. I know he was better then and today continues to be better than Cleo Lemon. I know he would have played better last year than rookie John Beck.

The problem is that competition never happened.

And in many regards, Culpepper is suffering a similar fate now. No team is willing to give him a chance to compete for a job now. Despite uncertain QB situations in San Francisco, New York with the Jets, Minnesota, Chicago, Baltimore and Kansas City, Culpepper hasn't latched on with any of those teams for one reason or another.

I am told he reached out to Bill Parcells and the Dolphins early on in free agency and was never seriously considered although he and Josh McCown, the QB the team ultimately signed in free agency, delivered practically identical statistics last season.

Culpepper had a slightly better passer rating but took far more sacks due to his mobility issues. McCown threw more TDs and had a better completion percentage but his interception percentage was higher.

My questions to you ... Do you think the Dolphins did the right thing cutting Culpepper without having that promised competition? Do you agree with me he is better than Cleo Lemon? Would you have picked him over McCown or did the Dolphins get the right Oakland QB as a free agent?

Discuss...

Comments

[Finfan in orlando]

Those are some good questions armando even though you will get some hate from the Culpepper bashers

But I believe that he should have gotten a fair chance to compete and I believe that was Camerons first mistake and probably started his loss of control in the locker room.

Is he better than Mcnown well at one time he was now its hard to tell because both have played for some awful teams and Culpepper has not been healty but Mcnown did have some nice games in arizona. I think Mcnown was a smarter move because hes younger has not been hurt and hes ego is down to earth.

Is Culpepper better than Lemon I personally prefer Peppers to Lemons.....=)

[Gabriel]

Daunte Culpepper...his career was ruined by coming to play for the Miami Dolphins. #8 should be playing for Miami as we speak. He is more talented than Beck, Henne or McCown. I have no idea why he isn't an option.

[Mike In SD]

I think the Dolphins did wrong by not allowing him to compete that year. But on the other hand, this team is getting younger. Even if he was still with the Fins, he's on the downside of career. Better off without him at this point.

[The Cuban Assassin]

Armando,

Why are we still talking about this guy? Really who cares now if Culpepper was given the promised competition. I agree he is better than Cleo Lemon, but who cares. I would have picked McCown over him now. We screwed up by picking him over Brees and lost a 2nd round pick too. Also Culpepper was released and we got nothing for him. I am sick of jearing about Culpepper and Trent Green for that matter.

The Cuban Assassin

[happy that Dumbte is still unemployed]

Armando, you know that name is a dirty word around here. Sorry folks, but Dumbte is washed up. Without his mobility he is absolutely nothing. Might as well take his act to Arena League, and see what he can do there. Dumbte Crappepper will never be the quarterback that he once was. He is fat, lazy, slow, selfish, and too stupid to read a defense.

The future lies with either John Beck or Chad Henne (most likely it'll be Henne) Time to move away from the past. Dumbte is a colossal failure. How's the knee, you fat buffoon?

[harricane]

right on cubano....

ok out of vacay mode...

no no no on culpepper.....sorry. like a bad dream i forget 'em.

mando the man....let's move on not back. john or josh will start with chad in the ready position. i would rather consider a more consise discussion of strategy and role than what never was.

'pep had no pep. i want wild card & i'm not dreaming.....yet.... :-)

[Eric]

i think culpepper is better than mccwon but i also think the dolphins want to take a look at their young qb's this year. if they had signed culpepper he probably would have easily beat out beck.

[CitizenX]

how cares about Culpepper

Everyone forgets how well the offense played for first half of the year, and the defense sucked monkey balls. Then Beck took over with a gutted offense.

[Eric]

yeah but trent green was horrible. he led the league in interceptions before getting his clock cleaned. we should have just kept culpepper.

[Tree2691]

Look, I'm not a Pep hater, but He wasn't the right piece to the puzzle the year he was let in, let alone last year. Culpepper Lost a TON of mobility when he got his Knee torn apart. I am not truly sure Lemon was worse than Pep would have been. Last year, Oakland had a better O line than we did, and he still got rocked enough to get benched because of it.

We have gone into the reasons for dumping Pep for Green a Brazilian times (once during a broadcast about a disaster killing 12 Brazilians, a female news anchor actually asked exactly how much a Brazilian was ((as in numerical value, not price))), but let's go through it one more time. The Dolphins drafted Beck. Green played a game more similar to Beck than Pep did, thus would be a better mentor for him. Oakland drafted Pep Jr. Pep would be a better mentor for him. Nuff said. End result, Snafu. Intent? Well thought out, but eventually futile. If you actually think we would have won many more games with Pep, you are delusional. He would have had to learn an entirely different offense than he has been in, so would have had more learning curve issues than Green, or Lemon (both of whom had played in that offense already).

