Will Manso: Gase is right to stick with Cutler

Matt Moore isn't answer to Dolphins' lackluster offense

Miami Dolphins head coach Adam Gase speaks to quarterbacks Matt Moore (right) and Jay Cutler during practice, Aug. 13, 2017, in Davie, Florida.

MIAMI

"We want Moore. We want Moore."

Those were the chants from some Dolphins fans at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday during the Dolphins ugly 16-10 win over the Titans.

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My simple reply is, "No, you don't."

Matt Moore is not the answer for the sputtering Dolphins offense.  I'm not sure Jay Cutler is the answer either, but I can tell you with plenty of confidence that head coach Adam Gase isn't going to replace Cutler with Moore anytime soon.  And he shouldn't.

The Dolphins offense is a mess, but Cutler isn't the only reason why.  He's not even the main reason why.

The offensive line would take the prize on that one.  At the moment, this o-line isn't run-blocking well and isn't pass-blocking well. How can you expect any offense to succeed like that?

This is not said to defend Cutler. Outside of the opening game, Cutler has not been good.  When he gets pressured, he starts to throw off his back foot and not finishing his throws.  It's led to a number of ugly throws and interceptions.  It comes with the territory for Cutler.

The problem is he's been getting such little time that he seems to always be throwing off his back foot. Then the few times he's gotten a clean pocket, he rarely gets help from his receivers. Ugly drops, bad routes and miscommunication have plagued the Dolphins offense over the last few weeks.

Finally, you have to blame Gase. This is his offense, and this offense is truly awful. The Dolphins entered the day averaging an NFL worst 8.3 points per game. The next worst team in the league averages over twice that total. That's not just bad. That's pathetic.

It didn't get much better Sunday. The Dolphins ended up with 16 points, but seven of those points came directly because of the defense scoring a touchdown. 

Gase has to take a big part of the blame. He's calling plays like a coach who is scared of what could happen because of his offensive line. I understand his logic. The more chances you take, the more chances Cutler has to make a mistake because of the o-line.

The problem is the less chances you take, the more predictable this offense becomes.

There is just no rhythm and the offense seems to be playing with no energy. Again, Gase has to recognize this. I think he does but hasn't figured out how to fix it.

Would turning to Matt Moore spark this offense? Heck no. With this offensive line, Moore would have no chance. Gase knows that and any reasonable Dolphins fan should know that, too. If Gase believed Moore was the answer, he wouldn't have bothered pursuing Cutler after Ryan Tannehill went down with an injury.

That wasn't the case, and now Gase has to live and die with the man he hand-picked to lead the Dolphins offense this season. They didn't give Cutler $10 million to pull the plug after four games of a bad offense.

There is only one way to save this offense and it starts with Gase getting creative with ways to get Cutler and his receivers in sync without exposing a bad offensive line.

It's easier said than done, but this is why the Dolphins hired Gase. He's supposed to be an offensive guru. He needs to start playing the part before it's too late. Miami's schedule will only get tougher, and there's no way this offense will win games like this against quality opponents.

The Dolphins offense shouldn't be this bad, and it's about time they start showing it.

So maybe what Dolphins fans were trying to say Sunday was, "We want more!" That would be more creativity on offense. Not a change at quarterback. 


About the Author:

Will Manso came back home to South Florida when he joined Local 10 in March of 1999. During his time here, Will has kept busy by working in sports, news and he's even dabbled in entertainment. He is now Local 10's sports director and also enjoys the chance to serve as host for special shows on Local 10.