So who is Charles Harris, and how does this guy help the Miami Dolphins?
Harris was a 3 year starter at Missouri at DE. In 35 starts, Harris totaled 18 sacks, 34.5 TFL, 5 passes defensed, and 5 FF’s. He accomplished this despite the fact that he didn’t start playing organized football until his Junior year of High School. We all know he ran a 4.82, which we’re all aware that it’s not especially fast. Where this young man makes his hay is with his explosive first step. He won’t be running 40 yards often, unless he snares an INT or runs back a fumble return. In the trenches, you win with quickness and explosiveness, and Harris has that in spades.
How will Harris find any playing time? Yes, the Dolphins went into the draft already having pretty good depth at DE when they re-signed DE Andre Branch, and then traded for Rams DE William Hayes. We also have Terrence Fede, Julius Warmsley, and FA pickups Arthur Miley and Nicholas Williams. Some of these guys won’t be on the roster after training camp and/or pre season. My hope is that Hayes starts at RE on early downs, he’s a great edge setter and plays the run very well. I hope they have Branch in on early downs at LE, and let Wake come in on passing situations. I’d like to see Harris with Wake opposite him both rushing the passer. I think that would be ideal.
It’s important to remember the Dolphins made it clear they don’t feel that a pass rusher has to be a certain size, or prototype. The Dolphins best is Cam Wake, who for a DE prototype (at least the OLD prototype) is on the smaller side at 6’3″ 269, not the old 6’6″ 290. Harris is actually a little bigger than Wake was coming into the NFL, as Wake was about 235, and Harris is already at 253. It would be great to see Harris blossom as a pass rushing threat for Miami, because we certainly need that. A great pass rush makes the secondary look so much better.
While it’s hard to predict how much of an impact Harris might have, I think if we can get somewhere around 10 sacks out of him +/- 2, I think that would help the team this season. I’d like to see him increase that by 1 or 2 every year until he’s up for his new contract. We know to beat Brady, you have to pressure him, and I’m hoping with Wake, Suh, Phillips and Harris, we can do that.
Go HARRIS! ZERO IN on the QB!
Finsmob Unleashed 
Orlando Franklin signed a 5 year/$36,500,000 contract with the Chargers… he won’t come cheap. However, he did play at the U… he might take a hometown discount if he thinks we’re contenders.
I get the impression they’re satisfied with who we have on the O-line
That’s what we’re led to believe, especially after Armando’s article last week on as much. We’ll see!
Yeah, I mean no one really knows but them, but we have been led to believe that’s the case.
Might depend on Pouncey’s health, but whether a stud or a compete/experienced depth……don’t think we are done with the middle of the line.
If I’m a betting man… I’m not betting on this one. But IF we go after Franklin, look for a 2-year deal (that seems to be our shtick with vets).
Here’s what our O-Line would look like (IMO), if we were to sign Franklin…
LT- Tunsil
LG- Franklin
C- Pouncey
RG- Bushrod or Asiata (camp battle)
RT- James
– Franklin IS positional versatile, having played RT over his first 3 years in the league.
– I’ve got NO problem paying Bushrod $3M this year to be a backup, should Asiata beat him. That’s a valuable insurance policy in the event of the injuries that WILL HAPPEN.
– This O-Line would be one of the best in the league.
PFF rated Franklin their No. 66 guard last season out of 72 qualifying players. You might think that means not the G for us, but I think maybe the G for us…….at the right price of course.
I don’t think teams use PFF when evaluating players.
They probably don’t, but it is at least one measure for us to go off of. Another in this case is that the Chargers let him go and took a large cap hit instead. Thinking he might be there for $3 mil.
I no longer care what PFF has to say. Yes, I was once a HUGE advocate of them. Today? Not so much. They grew their brand and workforce so large to the point that half their people doing film study today don’t know what they’re looking at/for… especially from a team-to-team basis.
IMO, PFF’s originators were GRAND and actually knew what they were talking about. Today, the originators are raking money from their many employees who don’t know what they’re talking about. Anyway, I digress…
I don’t think you’ll hear Peyton Manning (not that he would) or Adam Gase gripe about Orlando Franklin back in 2014 Denver as their LG. Franklin even helped pave the way for RB Ronnie Hillman go to the Pro Bowl that year.
What’s more, the Chargers have problems all over their O-Line. With Franklin lining up between King Dunlap and Matt Slauson last year, he was never going to have success. Imagine Franklin between Tunsil and Pouncey… HELL YEAH!!!
