**ADJOURNED** The Trial of Dave Wannstedt

[Muck]

Presiding
Judge Muck FootballGuy

Clerk
Section126

Prosecution
DolphinDevil28

Assistant
dusty_hog

Defense
davster82

Co-Counsel
FFiB



Charges:
You can find guilty or not guilty on each of these charges:

1. Not meeting the "correct" expectations of the talent that is here.

2. Damaging the Franchise.

3. Incompetence.

4. Perrennial underachievement.

5. Lack of motivation and discipline to players (This offense does not carry the maximum punishment)


Jurors:
1. Dolfan984
2. gators910
3. blingbling2334
4. aquaman
5. Sherif
6. madcow
7. Phin-o-rama

Alternate Jurors:
1. Superself
2. Dolfan954
3. LIDOLFAN


Schedule:
1. Opening remarks by the judge and post guidelines are set.

2. The Clerk will read the formal charges against the defendant David Wannstedt.

3. Prosecution opening statement.

4. Defense opening statement.

5. Presentation of evidence from the prosecution. (The Case)

6. Defense Case

7. Prosecution Rebuttal

8. Defense Rebuttal

9. Prosecution Closing

10. Defense Closing

11. Jury Instructions

12. Deliberations

13. Verdict

14. Sentencing


How the trial will work: Only posts permitted will be those of the relevant parties. When you (the relevant party) would like to post, PM me and I will open the thread.....and then close it. Any unsanctioned posts will be removed and said poster or posters will be subject to the court's wrath.

So without further ado, lets get the trial of the century on the road. Clerk, roll it out.....

[Section126]

The Case of Miami Dolphins LTD. Corporation Fans, Supporters and Patrons Et Al Known as
the Plaintiff Versus The Defendant, The Head Football Coach of the Miami Dolphins David
Wannstedt Et. Al, Will be heard.

The Defendant has been charged of the following offenses with support of indictable evidence.

1. The Defendant David Wannstedt is hereby charged of the Major Offense of Not meeting the
"correct" expectations of the talent that is here as per the expectations that were set by Fans,
Supporters and Patrons of Miami Dolphins LTD. Corporation. An Actionable offense.

2. The Defendant David Wannstedt is hereby charged of the Major Offense of Damaging the
Franchise as per the information brought forward by Fans, Supporters and Patrons of Miami
Dolphins LTD. Corporation. An Actionable offense.

3. The Defendant David Wannstedt is hereby charged of the Major Offense of Incompetence as
per the information brought forward by Fans, Supporters and Patrons of Miami Dolphins LTD.
Corporation. An Actionable offense.

4. The Defendant David Wannstedt is hereby charged of the Major Offense of perrennial
underachievement as per the information brought forward by Fans, Supporters and Patrons of
Miami Dolphins LTD. Corporation. An Actionable offense.

5. The Defendant David Wannstedt is hereby charged of the Minor Offense of lack of motivation
and discipline to players as per the information brought forward by Fans, Supporters and Patrons
of Miami Dolphins LTD. Corporation. An Actionable offense.

The Defense is being conducted by davster82 and his Co-Counsel FFiB and are sworn to defend
the rights and honor of their client, The Head Football Coach of the Miami Dolphins David
Wannstedt.

The Prosecution is being conducted by DolphinDevil28 and his Assistant dusty_hog and are
sworn to prove a case of hard and circumstantial evidence against The Defendant David
Wannstedt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The HONORABLE Muck presiding...........................

[DolphinDevil28]

Opening Statement - Prosecution

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, all of us have been die hard Dolphins fans for as long as we can remember. We put our heart, soul, and money into this team in an effort to support them and represent them as well as we possibly can. We love the Miami Dolphins with all of our hearts. We are greatly saddened by our failure to reach the playoffs for the second straight year. We supported this team through the good and bad in this roller coaster season, and we have been deeply disappointed once again.

This football team has a roster loaded with talent. There are currently eleven former or current players who have been selected to the Pro Bowl that don a Dolphins uniform. However, it seems week in and week out, most of the team is not very motivated. Many times in crucial situations there are players who are not in place to make a game-changing play. It seems most weeks our beloved team is getting out coached. The responsibility to have these things corrected falls squarely on the shoulders of the defendant, Dave Wannstedt.

