I used to say there are only three things in life which I take seriously; my faith in God, the love of my family and friends, and Miami Dolphins football. Following a 0 – 4 start by my Fins to the 2007 season, not to mention their recent history of mediocrity, the key to my opening sentence is ‘used to say’. I’m still a fan and I am sure I will still subject myself to the weekly torture of watching them be one of the worst teams in the NFL, but I am also sure it will be done with abject reservation of real emotion.

Following a loss, I am usually grumpy and crabby and looking to replace some piece of furniture I keep telling my girlfriend I ‘accidentally’ broke, but not today. Today’s loss to the historically hated Raiders - Stabler’s knee was down - is somewhat bittersweet. Prior to the game, I sat down in front of my computer to get caught up on the season premier of ‘My Name is Earl’ which I forgot to record. So it’s only appropriate then that Karma made an appearance in this game between Oakland and Miami.

Let me take you back to the beginning of LAST season, when the Dolphins had acquired Daunte Culpepper from the Vikings following his recovery from a devastating knee injury. There was a buzz about Daunte’s ability to throw the ball downfield, to use his size to power through linebackers, and assuming his knee was recovered, bring Miami back into the ranks of a winning franchise. He was rushed into the starting position and ended up having a miserable 4 games to start the season. The organization blamed Culpepper’s knee, labeled him a has-been, placed him on injured-reserved, and Culpepper never played another game for the Dolphins.

Then came the fiasco with Nick Saban bolting to Alabama, Cam Cameron being named the new head coach of the Fins, Trent Green being picked up in a trade with the Chiefs and Daunte Culpepper being unceremoniously and disgracefully escorted from the Dolphins training facility by security. Just like that, the player who was supposed to be the savior of the franchise, the next great Miami quarterback after Griese and Marino, was just dropped like a bad habit. For a kid who grew up in Ocala a Dol-fan, dreaming of playing in aqua and coral, it was a slap in the face.

So as the clock ticked down on a 35-17 loss, there was a wry smile to my face. It wasn’t just because my Marlins were beating the Mets and crushing their hopes for the post-season, but also because the Raiders owed their win to a kid from Ocala who was supposed to be a has-been quarterback. The fact Daunte Culpepper was even playing for the Raiders to begin with is a cosmic event in and of itself.

In a nutshell, the Raiders drafted quarterback Jamarcus Russell in April with the first overall pick. Russell held out until September for a better contract deal, and signed only after the Raiders acquired Culpepper as a free agent. Josh McCown was named the starter for the Raiders but suffered an injury in week three. So there was Culpepper ready to start at quarterback against the team that treated him with absolutely no class just two months ago.

Duante completed only five passes on Sunday, but two of those were for touchdowns. More importantly, the has-been kid ran – yes RAN – for three scores against the Dolphins. Following his second rushing touchdown, Daunte pointed to his surgically reconstructed knee and then gave the Dolphins Stadium crowd an ‘OK’ symbol. OK as in “Who’s a has-been now?” OK as in “Where’s your security escort now?” OK as in “Oh Karma!”

I guess I will still take Dolphins losses to heart, but this particular loss is OK with me.

Christmas in Miami is usually very different from traditional Christmas days in other cities.  First of all, is there a holiday meal in South Florida that does NOT include black beans and rice?  And whereas kids in other cities unwrap presents and take their new galoshes and toboggans out into the winter wonderlands of their backyard, Miami kids throw on their new flip flops and ask their parents to lower the AC in the house.  

Sadly for Dol-fans, Christmas brings the unfortunately new tradition of yet another meaningless game in December.  A decade ago, Miami’s holiday game always came with playoff implications.  Whether they controlled their own destiny or needed a little help, more often than not the playoffs were within reach for the Dolphins come Christmas.  This year, Zach Thomas, Jason Taylor, Ronnie Brown and Nick Saban are opening presents and scheduling tee times for early January.  

All is not lost, however, as the Dolphins prepare for their Monday night game on Christmas night.  As they game plan to take on the NY Jets – correction ….. the HATED NY Jets – the Dolphin players have the opportunity to add a couple of other NFL players to their golfing reservations.