M13 — props to you for mentioning your past with PFF so I don’t have too. 🙂
And I was really making the case for why we may be able to afford Franklin. The more he costs the less likely it is he ends up in aqua. I would love him on the team. And will point out that the Chargers went G in the 2nd and 3rd rounds completely aware he was on the roster and what his cap hit was.
That PFFt rating may not be accurate, but I’m with Stanger, you don’t take that kind of cap hit to cut a player that is performing well.
I thought it was just a cap hit, no way in hell do you cut a guy that you still have to pay $3.5M that’s worth anything, unless they just have to have the cap space.
Ronnie Hillman made the pro bowl?
MY bad. I meant CJ Anderson. Good catch, Brother.
stangerx says:
May 15, 2017 at 12:50 pm
M13 — props to you for mentioning your past with PFF so I don’t have too.
And I was really making the case for why we may be able to afford Franklin. The more he costs the less likely it is he ends up in aqua. I would love him on the team. And will point out that the Chargers went G in the 2nd and 3rd rounds completely aware he was on the roster and what his cap hit was.
———-
Thank you, Stanger! 🙂
And YES… I know you’re trying to make the case to afford Franklin. And being the Chargers are on the hook to pay him $3.5M this year, he may come cheaper than imaginable… and that’s without the idea of a ‘hometown discount’. I think we’re on the EXACT same page, buddy! 🙂
The Gase connection is there to boot!
If his money is guaranteed though, seems you just cash the check and figure out what you want to do. But seems with him the whole consideration stops with that Gase connection. Why even worry one way or the other at that point?
EXACTLY!!!
BlackSportsOnline @BSO
Antonio Cromartie Who Had a Vasectomy Announces on IG He’s Having His 14th Child (Photos) (link: http://bit.ly/2qk5x9m) bit.ly/2qk5x9m
Joe Schad says. “These seven young Dolphins have colossal, mammoth, tremendous, titanic, gargantuan potential.” He might be a bit over the top there, but he really likes how this team is built.
In order he is talking about…..
Laremy Tunsil, OT, 22 years old
DeVante Parker, WR, 24 years old
Charles Harris, DE, 22 years old
Xavien Howard, CB, 23 years old
Kenyan Drake, RB, 23 years old
Raekwon McMillan, LB, 20 years old
Jordan Phillips, DT, 24 years old
Full with why for each:
http://dailydolphin.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2017/05/15/7-miami-dolphins-with-extremely-enormous-upside/
Antonio Cromartie with a vasectomy could get an infertile woman with a sponge and an IUD pregnant
😆
https://twitter.com/MDCheer/status/864170165344374786
Wyoming — we have to get you to the stadium some time so you and check out your girls in person. And they are pretty, but if you see them up close….they are also girls. Almost makes you feel guilty.
I used to get to see them when they came to Houston!
Maybe this year?
Dad isn’t in any shape to do the annual fishing trip so I may be free?
Mostly I post the pics because rehashing the same arguments we’ve had for 10 years is old as hell!
Even when we get something new to chew on it turns into the same conversation! 😉
Fest game is against the Jets Oct 22. Not too late to be there for that weekend at all. Any other time you come down we could set up (even if maybe not in the stands), but that weekend is obviously by far the best.
And we at least have knew people to interject in the same old conversations each year. 🙂
Wyo, in the nicest way he can, is saying we bore him to the point of ripping his eyes out of his skull when reading this blog.
LOL
LOL — but there are least a few things that can stop that. What’s Lilly up to these days?
Oinks!!!
Stanger – to quote Hedley Lamarr . . .
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly legs. . . .
LMAO……even if Lilly’s legs wouldn’t be top of my list.
Me either! 😉
http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/article150631567.html
Not sure why the Colts are up there ahead of us, but I think other than that, it’s pretty realistic. Until we prove that we are a perennial playoff team, I get it.
I think we have a better roster than the Colts, but the division they’re in and everyone loves Luck.
Titans are better than the Colts though.
If the Texans get any kind of halfway decent QB play, they’re better too.
Well the Texans and Titans were 9-7 and the Colts 8-8 last year. I’m guessing they think the Colts will be better this year and they have the better QB. The Titans have a really good OL and running game, good young QB and some skill players but not sure about their defense.
Ahhhhhhhh Lilly. Still my favorite cheerleader even after all these years! Those pictures are over 10 years old now.
LOL — but there are least a few things that can stop that. What’s Lilly up to these days?