The Miami Dolphins have regressed each year under Wannstedt. With a roster this talented, we were supposed to get better. We were supposed to challenge for a Super Bowl birth within the last two years. Ladies and gentlemen, because of the lack of good coaching on this team, sadly, we have gotten worse. Dave Wannstedt inherited Jimmy Johnson’s team.

In his first year, The Dolphins compiled an eleven and five record and a division championship. Of course, only to lose in the second round of the playoffs by means of a shutout at the hands of Oakland.

In year two of the Wannstedt era, we again achieved an eleven and five record. And then Baltimore came into Miami and embarrassed the Dolphins in their home stadium. The Dolphins were clearly out coached.

In Wannstedt’s third year, the team went nine and seven. Granted, there were injuries. However, the Dolphins were in first place in the conference and on the verge of home field advantage with two weeks to go in the regular season. The Dolphins proceeded to lose both games, with everyone healthy, because of horrible play-calling and no motivation, once again. The team missed the playoffs.

Now, this year, we find ourselves out of the playoffs with a full week to go in the regular season, because the team has greatly underachieved this season due to lack of guidance and discipline.

Ladies and gentlemen, Dave Wannstedt is a hard worker, and a blue collar human being. However, he DOES NOT have what it takes to lead this team, nor any other team. The Miami Dolphins need a leader, not a nice person. I wish he would have succeeded, but he has failed miserably. Dave Wannstedt must be fired.

[FFiB]

Opening Statement - Defense

Dear honorable judge, members of the jury, and those who attend today.

While we all suffer under this year’s failure to reach the playoffs we all should separate facts from fiction, and reality from fantasy as well as not let our emotions cloud our judgement. Blame should be placed in the right places and should be supported by facts rather than fiction. While it might be an easy task to point the finger at just one person we must asked ourselves if it is justified, supported by facts and if it is reality or fantasy land.

Unfortunately today we find ourselves in this courtroom to defend an individual against charges of damaging the reputation of an NFL franchise, underachieving and incompetence. An individual who has spent countless hours in the last 4 years scheming and trying to come up with game plans to lead our beloved Dolphins to victory. This individual has done so despite the fact that he was subjected to ridicule the day he started, despite the fact that his family was exposed to ridicule and embarrassment by the “fans”, the media and the general public. This individual we are talking about is Dave Wannstedt, Headcoach of the Miami Dolphins.

If giving your heart and soul as well as your physical and emotional strength to the well being of a football franchise for almost 4 years – day in, day out – 16 hours a day…then yes..he is guilty.
But no, the prosecution charges Dave Wannstedt with “damaging the franchise”, “underachieving”, “regression” and {:::defender raises voice and points finger:::} INCOMPETENCE.

The defense will prove that Dave Wannstedt has tried to his best abilities to archive success while – at the same time- protected the reputation of this franchise.

Dearest members of the jury, at the end of this trial you will realize that all charges brought against our client are baseless and neither based on facts nor supported by history.

Thank you very much.

[DolphinDevil28]

Prosecution's Case

The prosecution never blamed Dave Wannstedt for not trying. As stated earlier, he is a hard worker and a blue collar person. However, he simply does not possess what it takes to run this team, and he has done damage to this franchise.

Enough with the speculation, let's get to some facts:

First, let us look at exhibit A: There aren’t many people who would argue that the Dolphins have a very talented roster. Most analysts and NFL pundits predicted for two years in a row now that the Dolphins would venture deep into the playoffs. The furthest we have gotten is a second round appearance, only to be obliterated.

Exhibit B: For the few positional cores that weren’t up to par with the rest of the talent on the team, the coaching staff and management failed to acquire a good player. With the exception of Junior Seau at outside linebacker, there have been numerous critical positions which have underachieved and have not been upgraded. The Dolphins have been looking for a left tackle for three years now. Our coaches relied on the oft-injured Mark Dixon and were comfortable backing him up with a third round pick who was only in his second year as a tackle. He ended up starting and gave up numerous sacks this year. Ever since Dan Marino retired, quarterback play has plagued this team with inconsistency. We all love Jay Fiedler’s toughness and leadership, but it was painfully obvious after the first two years of him starting that he can’t throw that well. However, Wannstedt stuck with him for four whole years because he is too loyal and doesn’t have the guts to make a change.

