Dolphins Players Not Happy About Sparano Firing

Dolphins players feel like they deserve blame too

The Dolphins decision to fire head coach Tony Sparano was not a surprise, considering the team's 4-9 record and third straight losing season.

However, Sparano's players were disappointed by the news and defended him as they gathered at Jason Taylor's charity Ping Pong tournament at Hard Rock Live Tuesday night, hours after the news broke.

"We kind of failed Tony a little bit," Taylor said. "You feel bad, you feel responsible in a way."

"It's a tough situation, we didn't have an opportunity to meet with coach before he got fired, so it's definitely tough," Linebacker Karlos Dansby added. " The team is sad, unfortunately, we couldn't win enough games to save his job."

The Dolphins were given the day off on Monday, following a 26-10 home loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Fins owner Stephen Ross announced he's firing Sparano the day after the game, replacing him on an interim basis with Assistant Head Coach Todd Bowles.

Ross noted that all the speculation about Sparano's future was a distraction for the team and that played into his decision to cut ties with Sparano before the season ended.

"People have a lot of opinions, and you hear a lot of spiteful things sometimes," Taylor said. "But this organization and this city lost a good coach and a better person."

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