Just a guess here, but I’d say about 150 – 155lbs.
She’d still be a fine looking woman at that weight. Some things are about more than what the scale shows.
Stanger, that list of young players that you posted is one of the reasons the Phins could go to another level. There are a few more young guys who could help make that happen too but let’s see who does and who doesn’t. I expect a really competitive TC this year because of the talented youth pushing some of the vets. When you look at our roster, we have really good players in every phase of the game. Now which young guys are going to join the core?
Was Joe Schad’s list rather than mine, but he has a real point. Few older guys these days, but with the exception of Wake…..most are stopgap types. And I include guys like Bushrod, Maxwell and even TImmons in that category. But how it works when you are developing but still want a chance at the playoffs. Nice solid young core though.
I know it wasn’t your list, just talking about the post which I thought was a good topic of conversation. 🙂
For sure it is a great thing we have going. Base of this team is real young and ready to grow. And we locked down some guys in their prime as well while young for the future as well. Reshad is still only 29.
Yep! Love the direction we’re heading in.
What’s cool about drafting Tankersley is we now have 4 big corners which the team seems to prefer. If one or two go down we’re not as thin as last year.
Howard 6-1 198
Lippett 6-3 194
Maxwell 6-1 203
Tankersley 6-1 200
Then we have a few more guys in the 6-0 190-200 range competing as well in Lucas, Pitts, Hope and McTyer.
think one of those big guys can play nickel?
I think if we play aggressive corner you can lineup good athletes against anyone. We might want to contest the Pats and other teams with size, physicality and peskiness over smaller NB height/weight matchups. Pitts and Lucas are here to push McCain for that role even though they are bigger guys.
Just going by who’s on our roster and how I think we want to play, I see this as a roster breakdown without specific names, we know a majority of them though.
Offense 25
OL 9
TE 4
WR 6
QB 2
RB 4
Defense 25
DL 9-10
LB 6-7
DB 9-10
(any match of 25)
STs 3
K, P and LS – I think we know who they will be. 🙂
Tim,
If you would, please name your OL and DL players. Thanks!
Can’t complete it yet because it’s incomplete at this time. LOL
As a projection:
C Pouncey, Larsen (G)
G Bushrod, Steen (C), Urbik (C/T), Asiata
T Tunsil, James, Young
7 of the 9 have a year under their belts in Gase’s system. Bushrod already had a year with CHI but moved to RG from LT in MIA, but now has 17 games under his belt there. He will stay at RG and be a ‘break glass emergency LT’ if Young or James can’t do it. Just my opinion.
Remember Pouncey is not going to be active until close to the season, that’s the team plan for him. So someone else is going to be at center from now until Sept. Gase said Mike doesn’t need a lot of practice time, he needs to be healthy. The team is playing it cautious with him.
I’m ready to go right now. Put me in coach!
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/page/Barnwell2017GradesAFCEast/bill-barnwell-2017-nfl-offseason-report-card-free-agency-draft-afc-east-buffalo-bills-miami-dolphins-new-england-patriots-new-york-jets
Definitely written by an outsider who doesn’t quite comprehend the new way of doing things in Miami. We kept our OWN, and we build around that..
Barnwell sure does hate the Phins for some reason. The D+ he gives our offseason is worst in the division. Amazing how in that long write-up he couldn’t even get himself to mention our 2nd and 3rd round picks.
First thing I saw in the link was barnwell…the last thing I saw was barnw…
That guy is clueless. I think he’s like one of the PFF clones MF was talking about yesterday.
Guess some folks have their own teams that they hate or love, just like we do. Have long thought that Prisco is a closet Dolphins fan on the other side of that.
Wake got #62 on the NFL Network’s Top 100 list. Jay Ajayi chimed in at #69. Suh will be up there……I’m thinking in the 20s, maybe teens — but anyone else? Thinking Landry is the only other one with a shot, maybe in the 50s or 40s.
Suh and Landry will definitely be in there. If Reshad Jones was healthy all season, he’d be in there too
I don’t think Landry would be that high. Lots of WRs put up bigg #s. Suh will be ranked very high imo
You don’t think Landry will be top 50? I think he will He’s tied for most receptions in first 3 years.
Matt Miller @nfldraftscout
Just watched Raekwon McMillan running step-for-step with Saquon Barkley on a wheel route. Should have #Dolphins fans excited.
One play for sure……but wouldn’t it be great if Raekwon had a bit of coverage in him. We know he will help with the Run D already.