Exhibit C: The Miami Dolphins have been EXTREMELY too conservative in play calling the past four years. Due to this, and lack of motivation from the coaches, the Dolphins have given up fourth quarter leads throughout Wannstedt’s tenure. There have been numerous times the Dolphins have run the ball up the middle late in the game with a slim lead only to have to punt and watch the other teams score and take the lead. Or, in a situation where we have the lead and need to run out the clock (New England last year) we pass three consecutive plays inside our own five yard line in a game where we had great success running all day.

Exhibit D: Wannstedt has pulled several draft day blunders. In 2001, with the twenty sixth selection overall, he selected Jamar Fletcher, who has been a huge bust. There were several good players at positions of need available, but Wannstedt selected a position that the Dolphins already had two all-pros at. Granted, the Dolphins traded up to select Chris Chambers, but that was more because of Rick Spielman’s wheeling and dealing.

Before last year’s draft, Wannstedt trades the Dolphin’s second round pick in this upcoming draft to the Dolphin’s biggest foe, the Patriots. Wannstedt then proceeded to select Eddie Moore, an undersized linebacker who has been out all year, when there were explosive wide receivers available, which is a position the Dolphins sorely needed and still do.

Exhibit E: Lack of discipline. The Miami Dolphins have been in the top ten in the NFL the past two years in personal fouls committed. Every time the Dolphins are called for one, Wannstedt is shown on the sideline waiving his hand through his hair looking bewildered instead of getting in the face of the player who committed the dumb foul and hollering at him.

Exhibit F: Last but not least, Wannstedt is a loser in crunch time. He is 7-9 with Miami in December. What’s more, he predicted that the Dolphins would lead the league in rushing the second half of this season. The Dolphins aren’t even in the top ten.
Before the season started, he made the bold statement that the Dolphins would “have one of the best passing games in the NFL this year.” The Dolphin’s passing game ranks 26th in the NFL.

[FFiB]

Well, ladies and gentlemen of the jury,
After hearing the prosecution’s case we will show you that this case is based on “smoke and mirrors” and has no facts to support the case.

Let me address the prosecution’s case first:

In exhibit A the prosecution states opinions of analysts and “experts”. That’s just it: opinions. There were also analysts and “experts” who did not predict success for our franchise and they were wrongly labeled as Bills fans – or even worse – as Jets fans. Who is to say, before a season starts, that THIS will be the team to go to the Super Bowl? Many predicted for the Oakland Raiders to do much better than they actually did. Even our very own division rival Buffalo Bills were mentioned as a contender this year. Ladies and gentlemen…let’s stay with the facts not just opinions. No pre-season prediction had the Miami Dolphins as a Super Bowl winner listed, not even Las Vegas odds makers had us listed as a Super Bowl participant. Different analysts and different “experts” come always up with different predictions.

In exhibit B the prosecution lists several shortcomings at certain positions of the Miami Dolphins which may be true to a certain degree. Yes, Dave Wannstedt relied on Mark Dixon and was forced to play Wade Smith, an inexperienced young player. But, the coaching staff has addressed the issue in several ways by changing the blocking scheme and giving Wade Smith help. The Defense would like to introduce the game tape from 11/02/2003 as Defense Exhibit 1 . The game as evidence features the Indianapolis Colts visiting the Miami Dolphins. I would like the jury to forward to 2:17 left in the 4th quarter. At 2nd and 8 from the Indianapolis 13-yard line, the Miami Dolphins called for a rollout to the right by QB Brian Griese. To protect his blindside (the left side) they called for Ricky Williams, RB of the Miami Dolphins, to help Wade Smith with the protection. Unfortunately, Ricky Williams interfered with Wade Smith and #93 of the Indianapolis Colts, Freeney, sacked Brian Griese untouched and caused a fumble which essentially stopped us from coming back.
This, Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury is evidence and supports our case that Dave Wannstedt and his coaching staff tried everything possible to help WIN games.
There are many other supporting facts in which our offensive line was being helped by scheming and game planning to have this franchise win as many games as possible. Just like in the scenario mentioned, in all other scenario it came down to poor execution by the players.
Defense Exhibit 2: Supporting evidence – game tape from 12/07/2003: Miami Dolphins visiting NE Patriots; 1:49 left to go in the second quarter. Miami Dolphins on the NE 10 yard line. QB Jay Fiedler rolls to the left. Randy McMichael, who was assigned additional blocking duties to protect Jay Fiedler’s blindside, missed his block and NE’s #37, Harrison, sacks untouched Jay Fiedler and causes a fumble.

