Not exactly a start-studded cast of players, but at least they’re something, right? It does gives us some solace though. They certainly do exist after all.
Teams can masquerade themselves in looking good during the preseason by beating respectable teams, never mind that the players representing them are a combined group of outcasts and practice squad members. A win during this preliminary phase raises some hope, albeit by a bit, but that would largely be it.
Once the regular season rolls its ugly head, however, the pretenders will be quickly discovered whether they like it or not. This grueling fate unsurprisingly panned itself out for the Dolphins after Weeks 1 and 2, and as the reality of their play started creeping in, the players briskly sought for a way out. That hope, which had built their psyche through the preseason for the start of the real show, was mercilessly swiped.
The truth of the matter is this: the Dolphins are tanking. With the massive amount of attention generated from Minkah Fitzpatrick’s deal, the Dolphins stayed silent, shying themselves away from the news and instead focusing on their next game against the Los Angeles Chargers. This silence, though helpful in the team’s perspective of moving forward in the season, also revealed their genuine feelings over tanking the season in order to get the number one overall draft pick. Players and coaches can provide generic lip service in press conferences to reassure their fans over both the “outside noise” from the media and their treatment for this season, provided that they are not forfeiting outright, but the truth still remains on the back of the public’s minds.
At the end of the day, the people who will feel the direct consequence from this brewing exodus of Dolphins players are the players themselves, and perhaps nothing else can be better exemplified than cornerback Xavien Howard’s latest tweet after news broke of Fitzpatrick’s deal.
— Xavien Howard (@Iamxavienhoward) September 17, 2019
A dejected Will Smith, observing the empty living room in his house from the hit 90’s show “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” bites his lower lip out of frustration and anger (as implied through the context of the gif’s meme nature), but he internally forces his vitriol to fade out. Sure, the context of the actual scene from the show is dramatically different from its reading, but the showed content smoothly provided an easy application to the Dolphins’ recent events through its short video length.
From the last two weeks, the Dolphins were blown to smithereens by two of the NFL’s premier teams, and everyone is looking to find their way out, saving their own faces from the looming dumpster fire that is becoming of their 2019 season. Some have already managed to find an exit in the immediate aftermath of the second loss, while others will have to power through the year. The prize of elite talent can nullify the suffering of any rebuilding team, but they have to complete an entire season—or maybe more than once—to reach this point. It’s only the people that stay, either by obligation or for another opportunity, who will see the humiliating absorption of consecutive losses through.
