At the moment of this writing, the Dolphins are not flush with cap space entering the 2018 NFL season’s Free Agency period. We currently stand at 29th, with a shade under $10M of cap space. Of course, that can radically change with a series of cuts and/or restructures, and I do expect there will be some of both which will positively affect our cap space for this season. That being said, I don’t expect us to be big players in FA, but that doesn’t mean we can’t add a couple of good depth players, and maybe one quality starter. Teams like the 49ers, Browns and Colts have 8 to 10 times the amount of cap space we have, so we won’t be bringing in the big name players, especially if those teams want them as much as we do.
Because free agency precedes the draft, it completely impacts our draft strategy. With the potential loss of WR Jarvis Landry, I’m first going to take a look at possible replacements for him. Each week, I’ll look at a different position, and go over the candidates I think might be in the running for our Dolphins.
WR Sammy Watkins 6’1 211 – 24 YO
Watkins is only 24 years old, and of course, isn’t the same type of WR Landry is, and just so you know, I’m looking at WR’s, not Jarvis Landry replacements. Watkins has been somewhat of an enigma. He has talent, and has speed to burn too, running a 4.43 40. He had a very promising rookie season with our rival Buffalo Bills, reeling in 65 catches for just under 1000 yards (982) and 6 TD’s. That was the only season out of 4 that Watkins played all 16 games though. His 2nd season with Buffalo he broke the 1000 yard mark with 60 receptions for 1047 yards and 9 TD’s. Then the nagging injuries started, and Watkins hasn’t been able to produce anywhere near as much since. In 2016, Watkins last season with the Bills, he played only 8 games and had a season to forget. He got new life after being traded to the Rams last season, but still couldn’t reproduce the numbers he put up in BUF. The difference in LA was he was one of many weapons, and the Rams biggest weapon was their star RB (possible MVP) Todd Gurley, so Watkins, and all the WR’s had to take the back seat to Gurley.
One thing has been consistent with Watkins, he makes big plays. Last season, 8 of his 39 receptions went for TD’s, and throughout his career, his YPR average is exemplary, at 15.9. Kenny Stills at 16.1, so he would be another player that stretches the field for MIA. Whether or not Spotrac is correct in their projection for Watkins market value, I can’t say, but if their right, at $5.9M per year, he’d be worth a look.
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WR Marqise Lee 6’0 192 – 26YO
Marqise Lee is about the same size as Landry, but is nowhere near the physical player Landry is. He’s had an up and down career with Jacksonville, somewhat stuck behind the 2 other talented receivers there, The Allen’s, Robinson and Hurns. It’s not that the former 2nd RD pick in 2014 isn’t good, the Allen’s were dynamic. Lee got some playing this season with the season ending injury to Allen Robinson, yet still put up modest stats, despite starting 14 games. Much like Watkins in LA, the new show in Jacksonville was RB Leonard Fournette. Lee’s best season, despite starting only 6 games, but playing in all of them was in 2016, where Lee 63 passes for 851 yards and 3 TD’s. He’s not a playmaker, nor a gamebreaker, but he’s an NFL WR with experience and talent. He’s projected to be around $7.5M per year, so he’s in the right range.
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WR Danny Amendola 5’11 183 – 32YO
We all know Amendola well, former St. Louis Ram and most recently, former New England Patriot, who BTW, stepped up his game big time taking over for Julian Edelman, especially in the playoffs.. Amendola is a lot like Landry in one way, he makes a lot of big catches for first downs, and is a very reliable pass catcher throughout his career, with an over 70% catch rate. Amendola doesn’t catch a lot of TD passes, he’s a slot WR, like Landry, and the most TD’s he has are 4 in a season, and that was 2 years ago. He has good short burst quickness, and knows how to get open, he’s a crafty veteran. Amendola hasn’t been a super durable player, and I wouldn’t expect that to change much at 32. If we were looking for a short term contract, Amendola might be an option.