The old adage is true.  Misery does love company, and all I want for Christmas this year is to share my home-for-the-playoff misery with those fans in New York.  I realize my statement is not exactly keeping with the holiday spirit, but all is fair in love, war and NFL fanaticism.  Bitterness and envy are words that can be used to describe what transpires in any given rivalry, and I am bitter and envious the Jets have a shot at making the postseason while the Dolphins do not.  

For me, Monday night’s game is anything but meaningless.  Coming off a colossally embarrassing loss to that other hated team from New York, the Dolphins can salvage some sense of dignity and pride this season by beating the Jets.  Even though they are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, the Dolphins are perfectly positioned to play spoiler to the Jets hopes for games in January.

It's not all bad, though.  This Christmas, as Miami fans get ready to settle in and have Hank Williams Jr. ask them if they are ready for some football, they will do so knowing their counterparts in NYC are doing the same thing with a world more anxiety and nervous anticipation.  The greenies will have their furnaces running and their Maalox and Tums easily within reach.  The butterflies will have to compete with the heartburn as the Christmas dinner will sit ever so uncomfortably because of what is riding on this game.  Miami fans, however, will sit back in their recliners, pleasantly rubbing their bellies following their Christmas dinner and enjoy the fact the AC is set at 74 degrees.  Merry Christmas indeed!

If you’re a fan of NFL football, you’re well aware of the many little things that just ‘fit’.  A typical game lasts three hours and starts at 1:00 on Sundays.  This means they start at 1:00 on the East and the West coast.   How convenient!  A game is four quarters long, as is a complete regular season.  And at the end of the first quarter of this season, it’s time to sit back and see how things are going.

The last four Super Bowl winners have started their seasons a combined 12-4.  That’s a 75% winning percentage.  So as I look at my beloved Dolphins sitting alone in the cellar of the AFC East at 1-3, it doesn’t look good.  Neither does the offensive line.  Neither does the secondary.  Neither does the running game.  When the top team-MVP candidates after the first four games are the #3 Wide Receiver and the Punter, things have to get better.

Miami is known for its tropical atmosphere and hot scenery.  The art deco is nice to look at, too.  Miami’s weather this time of year varies from mild to hot, but for the most part it’s fair.  So it’s only appropriate that Miami is home to the a-typical fair-weather fan.  In Miami, sell-out is a concept and not a recurring reality.  The expectation to win is as unreasonably high as the mercury in September, and the attention span of the average sports fan is as frivolous as the spending on South Beach.

So it doesn’t surprise me to hear the nay-sayers bash Duante Culpepper.  It doesn’t astonish me to hear negative comments about Nick Saban.  I find it common place to hear about ALL the things that are wrong with this team, and how they should fold up their tents and mail it in for the rest of the season.  There’s no hope whatsoever.  The only reason to watch is to see who will have a worse season. The Dolphins or the Hurricanes?

The last four Super Bowl champions found success in their first four games.  The champion previous to that, however, did not.  The champion previous to that lost its starting quarterback in week 2, lost its fourth game of the season 30-10 to my beloved Dolphins, and saw itself staring at a 1-3 record at the end of the first quarter of their season.  That team was the 2001 New England Patriots, and we all know how that turned out for them.

No, neither Daunte Culpepper nor Joey Harrington is Tom Brady.  But then again, neither was Tom Brady until he was given the chance.  No, Nick Saban is not Bill Belichick, but he is a disciple of Belichick.  For what it’s worth, Saban is in his 2nd year as a head coach.  Belichick was in his second year in 2001.  It’s just another of those NFL tidbits that just ‘fit’. So it shouldn’t surprise you the Dolphins play the Patriots this Sunday.  The football gods know what they are doing.

Only time will tell if the Fins can salvage this season, and this Sunday needs to be a statement game for the Dolphins.  I still believe Daunte will come around and the offense will gel as the season progresses.  The O-Line needs a lot of work, but they will come together as a unit.  Despite what the locals of my hometown say, all is not lost.  However, if come halftime of Sunday’s game a win is already out of reach, at least I can smile knowing the Miami Heat open up the pre-season in a week.