That’s his one claim to fame pass coverage play. I think he has it in him to cover, he seemed too worried about where everyone else was supposed to be in college to cover on a regular basis. He’s a good athlete with good speed, and play recognition,no reason he can’t cover.
Who is Saquon Barkley?
He’s a Sumo Wrestler !!
Good thing he ran step for step with him then. lol
Penn State RB who is likely a top 10 pick in the 2018 draft.
M13 knows all about him.
I suppose I owe ya a beer! LOL
Mike E,
Saquon Barkley is the top-rated RB for the ’18 Draft out of PSU. Some feel he could as high as top-5. He’s a STUD.
And he killed the Big10 on the wheel route they said.
Thanks for the info guys. I guess Raekwon is Superman then,, or Saquon isn’t a great route runner.
I should add… he’s a junior this year. Most assume he’s going to go pro in ’18.
He probably will go pro.
Do Raekwon and Saquon rhyme?
No, Saquon rhymes with your favorite band, the one Adam Lampert is lead singing for 😉
Raekwon won’t be 21 until November. Think about how much more time he has to develop both physically and mentally.
Raekwon, Saquon, Keion, Chidobe, D’Nerius, D’Shahn, Tre’Davious, DeShone, AhKello
Come on man. it is not cute or original to MAKE UP FUCKING NAMES. if you have to put an apostrophe in your kids fucking name, pick another name. Oh, and CAPITAL LETTERS do not go in the middle of your kids name either!
Vent over.
I’m still trying to figure out why Asiata fell to the 5th Round on Draft day. It’s as though all 32 teams (including WIN NOW teams with a need at Guard) know something about him that we, as outsiders, wouldn’t know.
While I’ve hypothesized that he fell due to his relative age after his Mormon mission, I’m not so sure now. I’m not even trying to look a gift horse in the mouth, but something seems out of sorts. And I don’t believe the Tony Pauline narrative that his knee(s) are bad… there is ZERO evidence to back his claim and NOBODY else will back his claim but for Omar (<– Pauline's lap dog).
Anyway, I'm not going to 'blow my load' over Asiata until he earns it for our Phins. I'm not trying to be pessimistic here, I'm just taking a wait-and-see approach. If he becomes a stud, HELL YEAH!!! If not, it will explain why he dropped like Wile E. Coyote from a cliff all the way down to the 5th Round.
Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. I'm not sure we've adequately addressed our interior O-Line at the moment. Pouncey is a 'Fragile Fred', I was hoping we'd re-sign Bushrod to become a back-up Swiss Army Knife insurance policy (not a starter), we've got JAGs to back-up Pouncey, a rook who fell to the 5th in Asiata, our back-up Guards are JAGs and IMO, we're not properly prepared for the injuries that ARE looming.
Signing Orlando Franklin changes ALL of that and for the best… IF the price is right. PLUS, Franklin brings POSITIONAL VERSATILITY: he's played RT for 3 years in Denver. Should James go down, Franklin can step right in.
This would be a WIN-WIN move to sign Franklin, IMO, and we can afford him. Simply put… I don't trust a rookie who had a 2nd-3rd grade who dropped to the 5th Round to be our starting LG any more than I'd trust Ted 'Meh' Larson to be our starting LG. And Larson is likely to end up being our starting Center before it's all said and done by season's end… if not sooner.
These are just my opinions. I truly DO trust Gase and company, so I'll roll with their opinions over mine… and that's the first time I've been able to say that in WELL over a decade plus!
GO GASE!!!
GO PHINS!!!
HELL YEAH!!!
To be CLEAR… I’m NOT being negative on Asiata, I’m merely skeptical due to his precipitous fall in the Draft. All 32 NFL teams allowed him to free-fall to the 5th Round for a reason… and they know MUCH more than us relative outsiders through their rigorous vetting processes.
GO ASIATA!!!
GO PHINS!!!
HELL YEAH!!!
Probably just a numbers game. It happens, teams are all drafting different positions and some guys fall. Also guard isn’t considered a premium position unless a guy has a really high grade and this wasn’t the deepest OL class so maybe teams just went after the premium at other positions first and he was there for us. He was considered a 3-4 rd guy who fell to the 5th and when he fell to us we made that small trade to move up to get him.