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WR Jordan Matthews 6’3 212 – 25YO
Jordan Matthews started out looking very promising with Philadelphia Eagles in his rookie season in ’14. he played in 16 games, starting 10, and finished with67 receptions for 872 yards and 8 TD’s. He improved the next season to 85 catches and 997 yards and again, 8 TD’s. In 2016, Matthews fell off some, catching 73 passes for 804 yards and 3 TD’s. Teh Eagles, desperate to improve their secondary, traded Jordan Matthews (who replaced Sammy Watkins) to the Bills plus a pick for CB Ronald Darby. Matthews had a quiet season in BUF, and ended up with only 25 receptions for 282 yards and 1 TD, before being placed on IR with a knee injury on December 14th. Matthews is a solid player, who has played both outside and in the slot. After a disappointing ’17 season, Matthews price will be dinged, and I think he’d be a good player to check out. He had surgery on his knee and ankle at the end of the season, but expects to be healthy for the start of the new season. I think the former 2nd RD pick is definitely worth a look.
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Paul Richardson 6’0 175 – 25YO
Richardson was mostly overlooked in SEA, with WR’s Doug Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse and Tyler Lockett. Despite being drafted in the 2nd RD, Richardson didn’t get hsi chance to shine until the Seahawks traded his fellow WR Jermain Kearse to the Jets. Richardson had somewhat of a genesis in his 4th season, with 44 catches for 703 yards and 6 TD’s. That’s nearly as many catches, and more yards and TD’s than he accumulated in his first 3 seasons. Richardson, who played in all 16 games last season, started 13 of them. Richardson has excellent speed, running a 4.4 at the combine. He only has 1 year of production, and that’s a little worrisome, but it also should keep his price down. Spotrac projects Richardson at $6.3M per year, which is very manageable.
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WR Ryan Grant 6’0 199 – 27YO
Ryan Grant, somewhat similarly to Paul Richardson, had a big season last year, after being somewhat buried on the depth chart. Grant played all 16 games, but started only 7, playing in the slot. Grant caught 45 balls for 573 yards and 4 TD’s, which is more than double of what he did the previous 3 years. Grant just turned 27, and his production last year might earn him a job as a slot receiver as a starter, and who knows, it might be here. After all, how hard would it be to change L-A-N-D-R-Y to G-R-A-N-T on the back of your #14 uni? 😉
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There are some other WR’s that might interest us, or at least interest me, but I’m going to keep it at 6 for every position. Honorable mentions are Donte Moncrief, Taylor Gabriel, and Kamar Aiken.
Finsmob Unleashed 
Hey Now !!
Doggy! What up!
This blog makes me squeal
I don’t want to look at WRs
I want to keep Landry
SQUEEEEEAAAAL!!!!!
I agree Piggy – I’m going to do all the positions, but yeah man, I hate it. They really need to sign our best draft pick in a long time.
Squueeeeeeeeeaaaal!!!!🐷😢
Watkins and Matthews from this list are the guys I can see helping the offense in the absence of Landry
Watkins is a special talent
He still might develop into dominant force
As Mike E said he has had some big play and has had some Kent’s but he’s been really inconsistent – and changing teams isn’t helping
Stop Watkins might end being great
I bet he wants a lot of $ though
Matthews is kind of in the same boat but I’m not as surprised about him
Did you see what Spotrac has Watkins market value at? I mentioned it in the article. $5.9M per year. I don’t know how they arrived at that, but if it’s even close, you have to consider him.
I bet spot tax is getting a cease and desist letter from Watkins agent right about now…lol
Heck yeah, you have to consider it!
It’s probably the one move that would soften the Landry blow for me
That doesn’t mean it’s a good move but at least we have Watkins in that scenario
The thing about Landry is that he’s never missed a game
Squeeeeeeeeeeal if we let him go
Squeeeeeeeeeaaaal!!!
Fox paying $5 BILLION for the Thursday Night Football package. I guess that shit ain’t going anywhere. 😦
You mean Disney right?
No, Fox. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/31/sports/fox-gets-nfl-thursday-night-games.html
What Up Mike E .. Nice write. I don’t see us in play for a WR. we will sign Landry @ 13.5 mil a year and focus on OL and TE and go from there.
Alright Doggy – From your mouth to T-Bomb’s ears. I hope they getter done!