BTW, Hey Hari! Long time no read! Figured I would see you some on the Slantenel website too, but you must have decided to vacate as well.

[PT]

Culpepper should have been given the ability to compete for the job. Green was a astronimical risk and was my first sign that Cam couldn't cut it.You don't GIVE a starting job to a QB who is out of practice, has concussion issues and is in the extreme late stage of his career.

Culpepper was better than Lemon but not McCown(at this point in his career). McCown is cheaper as well. Its time to move on and time for Culpepper to learn how to swallow some pride.

[Chris Nelson]

"Dumbte"

That's really clever. What a lame ass.

Anyway, I'd say there's no doubt that Culpepper is as good as the 2007 Trent Green, Josh McCown or Cleo Lemon.

I also don't think the fact he remains unsigned really indicates how teams view him. Teams have roughly four quarterbacks right now, and there's no question he's one of the top 120 quarterbacks in the world. I guess the reason he's a free agent while plenty of lesser talents are not is because Culpepper has probably peaked, while some of these undrafted free agents at least have a CHANCE to break out. The same thing is happening to Byron Leftwich. Sure they are better than some of these undrafted quarterbacks from Division II schools, but teams seem more willing to give the younger guys a shot at this point.

[Chris Nelson]

Also, in reply to the guy above me - McCown is not cheaper than Culpepper. McCown got a two-year deal averaging over $3 million per. You could have Culpepper for around a million or so, and definitely under $2 million.

[raydin62]

culpepto went straight down the tubes after he didnt have randy moss to throw to,he was lost without him.

[harricane]

to my buddy tree,

nope to the other rag.

as u may know by now, i pretty much a loyalist to the fins and the herald as well. to be honest, i have never gone on their site. why should i, 2 damn much fun on this one !

time is short, guys.....its finally JULY !!

fin fun time very soon !! love getting back with ya tree. where is ny scott ? saw FLPD but was too busy to respond.

get 'em fired up mando..........hell make some crap up 2 get tha boyz talkin !!

[Rebuild with youth]

He's too dumb to play without his legs...

[finsfan]

Mando,

It must be slow season. Jesus get over it already, culpepper was the past!!!!

No one cares bout culpepper and this dumb article

[Rob]

Culpepper, even when healthy, is not good anymore. He's a human pinyata. Somewhere along the line in his career he stopped making quick decisions. This happened before he blew out his knee. The guy had some great years earlier in his career. This happens sometimes. He just not that good. No big deal. Move on and stop talking about his past history with the Dolphins.

[Matt in NC]

I agree with Tree- Dante was just not the right piece for THIS puzzle and the Dolphins did right to move on. However, the manner in which they did it did indeed screw him over, but unfortunately, that happens to all of us occasionally.

Was he better than Green? Probably not in Cam's offense. Better than Lemon or Beck? Probably, just due to his experience.

Now did Parcells get the right man between Luke and Culpepper? I say yes. Pepper was ditched and trashed in Minnesota, didn't fare well here, and didn' fare well in Oakland. Luke is younger, has no baggage, and was a seeming up-n-commer in Arizona, and has not had any injury history.

So yeah, let's go with him.

[Edwin]

Daunte is unemployed for one reason and it has nothing to do with his mobility. He challenged Cam Cameron and Randy Mueller for their unethical treatment of him. The Dolphins should give him a chance to finally show what he can do in a fair competition. He already outplayed McCown last year after coming into the Raiders camp in July. Let's be honest. The problem was Saban,Mueller and Cameron not Culpepper!

[Kevin]

Culpepper was brought in because we thought we needed another Dan at QB. Even if the guys we had were ok at the position.
CP was old, slow, couldn't admit his limitations and became a big pain in the butt at the end. Moss was his go to guy. There were no Mosses on the Dolphins.
And he wants to come back???? I know that the Phins have been dumb in the past but why relive this nightmare. At least Green had some class, by trying to help last year. CP was in it for himself and the last time I looked football is a team game. And I wouldn't dump on McCown for his play in Arizona. Arizona still has a team??? Yeah let him back, but make him pay back his settlement money first.

[tom@jax]

Daunte who? Who is he?

[Berg]

Aren't there more relevant issues facing the Dolphins that a "dolphins" blog could write about? This is old news and we've all moved on

[pkf]

Your question is what could have been with Culpepper? The bigger "what could have been" question is what if we had made the smart move and picked up Drew Brees instead of Culpepper. Culpepper had a terrible (injury shortened) season the year before we picked him up and didn't play well for us. You can explain it away talking about his knee and the O line being terrible, but he was awful. Brees on the other hand has had great numbers the last 2 years and would have erased the QB question that has not been answered since Marino left. Taking Culpepper to begin with was a swing and a miss and is all I think about when you raise his name.