Also addressed in this exhibit by the prosecution was QB Jay Fiedler. It may be true that Jay Fiedler is not a franchise QB but he was always good enough to help us having winning seasons. It is easy to fault just one player or one coach for the mishaps of a season but it should also be noted that the overall team performance/execution plays a role in it. Dave Wannstedt tried its hardest to upgrade the QB position. Based on available money and based on what was available via FA. Wasn’t it Dolfans who swelled in sentiments when Brian Griese was signed this offseason? A former “probowler”? A QB with name recognition? But now look at his stats this year and look at his overall play. Has he become such a bad QB suddenly or is Jay’s and Brian’s demise this year a fault of NOT executing a game plan by the offense? Can two QBs be so wrong in throwing passes the wrong way yet the receivers are so right running the correct route?
Sure both QBs made mistakes but so do other QBs around the league. Our demise at QB play is largely a product of the lack of execution by several players on offense (including QBs) rather than bad coaching.
Defense Exhibit 3:The defense introduces game tapes 1 through 15 as exhibits – all pass plays by our offense.

Exhibit C by the prosecution states a case of “extremely too conservative”. Conservative is an opinion – once again. The prosecution jumps from being to conservative by just running with a slim lead to criticizing a more aggressive game plan by throwing the ball. It is either one to be critiqued not both. The prosecution is rolling the dice by saying you have two options. Neither will be right if they don’t work. The prosecution also disregards, that not only did the coaching staff put the team last year in NE into a position to win, but also fails to mention that poor punting, defensive penalties and a 2 point conversion by NE aided an improbable comeback and erased an 11 point lead with less than 5 minutes to go.
Defense Exhibit 4: We like to introduce the game tape from 12/29/2002 in which the New England Patriots hosted the Miami Dolphins. Please pay attention to the score at 5:03 left in the 4th quarter. The Miami Dolphins just scored a FG and were leading 24-13.
The heralded Miami Dolphins defense gave up 68 yards including a pass interference penalty for 30 yards and 6 points for a TD and a 2-point conversion.
Minor erroneously caught the ensuing kickoff at the 2 and he could only advance the ball to the 4-yard line of Miami.
The ensuing offensive possession was pre-determined by the position at the 4 yard line and that the NE Patriots were lining up to stuff the run and putting additional pressure on our backfield. Running plays would have forced us to hand off the ball inside our endzone and the risk of a safety loomed large.
Granted we had to punt after 3 unsuccessful passing attempts (or initial passing attempts) but the ensuing punt traveled only 23 yards and put NE in immediate FG position. Up to this point, not only did the defense give up 8 points because of lack of execution but our kick returner, Minor, made an error in judgement by catching the ball at the 2 rather than let it bounce into the endzone for a touchback and our punter could not execute the simple task of punting the ball for more than just 23 yards. These are critical mistakes made by players and lack the execution by said players of a simple game plan.
The opening of the overtime started with the lack of execution again. Kicker Olindo Mare kicked for 68 yards to the NE 2-yard line but kicked out of bounds. The ball was placed at the NE 40 and it turned out to be a 38-yard penalty. Lack of execution.
With only 30 yards to go to be in FG range, NE executed the short passing game and running game aided by our defense lack of execution (missed tackles) and accomplished that feat in only 5 plays. What the prosecution calls lack of aggressiveness, being to conservative, the defense calls errors and mistakes by the players. We are talking about basic errors and mistakes by players who play football for a living. Defense Exhibit 5: OT between NE Patriots and Miami Dolphins on 12/29/02.

