An Open Letter To Miami Dolphins Fans
Dear Dolphins Fans,
Patrick Allen here, lead writer from over at Arrowhead Addict.
First let me say that Brian (our Dolphins blogger) did not ask me to write this. I am doing on my own. I also want to say that I like the Dolphins and their fans. Miami has always been a classy organization that I’ve never had a problem except for that one time you guys knocked us out of the playoffs.
Anyway, I am here to talk to you about Tyler Thigpen.
Thigpen has been gone from Kansas City for a while now but I am still very fond of him. In fact, he is one of my favorite Chiefs of ever.
The 2008 season was miserable for the Kansas City Chiefs fan. We were coming off a 4-12 season and Herm Edwards had turned our team into a Division 2 college squad. I mean this team was bad. Really, really bad. We lost a heart breaker (and our starting QB) to New England 17-10 to start the season. The next week, against Oakland, Herm Edwards trotted some guy name Marques Hagins out on to the field to play QB for the Chiefs. There were just two problems with this scenario.
Problem #1: Hagins was a call up from the practice squad.
Problem #2: HE WAS A FREAKING WIDE RECEIVER!!!!!!!(#@!#!@#__
Sorry for the outburst…er…Herm Edwards you know…
Anyway, Hagins attempted like one pass for 5 yards and was involved in a couple of ridiculous trick plays that made the Chiefs look, well, ridiculous. The Herm dusted off Damon Huard who lasted 4 or so passing attempts before getting hurt.
Then I imagine the following transpired:
Herm Edwards: Hey! Damon is hurt. Croyle is hurt. Hagins is a wider receiver. Anyone here play QB?
Tyler Thigpen: I do coach!
Herm Edwards: Who are you?
Tyler Thigpen: Tyler Thigpen coach. Out of Coastal Carolina.
Herm Edward: Perfect! Listen to me Thigpen, you’re my guy. Get in there.
Thigpen went on to have a so so came against the Raiders and since he had no one else, Herm decided to start him the next week against the Falcons.
It was possibly the worst QB performance in the history of professional football. Thigpens throws looked like a Frisbee that gets a gust of wind under it and soars higher and farther than intended. Thigpen tossed 3 interceptions that day compared to 1 TD. He was 14 of 36 for 138 yards. That is 3.6 yards per pass. That is a 38% completion percentage. You almost felt bad for him while watching that game. The commentator summed it up best when he said Thigpen had no business on an NFL field.
The Chiefs went back to Huard in consecutive blowout losses to the Panthers and Titans, though Thigpen did get five passes in each game on the count of Huard being 104 years old. After the second blowout, we were told that Huard was no longer with us and that we would be stuck with Thigpen for the rest of the season.
Thiggy got his second ever start against the New York Jets, in Week 8 of 2008. I remember the day very clearly because I was on a plane coming back from a wedding. Before we took off, I had texted some friends asking how we were doing. Before they could answer, I was forced to turn off my phone for takeoff. I was on a Jet Blue flight from Pittsburgh to NYC. Somewhere around Philadelphia, the game I was watching switched from the Steelers to the Jets.
Tyler Thigpen was taking it to them.
We landed and I turned on my phone which promptly exploded with text messages from my friends spewing what I would have labeled as crazy talk if I had not been seeing it with my own eyes. I rushed off the plane and watched the rest of the game in an airport bar. The Chiefs lost but for the first time all season, they looked like an NFL football team.
And Tyler Thigpen dazzled. He went 25 of 36 for 280 yards. He threw 3 touchdowns and no interceptions and finished with a QB rating of 110.9. He also ran 4 times for 20 yards.
Thigpen fever swept across Chiefs Nation. The following week against the Bucs, Thigpen lined up at receiver and caught a deep bomb for a touchdown pass. My friends and I acted as though we had wont he Super Bowl.
He wasn’t perfect but damn was he exciting. We came up with all kinds of nicknames for him.
Thiggy. Thiggy Smalls. Thigbone. Thignanomous. Thigmaster T.
And of course, Bones.
We would “Get Thiggy With It” every time he scored.
The only problem was that he wasn’t a winner. Thigpen only lead the Chiefs to one victory that season (the team only won 2 total) but most of the blame was laid on the defense.
Debate erupted over whether Thigpen was actually any good or just a product of Chan Gailey’s spread defense. Tony Gonzalez went on the record as saying it would be a crime against humanity if Thigpen wasn’t the starter in KC in 2009.
Had Herm Edwards stuck around, Thigpen probably would have gotten that chance but a 2-14 (or 1-15) record as you folks in Miami know all too well, is cause for heads to roll. Herm got the boot. Chan wasn’t far behind him. Pioli and Haley came in and the first thing they did was trade for Matt Cassel. They wanted no part of anything remotely related to Herm Edwards. KC fans argued about Cassel vs. Thigpen but it was all for not. Cassel was the guy and Thigpen was traded to Miami to be a third string QB again.
When it looked like Henne was going to be the guy for Miami, I found myself feeling bad for Thigpen. He had some major issues to work out but I still felt like if anyone ever took the time to develop him, he might just turn in to Mike Vick light.
A little over a year later, Thigpen is about to get another start, this time for the Miami Dolphins. I know that the folks in Miami have taken to Thigpen and they have been working with him. He has a fair amount of experience as a starter in the NFL and now has a year in the Dolphins system.
I expect big things from Tyler Thigpen and I hope you guys do to. Anyone who has been watching Mike Vick tear teams to shreds recently knows what a guy with Thigpen’s speed at QB can do to NFL teams. If the Dolphins have turned or will turn, Thigpen into a better passer, you could have something very, very special on your hands.
He was the only reason the 2008 KC season was worth watching. Hopefully, he will bring a little of that magic (and some wins) to Miami this year.
Good luck against the Bears. Enjoy the ride and GET THIGGY WITH IT!
Patrick Allen
Arrowhead Addict