The Dan Campbell era will kick off for the Dolphins this week and the team hopes it will get off to a better start than the Ndamukong Suh era.
Suh’s arrival in Miami didn’t have the kind of impact that many expected as the Dolphins defense played a major role in the 1-3 start that claimed the jobs of head coach Joe Philbin and defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle last week. Suh has had nine tackles while spearheading a defense that has generated one sack while giving up the most rushing yards per game in the NFL.
Spinning that to look like the Dolphins got what they thought they were getting would be impossible, so executive vice president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum didn’t try during an appearance on 640 AM with Sid Rosenberg. Instead he focused on the big picture for a player who is signed through 2020.
“Let’s be fair,” Tannenbaum said. “We signed him to a six-year contract, so we’re four games into a six-year contract. He hasn’t played as well as we hoped, we haven’t played as well as we hoped. I think we have to give it a grade of incomplete.”
Suh was one of several players reportedly upset by Coyle’s scheme, so the hope in Miami will now be that changes to the system will unleash the player they remember from Detroit. Sunday’s visit to the Titans will bring the first answers on that front.