Dolphins coach Adam Gase threatens to bench players who don't perform
The Miami Dolphins came away with their first win of the season against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, and in doing so, Adam Gase also won his first game as an NFL head coach. It was an ugly overtime victory over one of the two worst teams in football, but the result is nonetheless the same: a one in the win column.
However, that’s not to say everything is all well and good in South Beach. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Gase is not pleased with the way his team is playing, and he’s prepared to make changes if need be.
“I’m over discussing any of this stuff with players,” Gase said, via the Miami Herald. “We’re either going to start getting the job done, or we’re going to make changes.”
It took Gase just three games before he yanked a starter for performance issues. On Sunday, he benched right tackle Ja’Wuan James after allowing a strip sack in the final minutes. It should have cost the Dolphins the game, had Cody Parkey made a 46-yard field goal.
The Dolphins were fortunate the field goal was missed, but that didn’t keep James out of the dog house.
“We just want guys to do it right,” Gase said. “Whoever wants to do it right, those are the guys that we’re going to put out there. Talent’s irrelevant at this point.”
Talent may be irrelevant, but the Dolphins don’t have much of that anyway. The offense has sputtered through three weeks despite having a “franchise quarterback” in Ryan Tannehill, and Arian Foster has already landed on the shelf with an injury.
DeVante Parker can’t stay on the field, while it seems as though Jarvis Landry is the only consistent playmaker for Miami. With their current roster, the Dolphins probably aren’t going to win many games. Fortunately, their schedule isn’t anything like that of the Jets’, though they do have a short turnaround this week.
“I think we’ve got a lot of improvement to make,” Gase said. “The good thing is we get to line up and do it again on Thursday.”