[dhammer]

I do think they should have let the competition happen, but I do not think he was better than Cleo.....think of the sacks avoided because Cleo could move his feet....you think Daunte would have been able to avoid any of them behind that line??? NOT A CHANCE....Dumb....his career would have been over had he played for us last year!

[bobby]

If parcells had been in charge who do you think that he would have chosen BREESE or PEPPER? IF we would have had Parcells or BREESE this would have never have cost the fins 2years.

[mike h from wmsbg,va]

wasn't it like the the million dollar question?the fins didn't want to pay the extra money to get brees.then,like we always do give our draft picks for someone else.how many times have the fins done that.that is an article all in it self.

[Edwin]

As of today we do not have a QB better than Culpepper on the roster. Let the competition begin!!!

[Mr. Bungle]

Culpepper would not have beaten out Trent Green for the job and after seeing him play last year, we all know that the knee injury has taken its toll on his game. Is he closer to 100% now than he has been, I don't know, I'm sure he must be, but I don't think he'll ever be the same player who put up those big numbers in Minnesota. I'm glad the Dolphins are going in another direction and developing young QBs.

[Mr. Bungle]

Culpepper would not have beaten out Trent Green for the job and after seeing him play last year, we all know that the knee injury has taken its toll on his game. Is he closer to 100% now than he has been, I don't know, I'm sure he must be, but I don't think he'll ever be the same player who put up those big numbers in Minnesota. I'm glad the Dolphins are going in another direction and developing young QBs.

[jj]

Josh McCown is younger and has more upside. Culpepper has too much ego and IMHO is lockerr room poison (I really don't know this, but the ego issue when on the Phins caused problems. Also, he was a tough guy to bench, even when hurt and stinking up the place -- Joey should have started the first 4 games that year).

The real what if of course would be what if the Phins went with Brees and had the 2nd round pick. Even if Brees was not signed, not taking Culpepper and going with Joey would have been better that year and we probably would be in better shape now (with at least one more high draft choice developing for 2 years now).

[jj]

"Taking Culpepper to begin with was a swing and a miss and is all I think about when you raise his name."

I agree with this fully. Awesome post PKF!

[T-Rek70]

Cam Cameron had to have the worst 1 yr as a professional head coach in the history of team sports. What did he do right? Look at how bad he bungled the draft. Lets look at a hypothetical situation where Brady Quinn is selected instead of Ted Ginn

2007

Pick #9 Brady Quinn

Pick #40 Tony Ugoh/Sidney Rice/Lamar Woodley/Steve Smith

Pick #61 Samson Satele

2008

Pick #1 Jake Long or Chris Long if Tony Ugoh was picked in 07

Pick #32 Philip Merling or Devin Thomas/Brandon Flowers if Tony Ugoh is selected in 07 and Chris Long in 08

Pick # 58 Dexter Jackson/Terrence Wheatley/Martellus Bennett

[T-Rek70]

Cam Cameron had to have the worst 1 yr as a professional head coach in the history of team sports. What did he do right? Look at how bad he bungled the draft. Lets look at a hypothetical situation where Brady Quinn is selected instead of Ted Ginn

2007

Pick #9 Brady Quinn

Pick #40 Tony Ugoh/Sidney Rice/Lamar Woodley/Steve Smith

Pick #61 Samson Satele

2008

Pick #1 Jake Long or Chris Long if Tony Ugoh was picked in 07

Pick #32 Philip Merling or Devin Thomas/Brandon Flowers if Tony Ugoh is selected in 07 and Chris Long in 08

Pick # 58 Dexter Jackson/Terrence Wheatley/Martellus Bennett

[Eric]

josh mccown is a career loser. the guy is flat out terrible. he's been on four teams in four years so what does that tell you?

[Mr. Bungle]

Rob, you said: "somewhere along the line in his career he stopped making quick decisions. This happened before he blew out his knee. The guy had some great years earlier in his career."

But his best season was in 04. He blew his knee in game 7 of 05 and we traded for him in 06. So what you're saying is early in 05 is when he lost the ability to make quick decisions. To be fair to him, the personnel around him was not as good in 05 as it was in 04.

[AndyP]

trent green had no arm strenth and he could still beat dante on tranning camp...i do belive Cam is the biggest moron ever and made horrible desicions....But dante was still better then cleo he should have been running the scout team(for life) Hope Beck is the man...but we will see

[AO]

Armando, I would agree with you except. . . 32 general managers and their scouting departments think he sucks. . . . .