Mike to answer your question it would take adding a T and a G taking off an L, Y and D, reorganizing a bunch of letter and then recentering the name because there are less letters in Grant. Than you have the whole confusion of 14 Grant with 19 Grant because a 4 and a 9 are somewhat similar….meh i just dont know it seems like a lot of work to me.
LOL- Thanks
Mike E. says:
February 1, 2018 at 9:31 am
Did you see what Spotrac has Watkins market value at? I mentioned it in the article. $5.9M per year. I don’t know how they arrived at that, but if it’s even close, you have to consider him.
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Mike look at his production and you will see, its not very good and he stays injured. This last year was the first year he has really finished a season without missing a game because of injury. I like the idea of Watkins because i remember the player coming out of Clemson, but the idea of Watkins is WAY better than the reality of Watkins.
6per is about as much as i would do for Watkins and it likely would be a 1-2 year contract.
Agree with the idea of Watkins is better than the reality of Watkins
Stay in house…
This will be Parker’s big breakout year anyway! Lmao! 🙂
And nice work Mike E
LOL @ Parker! Thanks ER
We’re going after Cousins. Mikey is getting itchy. He hasn’t been able to make a big splash in FA since the Suh signing so we’re letting Suh walk along with Tannehill, cutting Wake, Timmons and Thomas and freeing up cap to sign Cousins. Then we’re drafting Da’Ron Payne at #11 to replace Suh. It’s ALL good.
That sounds like an absolutely awful idea to me, but that’s just how I feel. I don’t see Cousins on a much higher level than Tannehill, and losing Suh sets this defense back, and Da Doo Ron Ron can’t fill Suh’s shoes now.
It’s a joke of course
just remember. the top 10 defenses in the league didn’t have Suh. So it’s not like Suh makes a huge difference by himself.
Those moves are way more than we would need to do to free up money for Cousins. And no way to we let TImmons walk while he is on a rookie contract.
Timmons is as good as gone.
Mike E — just putting out the other options (and well) makes the point that we are better at WR with Landry, but then we already knew that. Same time it is not Landry versus whoever else….it is Landry versus whoever else and say a legit starting G.
No question in my mind. None of those guys really replace Landry, they would just be another WR on our roster filling the space that Landry left if he doesn’t re-sign here. It would be a damn shame.
you don’t need to replace Landry. we don’t have an OFFENSE. We need at least one TE who represents a threat in the passing game, we need some semblance of a rushing attack, we need to utilize all the weapons we’ve got on offense in the offense and we need to have a complete offensive line and THAT is what will get the job done.
Targeting Landry 150+ times a season hasn’t made us playoff contenders. Without all that other stuff in place we’re an 8-8 team at best.
Oh yeah #BUILDATEAM
Lou – No one player can do it by himself, but there would be a huge hole if we lost Suh. Yes, Timmons is definitely gone next season, I’d be shocked if we keep him.
This upcoming season . . .
How do other teams get by without Suh? This is the kind of thinking that has gotten us to the point where we’re at; that no one guy could be replaced. Yet, there’s other teams in the league who have better defenses than we do and don’t have a guy named Suh on their defensive line.
I get that Lou, but we don’t have the depth to absorb losing him right now. I would hate to have to draft a DT early to replace him. Phillips is too iffy, and Godchaux is OK, but a little too small, he gets washed out too often. Taylor is a rotational guy, and Wright might be too, we don’t know yet. That’s all we got.
I agree we don’t want to let Suh go right now. Just playing devils advocate because one guy doesn’t make all the difference by himself and we see it all the time. We need to be smart about the way we address things going forward, build a team (broken record), and we could possibly be looking at being a consistent contender beginning in ’19 if we do things right.
We may be somewhat competitive this year but if we do what we need to in terms of filling our holes with the proper type of talent rather than signing all these one year contracts only to have to fill the void again we can go in the right direction. However, if Tannenbaum tries to fill all those holes in one free agency period with the same types of players before going into the draft then we could be just looking at more of the same old, same old.
My hope is we just do what we can in free agency to make us more solid at one or maybe two positions at most and then leave well enough alone. We’ve got depth at LB with guys like Allen and Hewitt and we’ve got depth on the o-line. We need STARTERS.
the guy is all over the field. Burke is no Schwartz though. would Bradham be anywhere near as effective in our D? Hard to say. Spotrac has his market at 2 yrs $11.8M. I’d do it.