Go Asiata!!! 🙂
I think Tim has it right. Forrest Lamp going in the 2nd didn’t make him a lesser player, there were just a lot of other good players in this draft, and I don’t think any of the OL in this draft were blue chippers. Asiata was never a top prospect, maybe a 3rd RD prospect, but he fell to the 5th. I don’t think it’s a big deal. We were interested in the guy, and we may have just gotten lucky we got him so late. If you look at where NFL.com had him rated, everyone else around him was taken in a very similar spot.
As to whether Asiata is good enough to win the starting job remains to be seen, but he has the power, intelligence, maturity, and nasty to take it. We’ll see what happens. I don’t think our staff is nearly as worried about the O-line as we are.
NFL.com had Asiata going 3rd or 4th, so not too far off.
Agreed. I think the team feels with 7 OL returning with a year under their belt in the system they feel good about our guys. If they were very worried about it they would have likely approached it differently.
Gase believes in building the team with our own and not constant change so the team can build chemistry together. Not that we won’t add upgrades in FA or draft obviously, every team does it every year. But he doesn’t want constant turnover.
Asiata will also turn 25 at the end of the year in late December so he’s not too old as a rookie. Not sure that had too much to do with him dropping, maybe just a little bit for some teams.
We all have concerns about Pouncey’s healthy but we also have 6 guys currently on the roster who can play center. So since Pouncey is going to miss most of the offseason because we’re putting him bubble wrap until we get closer to the season, we’ll have figured out who we like as next center up etc. We might even keep 10 OL on the roster early on until we feel a little more comfortable with the situation.
Mike E. says:
May 16, 2017 at 5:20 pm
…As to whether Asiata is good enough to win the starting job remains to be seen, but he has the power, intelligence, maturity, and nasty to take it…
———
You’ve hit the nail on the head, Mike E… EXACTLY. And THAT is what has me wondering why Asiata fell all the way down to the 5th Round.
Numbers game or not, Asiata has everything one wants at the Guard position. By the way… do ya see how much starting Guards are going for on the open market today? It’s one of the reasons we didn’t acquire Evan Mathis, Orlando Franklin (first time around), Kevin Zeitler, TJ Lang, etc.
VERY CORRECT that the Guard position isn’t a premium position, yet they’re suddenly getting paid ELITE money on the open market (Zeitler is now averaging $12M/per year). Many writes have been made recently regarding Guard position players getting PAID ($$$).
So here’s where I’m going… the ‘Gase-Franklin connection’ from Denver may fetch Franklin — coupled with the fact that Franklin went to the “U” — for a far cheaper price than most other suitors. The price MUST be palatable, but it could happen on the ‘relatively cheap’.
As always… we’ll see! 🙂
That’s for guards who have proven themselves to be good players and durable in the NFL, not rookie prospects. As for Franklin, he hasn’t played well in recent years and I saw some comments from Chargers fans when it was announced he was cut, and most of them were saying good riddance.
Again, with Franklin lining up between King Dunlap and Matt Slauson last year in San Diego, he was never going to have success. Imagine Franklin between Tunsil and Pouncey.
Not sure I’m buying that. What about his own play? Maybe he was the weak link.
https://miamiherald.relaymedia.com/amp/sports/spt-columns-blogs/armando-salguero/article150859037.html
With a chance for some immediate impact from a few rooks like our first 4 picks.
Harris – rotation pass rush specialist early on.
McMillian – possibly wins a starting job or is in the game day LB rotation.
Tankersley – I doubt he starts but could push some guys for playing time in sub packages.
Asiata – could start or provide valuable depth at some point.
Also Ford could be a sleeper and one or both DTs could become part of the DL rotation.
Competition baby!!!! 🙂
I wanted us to draft Franklin. He’s a perfect fit for us. Now we’re going to find out how they really feel about the oline because here’s a perfect fit suddenly on the open market. If they don’t go after him that should be a good indication of how they feel about where we are.
VERY much agreed, Son.
We’ll see. Word on the street is he’s declining. He obviously got cut because he didn’t live up to his contract.
Yeah but – San Diego
With the Going out of business sign up
On the other hand maybe Franklin is resting on his laurels looking to skate through a few more years. But if he still “wants it” then he’d be a good pickup.
Son, maybe so with the Chargers revamping. I’m sure Rivers is psyched about that. LOL
I’ve heard rumors that Rivers wants NO PART of moving from SD to LA, dating back to 2 years ago. He’s a family man with like 7 kids, if memory serves. That franchise is a bloody shipwreck, and Rivers wants out.
That, and he’s not adequately protected by his O-Line via the Chargers.