[Ramsterone]

Come on I know it's slow. much like Duh'ta. Did Duh'ta ever agree to sign a waiver ? How can you give a slow witted criple a chance ? Duh'ta would not had benn given all the chance's he had if he had not been black. He had one good year in the NFL, for whatever reason. Why would you want a cripple with an attude, who think's his a God and demands to be the starter to posion your team. If this isn't true why did he turn down a million dollars from Green Bay ? The Dolphins owe him nothing, he got hurt playing for the Vikings and he should have stoped there.

[flpd]

Cameron lied to us and to Culpepper. That is not a shock as he lied to himself about being head coach material.

What I cannot understand is that after struggling in 2006 and 2007, Culpepper still believes he's a starting type of player. If someone offers me a million dollars and I've been humbled, I jump at it.

Two questions: Armando is it true he still is his own agent? That would make him a dummy.

And Andyk, where are those emails I requested a couple of days ago. Not posting them makes you a fraud. Armando, ban this loser

[bigt160]

Seriously we're are talking about Daunte Culpepper??? Can any of you say Randy Moss???? That's why he was anything in Minnesota. He could run around in a circle until Randy got open and throw the ball. Who was he gonna do that here with? Greg Camarillo??? Seriously people I'll tell you where it really started when Saban picked Daunte Mr. can't read a defense over Drew Brees. Please Daunte was never any good he just had Randy Moss. Look at Tom Brady's numbers in the regular season last year and you can see why. Daunte is a buster.

[flpd]

AO, if 32 GMs thought Daunte sucked, why did Green Bay offer him one million dollars for one year?

[Flavio]

Culpepper last year had that ridiculous game against the Fins that accounted for 5 of his total 8 touchdowns last year and posted his highest passer rating of the season. Without that statistical anomaly Dante would've been a miserable quarterback.

[Mr. Bungle]

Culpepper had more than one good season, look it up. He also put up huge numbers with other WRs in 04 (his best season) when Moss struggled with injuries. He threw for over 4,000 yards to other WRs.

The Culpepper of today is not that player, but let's at least get the facts straight.

[crimsonblack]

Culpepper has a problem reading defenses... something he suffered from even during his great seasons in Minnesota. He's more of a react as the play develops QB rather than the taking it in at the line great QB's - (dan marino, john elway, joe montana to name a few). Regardless of what anyone wants to believe this is something most good coaches and management see when they look at Culpepper. I believe it to be the main reason that most teams stay away from him. He would be a quality back-up on almost any team, but that is something Culpepper isn't interested in.

[Eric]

the question is at this point who would you rather have: culpepper or josh mccown?

[Mr. Bungle]

The hope is that the young QBs develop and in time, hopefully sooner than later, Beck or Henne are the starters and McCown is a two year backup. Why even bother with Culpepper? Enough with the retreads, it hasn't worked. We signed McCown to be the veteran and he's not going anywhere.

[Jerry]

DREW BREES DREW BREES I said his name twice because thats how many times we passed on him.

[jake]

These questions are not good, they are irrelevant.

Culpepper is washed up. The whole league knows it. If he's better then cleo lemon why did cleo get a multi-year multi-million dollar contract while Daunte is still sitting at home after turning down the only offer he got...a single year 1 million dollar offer.

BTW...it's typically biased of Mando not to include all the known facts about why Culpepper didn't sign w/ the packers...he said why...it wasn't some soothsaying clairvoyant moment of brilliance, it was Ted Thomson telling him they wanted him only as a backup and that he wouldn't be considered for starting duty unless Aaron Rogers totally bombed or got hurt.

Seems even the team that offered him a contract doesn't think too terribly much of him either.

Dude should never have represented himself. He couldn't beat out McCown because McCown was far better...and those stats....not even close to "identical". In fact, throw out the dolphins game and DC did nothing of value all season for the raiders.

So who would I rather have eric (the QB troll of all of south florida)???? The same guy the raiders managment would rather have, the same guy that got multi-offers in free agency, the same guy the trifecta chose...Josh McCown.

DCs career is dead, and his injury is only part of the reason why.

[Tinshaker]

I agree with everyone who said Culpepper used to be good but is no longer.

I disagree with everyone who can't seem to understand that someone can be good and then be bad or start badly and turn out good, though the latter is much harder to accomplish. Fact of the matter is Culpepper has been progressively turning himself into a beach ball. You saw him the last two years, he must be even more out of shape now. If he had trained hard to get back in shape, he would've gotten more offers, but no one wants to spend money on a one year out of shape backup. He should start looking for other options.

[Yitz]

The fact that he can;t get a job makes me think there's a good reason for it. It also seems very arrogant for a guy who hasn't had success in years to turn down a job offer.
I did think he should have been offered the chance for competition, but as it played out, he wouldn't have been healthy anyway.

