I hate this Incognito/ Martin thing so much that I hate that I even have to address it, but I do. I am so mad at all the media and fan speculation about this. We have no idea what really happened and I am not sure we ever will despite what the NFL will tell us. I do know that we need to move slowly and carefully with this as a fan base and we have to stop jumping to conclusions.

I also want to mention that situations like this are EXACTLY why I like to keep things positive. Believe it or not, players are people and they need our support. Players want to play for franchises that will support them through thick and thin.

Ben Volin wrote an article today speculating about the reasoning behind Martin’s blaming of Incognito AFTER the Dolphins said they were going to put him on the Non Football Injury list. The quick summary is that Martin needed to get out, but he wanted to keep getting paid so he blamed Incognito.

Now I hate speculation like this, and we shouldn’t judge anyone until we learn more about this situation, BUT if Incognito WASN’T the main reason for Martin having a breakdown I think the fans might be.

Every single week I heard fans tear down Martin even when he was playing well. He was letting sacks up but he had far less QB hurries than other linemen. He is a young player making a position switch taking over for a career pro bowler and fans ripped him apart.

Imagine if when you got home from work every day 1000 people on Twitter called you worthless. Martin might be too weak to take the NFL but there is no reason you should have to deal with that shit.

Fans can do very few things to make an actual impact on the team and we owe it to ourselves to use every opportunity to do so. Go to games, get loud on third downs and support your players. Make them WANT to play for you.

That’s what being a fan is all about. Phins Up!

Are you guys as terrified as I am about our offensive line? Mike Pouncey is one of the best linemen in the NFL and Richie Incognito is the man. I feel like Tyson Clabo will hold is own but the rest of the line frightens me. With the mediocre John Jerry injured the team seems to be in panic mode trying out a bunch of different linemen in different spots. Pouncey can play guard, he did in college, but why would you move one of the best centers in the world? Last years undrafted free agent Josh Samuda is getting a lot of reps all over the line and rookie G Dallas Thomas is seeing a lot of first team snaps. Lance Louis is gimpy and Nate Garner is a great versatile back up but I don’t want him starting any time soon. With all this interior line transition the tackles seem fixed and the most worrisome bit about all this is that Jonathan Martin is our starting left tackle. We are trusting the most important position on the line to a second year player who was absolutely horrible last year. He was playing out of position on the right side but when Jake Long got hurt he didn’t do much better on the left going up against better talent. I don’t need to quote statistics and Martin seems in better shape than last year, but every camp report talks about how dominant our defensive line is and how many sacks they are getting. You have to think that part of it is how terrible our offensive line is.

During the scrimmage the defense beat the hell out of the offense, but we have a great defensive line so maybe that’s expected and we hope they will look better against other teams. Unfortunately the Hall of Fame Game won’t show us much because Dallas has a one of the best defensive lines in the league. (Speaking of lines if you are curious about how sportsbooks are considering these early match-ups may want to refer to NFL lines on the matter.) The second preseason game is when I really hope the line comes together. The Dolphins need to find a line up and stick to it and let the guys on the line gel. Other than a QB and his receivers the offensive line is the position where chemistry is most important. These guys need to know what it’s like playing next to each other and if Mike Pouncey ends up playing guard somehow none of the guys will have been next to each other last year.

As I type this Dion Jordan blew right past Jonathan Martin in practice and Twitter exploded with beat writers talking about how bad Martin is. I just really hope he can get it together and we don’t regret not resigning Jake Long or trading for a veteran offensive tackle.

Are you guys as worried as I am about the offensive line or is it way too early to panic. Let me know in the comments. And don’t forget our Hall of Fame Game meet up on Sunday!