So who do you guys think will be the #1 center while Pouncey is in bubble wrap most of the offseason,TC and the PS?
I’d say Larsen, or Steen, or maybe even Urbik. LOL
Steen
Agree Steen and whoever else
So give me your early on starting 5 OL, sans Pouncey?
Tunsil – Franklin – Steen – Bushrod – James
Asiata at Fullback
LOL
SpringSteen?
He would definitely be on the left side
I’ll pass. 😉
I’d be surprised if Asiata starts. That’s a lot to ask from a fifth rounder. His technique is rough. He’s got plenty to refine and learn how to play with discipline. Can he be the same player while playing under control? We’ll see. I think Larsen has a better shot to start.
For the sake of oft argument, I think you’re wrong! 😉
Whoa, sum buddy’s beating the drums for Orlando Franklin. 😉
He’d have to come real cheap & willing to earn it on a low risk deal with incentive…IMO.
He’s been concussed often, got manhandled by defenses for a big guy his size. Bolts moving on for a reason besides strictly saving money.
getter,
It wouldn’t be the first time! Lol
***
I’ve watched video of Asiata a lot. It’s not great. He’s pretty good if he has a guy playing over him, and he can engage immediately on a quick play. He’s got okay feet…good enough to get some movement, but he misses a lot of his blocks on the second level or on pulls. And, a personal pet peeve of mine, he throws himself at blocks with his head down a lot….which leads to him missing blocks and ending up off balance or on the ground. There’s nothing he can’t work on and improve upon, but he’s got lots of work to do. There are reasons he was a 5th rounder in a pretty weak OL class.
LOL, thanks Randy.
I too saw some raw tendencies with Asiata while watching film, and yes, they’re of the variety that can be taught with NFL coaching. But what I saw that can’t be taught is his strength, physicality, and intelligence.
He was on our board as a target, we could have took another OL before we decided to go get Asiata.
Players also slide every draft for various reasons, so I don’t buy too much into there are reasons why he specifically fell to the 5th. (Reshad Jones, Zach Thomas).
On the other side of that coin, many a player moves up in the draft as well, and that doesn’t constitute NFL success either.
I see a strong competition coming from Asiata right away. He may not start right away, but he’ll make a strong push for it..
I agree with both of you. 5th rd picks all have warts and potential. Competition weeds it out.
I don’t care what round a guy was taken in. If he’s good enough to play, he should play. He might be good enough. Not sure the guys we have right now will be that much better.
Some guys transition to the NFL better…..some are in the wrong system or used improperly in college just like we see happen in the Pros.
That’s why we are starting to see success with Gase, Grier, and the rest of the personnel dept on the same page with an executable plan they want for this franchise to move fwd..
Gase already said, status is not a factor, performance is. If you’re not playing up to standards you’re out. That’s how he dug this team out of a 1-4 start to finish 10-6 and make the playoffs. The best guys he had played. There was no well… we drafted him in the 3rd or 4th a year ago. He doesn’t care about that. The best 53 will make the team.
Right, and as mentioned many times, he & his coaches are getting and keeping “their guys” they want. Guys that are buying all in, going all out, & love the game.
QB Sandwiches. EarthWAKE!
GD, if the OL is solid, our offense could be dominant. We have playmakers in all phases.
I know the goal on offense is to have more plays than last in the league. Amazing! LOL
Tru Dat! ….and along with those low # of offensive plays came an abysmal defense, and we still WON 10 games and made the Playoffs.
Imagine any bit of improvement on both sides of the ball in Year 2 of Gase’s Go Getter Dolphins!
We could become a real force in the AFC!
Now don’t get crazy, we’re Dolfans, we’re not allowed such things. LOL
That’s Gase’s goal, score often on offense and attack on defense against one dimensional offenses. Gee… what a concept. At least he gets it. 🙂
Part of the reason we had such few plays on O was, because the D couldn’t get off the field.
MF, one thing you didn’t take into account, with your concerns with Asiata is we traded up. That tells me we had a higher grade than a 5th on him.
Steve, Gase blames the offense and himself for keeping the defense out there too long. But it was definitely a balance of the two. Let’s hope it gets better sooner than later. 🙂
Christensen did the same thing, both not throwing the D under the bus. The O needs to pick it up too, but the problem was mainly on D, and why the draft was expected to be D heavy and was.