[Bob Gossman]

Mondo, I didn't want the Fins to pursue Culpepper in the first place, I always thought he was a product of scheme and benificiary of a incredibly talented WR. I did think however, that for the price the Fins paid (salary, not trade), he was a better value than Brees was... I guess even I can be wrong sometimes.
But despite not being a fan of his and not really wanting him on the team, I felt that he got a pretty raw deal while he was here. Cam promised him a competition that never materialized. I heard it said before that only thing we have of true value is our honor. It's not surprising to me that Cameron didn't have the respect of the team.
Culpepper - better than Lemon, better than Beck 'last year'. Not convinced he would be better than Beck or McCown this year. And Henne may prove better than those two next year.

[y-not]

Newsflash morons!

Armando-

There is no might have been with culpecker. He can't land with any one of the 32 teams in the NFL - what do you think that says about his skill level?

These old QB's who can't face leaving the game, including the idiot from Green Bay, need to man up and find something else to do with their lives.

It's a young man's game - get it?

[Jarhead]

Who is Culpepper? If you want to start fresh you have to start new. I could care less about who gave who what chance to compete. New boss, almost new team, new season. Time to look ahead and stop thinking about what might have been because we've been there and it sucked.
GO DOLPHINS!!!

[drdolfan]

Daunte had like one and a half good seasons in his entire career. He can't read a defense, he can't get rid of the football. That game against Buffalo a few years ago was absolutely unforgettable regarding the hesitant and baffling baffling manner in which he now plays the game. It's no mystery why no other team on the league is even willing to invite him to camp. He was a product of a system and a freakish talent at wide receiver. Culpepper blows. We should have signed Drew Brees and we'd be way ahead of where we are right now.

[Mr. Bungle]

Not that I want Culpepper on the Dolphins, but a lot of you are clueless if you think he only had one or one and half good seasons.

Check it for yourself.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?playerId=1762

[PT]

Culpepper doesn't want a backup role and does want over a million and possibly over 2 a year. Thats too much for a guy in his 30s that is turnover prone and has had serious injuries. Just very glad he's not here.

[Adam]

Yeah, what further proof do you need that Culpepper deserved a shot to start last year than the fact that he is on the street and the three other QB's on the roster all have jobs somewhere. Once again, great work Armando.

[Fake Kurt Angle]

Dumbte Suckpepper is a crappy quarterback. Without Moss, and without his mobility this guy is absolutely god awful. What a fat failure he is! Oh it's true, it's damn true!

[Bill]

His career became irreparable when Nick Satan rushed him into returning the first game of '06.

Had he been given more time to heal and get his mental focus away from re-injuring himself (say until week 8 or 9), he would likely still be in Miami.

After playing awful and getting injured in '05, and becoming part of the ongoing debacle in Miami in '06, he was two years removed from his last good year - too distant for anyone to want to take a chance. Too distant for him to get the time to get his feel of the game back in the course of a single training camp.

[dominick]

well it is obvious he may not be as good as some think if he was there would be a few teams trying to land him he hurt himself by trying to play too soon never really returned to form after his injury he is no longer a stater if he was smart he would of took the job in green bay if favre doesn't return might have even started a few games there. if we are bringing in another QB at the end of their career then bring in someone who had impressive numbers last year bring in favre he had a career season and was one game from the superbowl!

[Zim]

I think this is old news and it's sad that it's the best you can come up with.

[Phinatic]

I agree with Bill and Mr.Bungle on this one. He wasn't as crappy pre 05 as you guys are making him out to be because of the bad taste that still lingers in your mouth. I also blame Satan on this one he was rushing him to participate in practices when he and the medical staff new he wasn't ready.By the time Joey Mediocronton took over one knee was twice the size of the other one (our line wasn't as good back then)

They should have rested DC until he was actually ready and had Joey start the year. We might have even had a better year

I also agree with the whole we shoulda, woulda, coulda Brees thing. The whole well Brees has a shoulder injury and Culpepper knee easier to come back from has proved incredibaly false. Incompetence at head coach/GM makes things hard for fans

[Eric]

i don't much like culpepper but the guy only lost the starting qb job over mccown last year because he signed like a week before the season. mccown is a loser so get ready to search for another qb next year.

[Phinatic]

meant "medicl staff knew" up there

[thejuandiggler]

You guys are talking Daunte Culppeper...LOL..I beat C Pep in madden in 99 in the collegiate village inn (ucf off campus dorms) while stoned and drunk......Good guy, bad knees !