In exhibit D the prosecution refers to Dave Wannstedt’s draft blunders. We agree while some drafts did not work as well, Dave Wannstedt was responsible of bringing Randy McMichael, Chris Chambers, Ogunleye and Ricky Williams to the Miami Dolphins as well as two future young linemen. The prosecution’s case is based on 2 picks in two separate drafts over the span of 4 years. We challenge the prosecution to look at the overall picture and his entire tenure with the Miami Dolphins.

Exhibit E by the prosecution is – once again - based on opinion. The “lack of discipline”, as the prosecution calls it, can not be proven with facts. Just pointing out mere number of penalties does support our case of the lack of execution by players. More often then not they put themselves out of position to tackle or block properly and reverted to illegal actions in hopes that the officials will not catch them. Also, the attitude of some players can not be counted against Dave Wannstedt.
Defense Exhibit 6: post game interview with McKnight after a 15-yard penalty “it was a statement penalty”. The defense not only challenges the prosecution to show that Dave Wannstedt sanctioned that penalty, we also challenge the prosecution to show us that the majority of penalties were attributed to “lack of discipline” rather than what the defense claims it to be: lack of execution.
Defense Exhibit 7: supportive evidence: comments by several players made on 12/21/03.
Sam Madison: When it's all said and done, it's the guys on the field.
Rob Konrad: We get preached [to] every day about details of the game. Details in a couple games turned out to change the whole season for us.
Larry Chester: In some instances, we didn't play up to our standards. In other instances, we put ourselves in bad situations and just couldn't climb out of the hole.

The prosecution’s exhibit F will not withstand our upcoming barrage of evidence. It is a pity for the prosecution to call our client a loser and list his 7-9 record as evidence.

Before this year, Dave Wannstedt’s December record would have been 6-7. For this we are assuming that the prosecution for once did some sort of research.

Defense Exhibit 8: Game tape from 12-21/02 - the Miami Dolphins visiting the Minnesota Vikings. Please forward to the second half in which our coaching staff continuously put our defense in a position to make plays yet could not stop the Minnesota Vikings offense due to poor tackling or missing their assignments. The offense in that game maximized their 2nd half effort and scored 10 points. If not for the lack of execution by Cris Carter (his own comments: “I should have caught the ball in the endzone”) the offense would have had a 100% maximum scoring ratio on both meaningful possessions in the 2nd half. Yet again, lack of execution on defense and on offense was the main contributors in that loss.

Defense Exhibit 9: We are recalling previous exhibit 4 and 5.

With proper execution in both games by players we would have not only gone 4-0 last year in December but also would have entered the playoffs as a division winner. It was not coaching rather than mental lapses, errors and lack of execution by the players.

Defense Exhibit 10: Gametape from 9/7/2003 – Houston Texans at Miami Dolphins - beginning at 4:01 left in the 4th quarter. Miami leading 20-18 Jay Fiedler throws an interception, which gives Houston its winning FG. Lack of execution.
At :04 left in the 4th quarter a miscommunication between Jay Fiedler and Chris Chambers leads to another interception at the Houston 5 yard line. Lack of execution. Houston wins 21-20

Defense Exhibit 11: Gametape from 10/17/2003 – NE Patriots @ Miami Dolphins – beginning at 2:00 left in the 4th quarter. After an 80-yard drive, the coaching staff relies on its 2 million-dollar kicker to make a simple 35-yard FG. He failed.
12:06 left in overtime: after yet another 60 yard drive Dave Wannstedt calls upon his 2 million dollar kicker again to make a simple 35 yard FG. He failed again.
Was Dave Wannstedt to conservative? Considering the alternatives such as interception and fumbles or EVEN worse an injury – Defense Exhibit 12: Gametape 12/14/2003 between the Denver Broncos and the Cleveland Browns – beginning at 10:14 left in overtime ---- Dave Wannstedt’s decision to go for a FG rather than risking any of the other options was justified. It also should be noted that in both drives the coaching staff called a high risk passing attack to get into FG position in the first place.