TIM: AGREE with your “Don’t get crazy, we’re Dolfans” approach. I share Mike E’s sense of caution re: the O-Line. When they SHOW ME on the field, I’ll become a believer. UNTIL THEN, “wait and see” is my point of view. But THAT’S A DAMN SIGHT BETTER THAN THE IRELAND YEARS, isn’t it?
Randy, on your concerns or weaknesses of Asiata, we know he isn’t polished and needs to clean things up, but the reason we’re excited to have him is, because of his mauling ability. Something we haven’t seen since Nails was blocking for Ricky.
Anyone think the fins offense is resembling what the pats offense does.. I have seen several off players practicing at american heritage plays that create space for wr and qb to connect with these crazy 3 bunched receiver sets. These are precision timing plays where CB’s can’t defend and very quick. These plays don’t require great OL it only requires the OL to block 1.75-2.5 seconds. NE passes first and that creates their running game. We have basically the same players except ours are very young entering their prime.
I think that was kinda of what Gase had in mind until the new found power game sorta stumbled in there last season. Might be we end up back that way, even if think the run part is hear as a staple rather than an add on so long as Ajayi is healthy.
The biggest difference is Brady has IT and knows what to do in key situations. RT will get it someday and when he does we may be a perennial playoff contender, until he does we’ll just be an after thought.
Our offense was pathetic on third downs. And, they weren’t exactly great on first and second downs either. That’s why we couldn’t stay on the field. It wasn’t the D’s fault. Our offense needs to get a lot more efficient. They put our D in bad situations a lot last year.
We need to run the ball with more consistency. The game we ran the ball well the defense played better as well. I’m not sure if Ajayi is the answer either. He played well in some games with a lot of power and some games he was pretty average. Maybe it was the oline those games but it seems like its also an issue of consistency with Ajayi.
Ajayi balled last year, he was at the top for yards after first contact, so the games he didn’t do we’ll I’d have to put that on the OL, but that’s without breaking it down further by watching each game again.
D was nothing special last year though, especially against the run…….and that let other teams run the clock. Even if get on O too…..am really hoping having a seam threat TE is going to open up our options. And that includes not just throwing to Thomas.
Thomas auisition might make Fasano & Gray very valuable on 3rd & mid/short.
And Landry and whatever RB we have too. Stills can flat out bust the top of the coverage. Parker and Thomas can both stretch them out too, even if it is more a height with some speed thing. Might a lot more opportunities in the middle.
Always like both Mikes, but guess every good thing has to come to an end.
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“ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike” are going their separate ways.
The network announced Tuesday that Mike Greenberg would be leaving the longtime morning radio show he co-hosts with Mike Golic to host a new morning TV show on ESPN TV that will premier Jan. 1. Golic will stay in the morning radio spot and will be joined by a new partner in the network’s NFL host Trey Wingo.”
Greenie is a douche, very unprofessional with his letting everyone know he’s a jets fan.
I have no problem with people saying what team they are a fan of. I let it known all the time and in many a shirt.
Randy,
2 fold response….yes agree the O needs to be more consistent w/ ball control. The D has to be accountable for their own shortcomings also…there were plenty.
Response 2: In regards to Asiata, I mentioned the same concern in regards to dropping his head to bull charge on the second level which allowed defenders to side step him easily to make the play. His Washington game is the perfect game to watch to see what happens when he does the bull charge, but also when he does things properly. I think body/head consistency is what the coaching staff will really need to work with him on. The good thing is it is a easily coachable item, but can he break the habit?
I’m not real concerned with what Asiata does at the 2nd level, if he can open holes in the run game and not be a liability in pass pro he’ll be very good for us. He was drafted in the 5th, no one expects him to be All Pro out of the gate, some of these evals on him are crazy.
I know some are just pointing out some weaknesses, but wht worry about fine tuning before the basics?
In regards to the bull charge it screws the run game when he pulls, but like I said it’s coachable.
steve,
Asiata sucks at some of the most basic technique issues. Head up, staying above your base, not lunging forward, not reaching for blocks, moving your feet and not your upper body, getting to the second level under control….not just running out there and trying to grab a guy. These are all things you’re taught from day one in junior high, and it’s concerning that Asiata struggles with these basics. Just because he’s a mauler isn’t much to hang your hat on. Every player with bad technique tends to be a mauler because that’s the easy, lazy way to play, and it shows a lack of discipline.
So what you’re saying is we drafted him because he sucks. LOL
Its a bottom line issue, can he help us out more than Larsen? Again all these things you’ve mentioned are bonus traits. We need 2 yards on 3rd Down, can he get enough push for a 1st vs he’s pulling and the RB only gets 5 yards instead of 7 on 1st down.