[Thomas]

Culpepper was a product of Randy Moss, really, and that's about it. Just like Nate Burlson had success opposite Randy Moss. Remember, Denny Green said that they played against 'Randy Moss' coverage, where opposing D's would cover Moss with 3 DB's. What that equals is somebody being open somewhere, and even Culpepper could find them! Bolster that with the fact that Moss routinely beats double coverage, catching those deep balls and touchdowns that made Culpepper a star. I remember when Marino interviewed both Culpepper and Manning in the race to break Marino's 48. What stands out to me is how DC was on fire early and faded late. The reports out of Miami were that Culpepper could not grasp a complex offense, and of course Miami did not and still does not have that dynamic unstoppable #1 wide receiver. And please don't forget his demands in Minnesota, wanting to be that "ten million dollar quarterback, you need to pay me ten million dollars." I'm sorry, Culpepper is a wash. I like Mando's stuff most of the time, but I'm sorry, I don't believe he knows more than 32 GM's and their talent evaluators.

[Phinatic]

Burlson didn't have a bad year last year 694 yards 9 TD. Most of the year Branch was out with injury and he made the most of being the #2 guy. And I don't think Bobby Engram was getting tripple coverage

[Chris]

So if we had Culpepper we would have gone 2-14 instead of 1-15, who cares? Blog about something else during this slow time of the football year about next year, expectations and things to watch for before training camp, but something that is this unimportant is stupid.

[ricky420williams]

Who cares about Daunte, Green, or Beck. The future is McCown and Henne...

And if we're going to actually play an entertaining "what if" - how about "what if" we didn't waste a draft pick, and instead picked up BRADY QUINN? We'd have the QB situation settled, a TOLERABLE reciever corps, a finally solid line, and a great running game with the one two punch of my boy ricky and ronnie.

[Finfanin Ga]

Uh...I know it was a nightmare going 1 - 15 last year, but does anyone really think we would've done any better with Culpepper? Last year would've been a wash regardless, and the Tuna would've sent Daunte's big butt packing by now anyway. Mando..I agree with the folks saying lets talk future..not the past. I don't think any true fin fan wants to relive the past few seasons. Lets look ahead, there's just too much carnage behind us. Welcome back.. I missed you Mando!!

[Tai]

I felt what really killed Culpepper's career in Miami was the fact that we all bought into the notion that he was ready to start the season after his knee injury. He pushed himself through rehab without really considering the damage he was doing to himself. Saban never stopped to consider the severity of his injury because the expectations on the team and on him were so high, and he wanted to prove that he made the right decision choosing Culpepper over Brees... and well, us fans were riding so high from the win streak in the previous season that we all believed Daunte would no doubt be healthy and would take us to the Superbowl! Of course, anyone watching opening night vs. Pittsburgh could tell that he was not in fact 100%... He was closer to 70%... buy they kept playing him, and I believe that was the beginning of the end of his career.

In short I blame him for pushing himself. I blame Saban for ignoring the warning signs in camp... and I blame us fans for the hype.

[Phinatic]

ricky420,

your assertion is that brady quinn will develop into a good NFL QB which has yet to be proven... he could be worse than Beck or DC for all we know

[Armchair Analyst]

'What is' is a much better game to play than 'What if' and, at this point, McCown is a better choice and much younger. But the Culpepper haters who say he never was any good are just plain wrong. It's time to move on and think about the future.

[Finfan in orlando]

Armando I read this is there any truth to this nightmare

Brett Favre - QB - Packers
A client of Brett Favre's agent, Bus Cook, is reportedly saying that Cook and Favre are targeting Miami and Carolina as the "most likely" landing spots if the Packers let him go.
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel even suggests Cook has had conversations with both the Panthers and Fins. It's become clear that GM Ted Thompson will not cut Favre outright, but is more than willing to shop him around. Packers beat writer Tom Silverstein ends his blog post with "let the bidding begin." Jul. 11 - 6:05 p.m. ET
Source: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

Armando please say it ain't so

Go Phins

[D-Fan]

Interesting question and it was pretty much the same rationale that I argued back before last years training camp. Why wasn't Daunte given a chance to come back? Bottomline was the decision was made and Daunte's future with the Phins was sealed once Cameron took over, whom wanted Green from the get-go. I figured that with an offensive minded/QB coach in Cameron (finally) and the skills of Daunte, the Phins were set up for success. As the Green in Daunte out routine increased, it was clear that no matter what lie Cameron came up with, Daunte was never going to get a chance; a fair chance with the Phins.

What do I mean by fair? In his first and only season, he was destroyed in the Press for the amount of sacks he took in his first 4 games and questions about his mobility. The bottomline is that no other QB fared that much better either as the line absolutely sucked that year.

Another thing that I would point out is that the two-star players going into the 2nd season, Jason and Zach, spoke out on behalf of Daunte, giving him public endorsement about how hard he was working to get back on the field and ready. The extra 5-10 lbs that he had put on, was not fat, it was pure muscle. And that muscle and questions about his health were on full display and answered, after he ran for like 3x touchdowns against us. As I rooted for the Phins, I also rooted for Daunte and was glad he stuck it to Cam the way he did. Although he thru for only 50-60 something yards, those TD runs were simply Daunte's way of saying "up yours Cameron."