Defense Exhibit 13: Gametape from 11/2/2003 – Indianapolis Colts @ Miami Dolphins. Please forward to 2:17 left in the 4th quarter. Miami Dolphins face a 2nd and 8 on the Indianapolis Colts 13-yard line. A call for a roll out to the right with double protection on the left side (blind side) ended up in a sack and fumble because two Miami Dolphins players (Ricky Williams and Wade Smith) interfere with each other. Lack of execution.

Defense Exhibit 14: Gametape from 12/7/2003 – Miami Dolphins at NE Patriots.
The coaching staff put in place the same game plan as the NE Patriots. Because of the weather conditions, both teams played it safe on offense and relied on defense. If not for a “bad” call by the referees on a FG the game would have been 0-0 going well into the 4th quarter. For this game plan, my client was ridiculed and embarrassed; yet the opponent’s coach was hailed as a master and how he outcoached my client. If not for individual errors (please forward to 1:49 left in the 3rd quarter) i.e. Randy McMichael missing his assignment or Jay Fiedler throwing an interception (please forward to 8:59 left in the 4th quarter) the Miami Dolphins were put in the position to win – put in the position to win by Dave Wannstedt and his coaching staff.

Defense Exhibit 15: Gametape from 12/15/2003 – Philadelphis Eagles @ Miami Dolphins.
Please review with me every defensive snap and count how many times our defensive players were either in the backfield or in position to stop the opponent for a loss or in the same positioning at the line of scrimmage. Now let’s count how many missed tackles we can count…(note that we stopped counting at 48 missed tackles at the end of the second quarter).
This game showed how a perfect defensive game plan was destroyed by the lack of execution of several players. In this game…once again….Dave Wannstedt and his coaching staff put our beloved Miami Dolphins in a winning position.

Thank you very much.

[DolphinDevil28]

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the defense has clearly tried to wiggle their way around the fact that this team HAS REGRESSED EACH YEAR UNDER DAVE WANNSTEDT. The defense has also wrongfully accused the prosecution's case of being "smoke and mirrors." I don't know about you, but the only "smoke and mirrors" I've seen are the same, tired rhetoric we get year in and year out from Wannstedt about "how close we are" and with a tweak here and a tweak there, we will be "fine." If "fine" to you is missing the playoffs, then Wannstedt has accomplished his goal two years in a row.
I HAVE NO CLUE HOW YOU CAN LABEL THE FACT WE HAVE MISSED THE PLAYOFFS TWO STRAIGHT YEARS WITH A TALENTED ROSTER AS "SMOKE AND MIRRORS." It is the cold, hard facts that the Miami Dolphins have GOTTEN WORSE each year under Wannstedt.
I ask you, not as jurors, but as Dolphins fans, aren't you tired? Aren't you sick of getting excited and then having your heart broken year in and year out?

The defense has based its case on the premise of the players not executing properly. They have presented a laundry list of games where players have made mistakes. I ask you this: If the team has not been executing properly for THAT LONG, wouldn't it be the COACHE'S RESPONSIBILITY TO CORRECT IT??? This team is and has been undisciplined for a long time, and Wannstedt has not corrected that in four years. So, if you have wasted your time reading the defense's extensive list of game situations where players did not execute, I ask you to ask yourself in each situation: "How easy would it have been for the coach to correct that?"


Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, please view this exhibit that states how the team has regressed under the defendant and how he has failed to bring in a quality player at a very important position.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/f...dolphins-front

Please view some comments of players which illustrates the lack of motivation and quality coaching.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/f...dolphins-front

Speaking of teams that the Dolphins should have beaten, but did not, Sam Madison states: "I guess we took those guys lightly."

I ask you: WHO'S FAULT IS THAT?


http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald...ll/7554454.htm
''[Last year] when they beat Oakland, I thought they were finally headed in the right direction,'' Shula said. ``And this year when they beat Dallas, I thought the same thing again. But they've been unable to follow up on those wins. They haven't been able to be consistent and that inconsistency is what bothers you most.''

And that questionable mental makeup is a problem Wannstedt has not addressed, according to Bokamper.