I’d do it in a heartbeat… either he or Tahir Whitehead.
Mike E — No one can replace Landry at slot….heck figure he will come out of this the highest paid slot receiver in the NFL for good reason. And part of the argument on his salary has been is he so good that he gets to be paid like the Julio Jones of the league?
Same time, as Lou pointed out, there are other ways to design an O too. He points out a TE threat, but other options as well…..including a strong running game (which to my mind starts with building the line). Not like the Saints were either TE or slot receiver focused last year.
Stills didn’t have his production from the slot because he doesn’t play in the slot nearly as often but in terms of yds per catch Stills was one of the best from the slot in ’17
You know well how much I want a TE, but why can’t we have a TE and have Landry too? Why is it either or?
I’m not saying it’s either or. I’m saying that we rely on Landry so much in the offense and it’s because we don’t have a complete offense. If we had an offensive line that could pass protect and run block and utilized our backs in the passing game and had a TE that was a threat we wouldn’t need to rely on one guy as much and our offense would probably be better.
Just think if we were giving our qb time to find guys deeper, just a little more time, rather than having to dump the ball underneath to Landry because he doesn’t have the time to look down the field. How much of a difference would that make? If we had a TE who could take guys down the seam with him because he was a real threat how much of a difference would that make? If we had an offense designed to use all of the talent we’ve got on offense rather than targeting one guy as much as we do Landry how much of a difference would that make?
And, finally, if we had that type of an offense and we’re not going to be utilizing Landry nearly as much as we did in the past then why in the hell are we paying him $14M/yr?
I said it before, and I’ll say it again. It won’t matter who we bring in if we don’t use them correctly or at all. Gase so far has shown unwilling or unable to do so. While he’s up at 2 am trying to fix this thing, that’s the biggest area he needs to work on after discipline.
ding, ding, ding!!
Good write up, Mike. So much has to happen before I can even wrap my head around FA. The FO has decisions to make for sure with the roster and cap. Then Landry is the biggest offseason decision.
Thanks Tim
Nice work Mike E. Good break down
Thanks Hulk
The problem with all of these FA WRs: They are not Landry
We have wr’s on the team. If Landry walks, go with what you’ve got. If our new OC is any good he’ll find a way to utilize what he’s got and make it work. Concentrate on the o-line and TE positions and make it work at wr. We’ve got Grant, Morgan, Ford and Scott.
Oh yeah, and Carroo. There’s talent there. It’s up to the coaches to bring it out.
I don’t have much confidence in Carroo. He hasn’t been able to find his way on to the field despite opportunities due to injuries to Parker. He got passed over for 5’7” Grant. I don’t think Expecting Carroo to fill the large void that would result from Landry’s departure is realistic
again, it’s all about the design of the offense and utilizing the players within the offense. if you look at it as replacing player for player then you’re stuck with how do we replace Landry with another guy or how can this guy possibly fill Landry’s shoes?
If that’s the way any OC looks at the situation then they’re extremely limited in their abilities as an OC. you find ways to make it work. do your job. If I’m an OC I’d rather have an offense that I can run multiple plays out of the same formation and I can utilize more of the talent I got rather than relying on one guy.
defenses can take one player away but they can’t take them all away. hard to stop an offense where the qb is targeting 7 different players in the passing game.
Far as I can figure Carroo has pretty much one good move…..run right for the sidelines 15 yards past the snap, look over his shoulder and hope the ball is there before he goes out of bounds. Worked real well for him in college, but those dbs do be taller for him these days.
Wasn’t the knock on Philbin not using his players too?
Maybe they all just suck
Or maybe the QB and the OL did. Those six guys work….and the other 5 look a whole lot better.
What’s the thoughts on Demario Davis? He’s an ILB. Can he play on the outside? He’s one heck of a leader on the Jets. he’s a film rat. In early and last one out at night. Has a group of other players who follow him into the film rooms. Wants to be the best at what he does. Sounds like an asset.
Spotrac has his market at 3 yrs $15.4M.
