It appears as though the Wildcat has finally been tamed, as the signature Miami Dolphins formation isn’t getting it done for the AFC East underdog thus far in 2010.
Although the Phins had no luck running the formation against the Jets on Sunday night, head coach Tony Sparano defended the flailing formation on Monday to the Miami Herald.
“We're not looking for 40-yard plays out of the thing. It's an efficient run. Ronnie [Brown] had two or three efficient runs out of the thing,” said Sparano. “He threw a pass out of one of them that, to be quite honest with you, we threw down the field to Brandon [Marshall], but if we threw the wheel route, it might have been a 30-yard gain. I ain't all stuck on that. Not at all.”
Sparano seems to be confused about the effectiveness of the Wildcat.
According to the Miami Herald, the Dolphins ran the play eight times against the Jets and gained a total of seven yards. Four of the plays went for either no gain or a loss of yardage.
This is because Miami’s offense is totally transparent right now. Dolphin fans have complained about the stagnant offense after every game this year, and they might be on to something.
Opposing defenses stack the box for against them on first down, forcing Miami to run the Wildcat with the belief that it evens the playing ground, since the D is no longer wasting a body on the quarterback.
The Patriots are no stranger to the formation. After struggling mightily against the debut of the Wildcat in 2008, the Pats totally suppressed it last season.
New England was well prepared last year when they faced the formation in November. The Dolphins unsuccessfully ran it on 10 different plays, but netted only seven yards and a touchdown.
The Patriots will face the Dolphins on Monday night.