''The mental makeup of these guys is something I wonder about,'' he said. ``I wouldn't say they're weak or not physically tough, but when things go wrong, they don't seem to respond well. There's something missing. There's an intangible that they don't have.''


One more thing: When asked why the Dolphins didn't pursue Trent Green as an option at quarterback after two years of Jay Fiedler struggling, Wannstedt replied that he didn't think Green could do anything Jay couldn't.

Mr Wannstedt, Jay Fiedler has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns, while Trent Green will be playing in the Pro Bowl.

Thank you.

[FFiB]

request to approach the bench.

(PM has been send to judge, clerk, prosecuter)



Sustained

The prosecution has until midnight tonight to finalized their rebuttal. There will be no more additions/editing from either side from that point on.

Judge Muck

[dusty_hog]

Your honorable Muck, Clerk Section, members of the Jury: My testimony comes to you quite a ways from the home of our dear Miami Dolphins. Even though I am not a member of the Miami area, I am a die-hard fan and have been for quite a few years, and for these past four years, I have died rather hard watching the Dolphins and the accused collapse in December and January.

I come to you from Chicago: the first head coaching home of the accused, David Wannstedt. Members of the jury: if you believe that the accused was a hated member of the National Football League while in Miami, you would believe the pandemonium over his head coaching while in Chicago. Even though he has been out of the Windy City for four years, it still brings no greater joy to sportscasters to show Miami fail and talk about the accused, coach Wannstedt.

Why is he still so hated you may ask? For many reasons, such as:

A. He orchestrated the trading of the Bear's first round pick (11th overall) for QB Rick Mirer of Seattle.
B. Labeled DL John Thierry the “next Charles Haley.” Thierry never compiled more than four sacks in a season as a member of the Bears.

The defense may contend that, “So what? Everyone makes mistakes! Should this send them to the unemployment lines?” When you are in the big leagues, the National Football League, even one mistake is one too many.

Not only has the accused been incompetent on personnel decisions, the defendant has also made terrible personal decisions. One example can be found on http://www.bearshistory.com/lore/wanny.html:

“After the last preseason, Wannstedt cut popular and reliable kicker Kevin Butler in favor of Carlos Huerta, a free agent that could not latch on with any other team. Huerta promptly missed three quarters of his attempts in the first two games, and was replaced. Wannstedt had stated that Huerta "easily out kicked" Butler during the preseason, and it was precisely this time that Wannstedt's reputation for being dishonest with players began. Butler was never treated fairly in the competition, Wannstedt's words contradicted his actions, and players began to mistrust his word.”

A few months ago I had the opportunity to work with a former member of the Chicago Bears that was a member of the team under coach Wannstedt. After talking to a fellow co-worker about my love for the Dolphins, he suggested I talk to the former player about Mr. Wannstedt. Later that day, I had the chance to ask the player (the name I cannot reveal) what he thought of Mr. Wannstedt. I remember his words as if I talked to him just yesterday.
“I’m not a big fan of him,” he said. I replied with “why not?” To this he replied:

“he was never very honest with me.”

Thank you for your time. May God Bless the Miami Dolphins, and may God Bless the United States of America.

[Muck]

In regards to the prosecution's objections via PM......

Overruled

The defense can say anything. They do not have any burden whatsoever. It is the prosecution's burden that has to be filled. You have 5 charges to prove.

The prosecution shall conclude their re-buttal and provide ALL the links for their assertions of draft history...etc...etc....

Judge Muck

[FFiB]

Defense Rebuttal to TWO prosecutions rebuttals

Dear ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

As you have all witness, the prosecution has struggled to rebut our case, which was filled with evidence and facts. Not only was the rebuttal changed several times after it was apparent that the initial rebuttal was – once again – only smoke and mirrors but now the defense is forced to “battle” two rebuttals. Well, we are up to it. We will once again prove that the prosecution is acting through emotions rather than looking at the facts and respond with logic.

I will – at this point – not respond to irrelevant banter such as “the defense is wiggling” and “we were regressing” as by the prosecution stated in their rebuttal. Those points will be addressed in our closing arguments.