What traits do we need from him for the O to succeed? If he can’t pull, run a different play or have someone else pull
Randy
Stop picking on Asiata, I just called him, he’s waiting outside your door, head down and all
I could do the same things with Raekwon, which I did before and right after the draft, but then I looked at the things he could do that are positives and why he might have done some things I didn’t like. Big Pappi sucks, because he can’t run the bases or Olay D, would be the comparison.
Play D, he does Olay D😉
On Barnwells report about our off-season, the D grade was BS, but the assessment was pretty accurate. Sometimes you have to pay, and we most likely paid too much for guys like Branch and Stills, but every team overpays, better to overoay your own, and keep moral high.
The biggest difference is Brady has IT and knows what to do in key situations. RT will get it someday and when he does we may be a perennial playoff contender, until he does we’ll just be an after thought.
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It helps brady that he has played in the same system for lots of years. I heard some former players say he can throw some plays blindfolded and connect on it the majority of times.
It helps that he has Belicheat, but he had IT, when they won their first SB. Anyone see Brady’s wife worrying about his concussions that he didn’t disclose?
https://miamiherald.relaymedia.com/amp/sports/spt-columns-blogs/armando-salguero/article151110942.html
Too funny reading these so called expert and draft grades. not only for the Phins, but all around the league….LOL & SMH!
Expert offseason & draft grades….lol
MikeE,
I’ll be good because when he runs at me he’ll miss! Unfortunately, my knees gave up running years ago, so once he looks up I’m screwed. Lol
What has Harris already learned in meetings with coaches and players about the approach they want to take as a defensive unit in 2017?
“Aggressive,” Harris said. “It’s something that I’m used to playing to. At Missouri, it’s an attack football defense. And it’s something I look forward to already.”
Rookie defensive tackle Vincent Taylor said veterans Jordan Phillips and Julius Warmsley have been helping him.
What has Taylor learned about Miami’s approach to defense?
“They’re strictly about business,” he said.
Count me as part of the “GO ASIATA!!!” crowd: I like his potential and intangibles, though he’s got work to do regarding his technique. I believe he can be coached out of his bad tendencies and could become a dominant force in a relatively short amount of time. Asiata is extremely football intelligent, motivated, experienced, brutally strong, and incredibly athletic for a kid his build.
But back to my original post yesterday… WHY did 32 teams allow him to fall to the 5th Round when most (supposedly) had him graded anywhere from the 2nd-4th Round? And Tim, I’m not dismissing your point on a “numbers game”, but I’m not feeling that either, man.
IMO, Asiata is a freak athlete to OG as Jordan Phillips is a freak athlete to DT… and Phillips still went in the 2nd Round to us in 2015, despite rumors of being lazy and taking plays off.
ONCE AGAIN, I’m NOT trying to look a gift horse in the mouth (HAPPY WE LANDED ASIATA!!!), but I feel like I’m missing something here on him. I mean, did all 32 teams suddenly believe Tony Pauline’s story of knee problems when there seems to be NOTHING on record regarding as much? Does Pauline have THAT much clout and/or is he a private investigator? I SERIOUSLY doubt as much.
I’m NOT trying to stir the pot or dig for dirt… I’m just VERY CURIOUS. SOMETHING made Asiata drop, and I’m not so sure it’s a problem with coachable techniques/fundamentals, just sayin’.
My take? Our interior O-Line is not yet solved with the 5th Round drafting of Asiata and the FA signings of Ted Larson and Kraig Urbik… and I think OLD DOLFAN would agree.
At least our options are growing… we’ve got Orlando Franklin and Nick Mangold out there for the taking. There should be a few more options as this process continues to play out…
As always, JUST MY OPINION! 🙂
You just lost all credibility😉
Spencer Drango 5th Rd in 2016
Shaq Mason, Max Garcia & Mark Glowinkowski late 4th in 2015
The list goes on of good OL picked later in the draft.
The list also goes on full of OL picked early that are flops or still struggling.
We have to trust our personnel men & coaches on this. They felt fairly secure enough going with their board and apparently no other OL excited them enough early on vs other positions/players that they had ranked higher at the time.
Time will tell.
LOL @ Randy!
I wonder how Barwell grades Espn’s offseason
He grades like he visits the bar well too often😁
RIP Chris Cornell. One of my favorite bands of the 90s.