No doubt, I wish that Daunte would some how, come back to the Dolphins and get a fair, legitimate shot to compete for the QB job. But I also know that its just a wish. He deserves another shot and although I wish he would go to Baltimore, that wont happen because Cam is up there. Minnesota would be interesting with AP in the backfield, but he has history there already. So what is Chicago waiting for is the question in my book? One thing I know, is that none of the QB's on the Bear's roster is anything to write home about? How about Detroit, they got the WR's to launch it to?

Cheers
C

[Eric]

finfan in orlando:

we could use favre because mccown sucks and beck probably sucks as well.

[ricky420williams]

Phinatic,

I'm not saying i'm SURE that he's the answer, but you have to be willing to say he's better than beck. I live in Ohio and my second team (behind the Fins) is of course the Brownies - and Brady had a great pre-season, and has only gotten better under Anderson. You have to admit - we'd be in a much better position right now if we had picked up Quinn. We wouldn't have the wasted pick of Ginn (although I'll admit he could become the next Hester in 4 years) but we wouldn't have wasted another pick on a QB THIS year. I'm sorry but anytime you have to use consecutive second round picks on a quarterback, you have wasted a pick somewhere in the mix... and it started with not taking Brady.

[finfan in orlando]

Eric about Farve Its not that I think farve doesn't have any juice left but I rather develop are future then take one more year away from are young QBs to get experience and I don't know but no one has called McNown the starter yet If brett comes here with the state of our team it would not be a good fit and at best we will win 1 or 2 more games and not make the playoffs the AFC is loaded with good teams and we are still at least two years away from being a good team I believe we will be better this year than last not that its a hard task to improve on last years vomit but if Brett came here he would just get pounded we dont even know if the offensive line is any good yet I believe its improved but until the pads go on you really dont know just my opinion

Good News peeps we signed Langford

"Dolphins signed third-round DE Kendall Langford to a multi-year contract.

At 6'6/300, Langford possesses an ideal build to play end in Miami's 3-4 scheme. The Hampton product started three years in college and finished with 23.5 sacks. Langford will likely be a starter eventually, but probably not in 2008"

Only Merling and Henne to go

Go Phins

[NYScott]

Oh boy. You're not sucking me into this one again Armando! I'm leaving this one alone.

[finfan in orlando]

David Woodley @uck you

What the @uck did I do to you

You are a @itch

[thejuandiggler]

Good post Ricky420 , but if Beck or Henne work out ill be happy we got Ginn, he's gonna be a good receiver in this leauge.

[Tree2691]

Look, Quinn wouldn't have been any better here, than Beck was last year. You said Quinn is getting better under Anderson. WHO would he have developed under here? I still think he is completely over rated.

My second point is this: We only got Henne because he was there for our second second round pick. Had we truly intended to replace Beck, we would have drafted Henne with our FIRST second round pick. Clearly he was at the top of our board AT THE TIME WE DRAFTED HIM. Plus, it gave us another young QB to develop, just in case.

Are you saying we would be better off having taken someone else in the second round, and picking up a QB in later rounds, or signing an undrafted QB? This way, we have a Second round caliber QB at the top spot, and backing up, going on into the future.

If Beck steps up this year, and solidifies his position at the top of the list, GREAT! We will have Henne around if he gets hurt, and to dangle in front of other teams, much as Atlanta did with Matt Shaub.

If Beck isn't ready to take over this year, McCown can do the job, as they develop the two younger guys, who can then fight it out next year. If Henne Wins at that point, we have Beck as a Solid backup, much as Gary Kubiak was for Elway. His entire career, you could count Kubiak's starts on one hand, and appearances on two.

I don't see how Having both is harmful in any way. The trifecta won't waffle, the way Cleveland did for several years, they will give who they believe has the best stuff a shot, and he will succeed, or fail. If he fails, there will be a short leash, and, probably a short career in Miami.

[Eric]

if beck doesn't win the qb job from a loser like mccown then beck's career in miami is probably over. also if they really did like beck they would not have touched a qb in the second round.

[Phinatic]

ricky

If I was the GM I would have taken Quinn, draft day I was just waiting for clevland to pass on him. Although I also like Ginn, I hate the pick at #9.

eric
Tree is so much righter than you. Plus I think the trifecta was planning to draft Beck later on if we didn't so they do have a good opinion of him. I also think every team should draft a QB somewhere in the draft every year regardless of who you have. but tree has the nail on the head about the Qb thing up there. your just a QB TROLL

[Eric]

no i just think our qb's suck. a 1-15 team with holes everywhere doesn't draft a qb in the second round if they like the one they have already.