Now to the few “pieces of evidence” the prosecution actually provided. The first piece of evidence is a link to a story by “Charles Bricker”. Mr Bricker makes some good points regarding our clients accomplishments. The record, the competitiveness yet he also notes our “failures” such as missing the playoffs. There is no denying that we missed the playoffs but we are not here to decide if we should be in the playoffs or not – it is not in our power – we are here to decide if Dave Wannstedt is guilty as charged. Mr Bickers article is exactly playing into the role the prosecution plays in this trial: convincing jurors based on opinion. If it would have been a player, a coach or even Wayne H. writing this article it may have had some credibility but it was not. Since this “piece of evidence” doe not rebut the exhibits and evidence we provided the defense will put this piece of evidence by the prosecution on the shelf with all the other “evidence” such as pre-season predictions. Dear members of the jury, Mr Bricker has as much inside information as any of us which is evident by the lack of interview quotes or any other inside information. Mr Bricker did his job, as an editorial writer well yet does not support the charges as filed and does not contradict our evidence because of one reason: it lacks evidence itself.

The second piece of evidence has a few quotes by players in it but unfortunately for the prosecution it supports the defense. We have drawn some of our evidence from the very same article (Defense Exhibit 7).
And don’t be fooled by the quote of Sam Madison as re-stated by the prosecution. Read the entire quote to put things in perspective:
"I think we took those guys lightly," Madison said. "We were very much prepared for them , but I think there was a little [mental] lapse. We didn't go out and compete the way we were supposed to."

"You have to go out there and make things happen," Madison said. "When it's all said and done, it's the guys on the field."

Does that sound like a coaching error or is it rather a player shouldering the blame himself?

The third piece of evidence points to an article in which interviewed people are more second guessing rather than bringing evidence of guilt and no guilt. It doesn’t help the prosecution either to highlight a quote by a famous HOF coach. Speaking of inconsistency, Don Shula did not pinpoint the reason for inconsistency. Was it the coach, as the prosecution claims, or was it the players and their lack of execution – as the defense team claims? Playing a sentimental and emotional card without evidence should not help to pursway our very unbiased and smart jury to convict Dave Wannstedt of the charges.

Kim Bokamper also did not point to solutions. He is at a loss for solutions just as well. In no word did he mention “Coaching”. The prosecution plays the game of “interpreting someone else’s opinion”. I could turn around and say “Yes. Mr Bokamper is right. We are inconstant. At times we executed, and at other times we didn’t.” THAT, dear members of the jury, is inconsistency as well. BUT the defense brought evidence to support its case, the prosecution did not.

Regarding Trent Green: Trent Green is playing behind an OL, which EXECUTES well. Their blocking schemes put in by the coaching staff of Kansas City is executed every game. As additional evidence I like to submit the gametapes from 2002 – Game 1 through 6 ( Defense Exhibit 16) and Defense Exhibit 17 – QB stats of Jay Fiedler – game 1 through 6 of 2002 - and Trent Green – 2003 season.

Exhibit 17 shows that Jay Fiedler’s rating was higher during that time (94 to 93) and his completion percentage was better (63 to 64) as well. Exhibit 16 will clearly show that our players overall executed during those 6 games nearly 100% with only a few lapses and errors.
Both pieces of evidence show that Dave Wannstedt could be very well right about his QB and surely does not prove that he was wrong in judgement.

We could request a dismissal of the second rebuttal by co-counsel dusty_hog since it has no bearing on our case. While it is an interesting read about our clients coaching tenure before he joined the Miami Dolphins it does not prove nor disapprove of anything he has done with the Miami Dolphins.

The charges against Dave Wannstedt reflect his coaching of the Miami Dolphins.

At this point we do not request a dismissal of the second rebuttal because the defense would like for the jury to see to what length the prosecution goes in an effort to prove their case. Our official rebuttal is: The time of Wannstedt in Chicago has no bearing on today’s trial. It just further makes our point that obviously Dave Wannstedt has learned from his mistakes and applied those lessons to his coaching here in Miami.

Thank you very much.

[Muck]

Court is adjourned for the Holiday. We'll reconvene on Friday. Have a great holiday.