For Miami Dolphins, focus needs to be on QB, not head coach

BOSTON-- Ever heard of the old saying "An NFL coach is only as good as his QB is?"

Boy, has that held up or what?

For the last two weeks the Miami Dolphins have put all of their efforts, all of their focus into finding the next head coach to man the ship in South Florida, and so far owner Stephen Ross has come up empty.

Jeff Fisher is in St. Louis right now, fat, rich, and happy with a thicker wallet and a franchise quarterback.  In Miami, however, Stephen Ross and GM Jeff Ireland continue to do some serious damage control in the wake of losing out on another big name head coach, and both are facing the reality of having to hire another lesser known coach, much to the public dismay of Dolfans all over.

But folks, the next hire won't be the biggest, most important of the off-season.

The one after that will.

It seems that we've all gotten so caught up in the latest coaching carousel that the more important, more franchise- altering question has taken the backseat in Miami.

Come on, you all know what question I'm referring to.  It's the same one this franchise has had to answer, and subsequently answered wrong, for the last decade.

Who's the next quarterback going to be?

Scratch that, who's the next FRANCHISE quarterback going to be?

Wait, let me try one more time.  Who's the next franchise quarterback who's going to bring a Super Bowl back to Miami going to be?  There, that's the one I want!

Jay Fiedler, Brian Griese, AJ Feeley, Sage Rosenfels, Gus Ferrote, Joey Harrington, Daunte Culpepper, Cleo Lemon, Trent Green, John Beck, Chad Pennington, Chad Henne, Matt Moore.  Whew.  Let me pause to take a minute and shake out the carpal tunnel in my wrists.

Thirteen.  Go ahead, count em'.  Thirteen starting quarterbacks for the Miami Dolphins since number 13 hung it up in 2000.

Wanna know how many starting quarterbacks the Patriots, who are one win away from the Super Bowl, have had in that same time span?  One, Tom Brady.

The Colts?  One (No, this year doesn't count), Peyton Manning.

The Packers?  Two, Brett Favre and Aaron Rogers.

The Steelers?  Three, Kordell Stewart, Tommy Maddox, and Ben Roethlisberger.

What about Super Bowl rings?  Tom Brady?  Well, he's got three and he's been in four.

Peyton Manning?  Well, he's got one and he's been in two.

Aaron Rogers and Brett Favre?  Well they've got two combined and they've been in three.

Big Big?  Well, he's got two and he's been in three himself.

And now the stats on those thirteen starting quarterbacks for the Miami Dolphins?..

Well, they've got zero rings, with zero appearances, and with the exception of Jay Fiedler and Chad Pennington, their playoff record?  0-0, because they haven't even been to the playoffs.

Message to Dolphins owner Stephen Ross:  Elite quarterbacks win you Super Bowls, coaches do not.

Sure the head coach is important, but he's merely second tier to an elite QB.  You will argue that Tom Brady had Bill Belichick.  I will argue that Bill Belichick had Tom Brady.

You will argue that Peyton Manning had Tony Dungy.  I will argue that without Peyton Manning, Tony Dungy doesn't even win that division, much less the Super Bowl.

Without an elite QB a team will not win the Super Bowl.  Do you think Tom Coughlin has a ring without Eli Manning?  Not a chance.

The Miami Dolphins need to move on from the Jeff Fisher debacle and find their next head coach, and they need to do it soon.  Very soon.  Because without a head coach you cannot figure out who your next quarterback will be.

And without a QB, and a good one at that, you cannot win in this league.

Stephen Ross has a giant task in front of him at the moment.  Picking the next head coach of an organization is one of the most important decisions in all of pro sports.

But please don't think it's over when you've made it, Mr. Ross.

Oh no.

It's only just begun.