[BARRY]

NONE OF YOU CULPEPPER HATERS REMEMBER WHAT HE DID TO THE DOLPHINS,WHEN Oakland embarrested us in our own house. blah..blah...blah

[option coach]

It always amazes me how nasty and personal the insults can be on these posts. Aimed at men that are surely light years ahead in their athletic ability than anybody responding to these blogs.

As a recipient of three of my own knee surgeries, I have been robbed of what limited speed I once had. I can only imagine what it must be like to lose the pro bowl level mobility Pep once had. There is no way he is not as good as many of the QB's on NFL rosters right now, even if he can't move. He still has a cannon for an arm.

Why don't we just wish him the best while we root for the team we all love? I don't understand the nastiness from a bunch of guys who probably wouldn't say "boo" in the face of any of these athletes.

[Tommy]

Getting rid of Culpepper and bringing in Trent Green, along with drafting Ted Ginn over Brady Quinn, were the two main reasons why Cam Cameron was not given a second season with the Dolphins.... not that I'd want a guy like him as my head coach anyway.

[The Cuban Assassin]

" NONE OF YOU CULPEPPER HATERS REMEMBER WHAT HE DID TO THE DOLPHINS,WHEN Oakland embarrested us in our own house. blah..blah...blah"
Posted by: BARRY

Barry nobody cares about what Culpepper did to the phins. Any monkey could have done that to our 1-15 team. I thought Culpepper originally would work out well for the phins. I am not happy we had to give up a 2nd round pick for him and got nothing when he left!
The Cuban Assassin

[phillyfinfan]

Kind of late to this conversation, but, for what it's worth: I think Cam and Pep were just a mismatch, fundamentally. What ruined Pep was, 1st, Scott Linehan leaving for the Rams, which, by the way, was also was one of the two factors (Drafting Pep over Brees being the other one) that doomed Sabans NFL days, and, second (ironically enough), Saban leaving. (Yes, I know I just said that Saban left partly because he picked Pep and that Pep's career crashed because Saban left, but of such paradox's are careers made). Linehan would have been better able to utilize Pep's limited skills then that moron Mularkey. By the time Cam came on board he just did what Parcell's and co. are doing now, dumping the previous year's underperformers.

[Awache]

Culpepper's only quality was his ability to chuck the ball 85 yards and hae Randy Moss catch it.
Moss was the skill player and Culpepper was just a big arm. So, no the Dophins should not go after him.

[Jason]

Are you kidding me about Daunte??? He needs to realize he is now a back up and collect a check for a couple of years and retire. This is not the same Physical Phenom that took the NFL by storm in 2001. He has always made plays with his body but not his head. Do you really think Daunte could pull off a WEST COAST OFFENSE?

[Marcio oliveira]

Do you think the Dolphins did the right thing cutting Culpepper without having that promised competition?
NO.

Do you agree with me he is better than Cleo Lemon?
With one arm and one leg he is better than Lemon.

Would you have picked him over McCown or did the Dolphins get the right Oakland QB as a free agent?
No. Not after what he did playing for Oakland against us.

[Mr. Bungle]

The Dolphins drafted Henne to add more quality young talent and depth to a position that has been sub par for years. It wasn't a knock on Beck. The idea is to maximize the chances for a young QB to develop and become a good player. If both Beck and Henne perform well, there is trade value for one of them. Then maybe we can make some team bend over the coals for once and get a high draft pick from our abundance.

[Otis Sistrunk]

Culpepper was ignominiously escorted from the training facility, and deprived of the chance to honestly compete for the job, for one reason & one reason only - - racism. That's right, all you Klansmen out there, the truth is that simple. I'm so happy, despite his failure to return to form, that DP had at least one last dose of glory, single-handedly outgunning & outrunning your beloved country-bumpkin dolphins for the Pride & Poise Raiders.

[GoMiamiGo]

I agree with a lot of what was said. Cam Cameron really took the franchise a step back with what he did with Daunte Culpepper and I believe it affected the entire team. When your team leaders Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas, comes to you and tells the entire media, that no one was working during the offseason as hard as Daunte was to get back on the field, and you don't even let him take a snap in practice during training camp to compete and show everyone where he was and just handing the job to Trent Green with concussion and two knee issues and who didnt even finish the entire season, you did the team a disservice.
Daunte, showed them what he could do when he came in her with the Raiders and played hard and won the game.
He only signed with Oakland for a year because he knew that fit for what he wanted, get some reps knowing Jamarcus was going to take over the next year and show that he was healthy and would get a look by teams during free agency. I am suprised with the quality of quarterbacks that is out there now that he has not been picked up yet..