My FA wishlist…
RE-SIGN Jarvis Landry ($13M/year) and William Hayes ($5.5M/year)
Sign either LB Tahir Whitehead ($8.5M/year) or Nigel Bradham ($5.9M/year). Whitehead is a SAM run-stuffer while Bradham is a WILL coverage ace… pick your poison.
Sign LG Andrew Norwell. His market value is $11.7M/year, but he’s only 26 years old and already has an All-Pro on his resume. Imagine him between Tunsil and Pouncey.
IF the Raiders end up cutting CB David Amerson as some suspect (salary cap casualty), sign him as a ‘flex DB’ or ‘Defensive Weapon’. I SWEAR that he’ll be a Pro-Bowl Safety for whichever team plays him as such. Imagine him at FS when TJ McDonald plays LB in the nickle, or at CB in our zone-heavy schemes. He’s at his best playing with the ball in front of him.
In order to do this, we’d have to be the better part of $40M under the cap… it’s possible. And IF we do this, we won’t have to worry about Quenton Nelson or Roquan Smith being gone when we select @ R1P11.
That’s a lot of spending. I’d be surprised if we do this much.
We actually would not have to be $40 mil under the cap. First year cap hits can be managed….could put us on the road to cap hell though.
Hayes is one guy I am really hoping we re-sign, and should be able to get him on a one-year after the injury.
And hasn’t Amerson been on your X-Mas list for a real long time? 🙂
I LUV Amerson!!! 😀
we had Hayes for 2 yrs and gave him an out after 1 yr so he can go out and test the market. Now if we re-sign him we’re going to pay for it. Goes back to what I said. We sign all these guys to one yr contracts only to create a void in the next yr and now we need to go out and get a replacement.
That mentality needs to change. I don’t advocate for the signing of a DE in FA. I’d rather we take a shot at someone like Key or Carter to fill the DE position and have someone in the pipeline for when Wake is gone. Yeah, we’ve got Harris right now but he’s the future at one DE position and the other player would be the future at the opposite.
Branch’s contract gives us an out after this season and, like I said, I’m not a fan of waiting until you have a need at a position to take a replacement because then you may find yourself reaching. Also kills your BPA strategy.
If this team is going to do anything they need to be smart about how they spend their money in FA instead of spending like a kid in a candy store.
Hayes is the one who asked the team to make his deal for one year then regretted it saying he wants to finish his career in Miami. So he might not be an expensive re-sign.
I like using FA to pick up OL
But 11.7 in a OG sounds like a lot
give me Pugh and then if they want to go further go after either Fulton or Pamphile for depth.
NOrwell’s resume is actually really impressive
VERY!!!
Guys, just so y’all know, I don’t think we should go on a FA spending spree. If we can nab one or two FAs I listed above (aside from re-signing Jarvis and Hayes), we’ll be in a good situation come Draft day.
I just REALLY wish that the Draft would come before FA opens for a myriad of reasons.
Why do you want the draft before FA?
Lou – We could draft Tyquan Lewis to replace Hayes, if we can’t get him here for a reasonable price
M – Just curious – Last year I was all in on getting Zeitler, and you were heavily against it due to the SSS. What changed this year with Norwell?
M – Just curious – Last year I was all in on getting Zeitler, and you were heavily against it due to the $$$. What changed this year with Norwell?
For one, Kevin Zeitler isn’t a Pro-Bowler… much less an All-Pro like Norwell. For two, I WANT THIS O-LINE FIXED, ONCE AND FOR ALL!!! 🙂
Tim Knight says:
February 1, 2018 at 1:27 pm
Hayes is the one who asked the team to make his deal for one year then regretted it saying he wants to finish his career in Miami. So he might not be an expensive re-sign.
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Exactly. He’s 32, coming off of a season-ending injury. He can’t command MEGA MILLIONS. He loves Miami and should be relatively affordable. He’s a big part of why our run-D became so much better in ’17.
so we’re going to sign him for another year? oh the nonsense.
He was a top-5 run-stopper at the DE position this past season.
problem is the mentality this team has. they sign Hayes for one more year and it’s “we’re good there. no need to worry about that position”. and you know it. fuck that shit already. how do gain any consistency on a team when you’re constantly replacing guys every year?
this makes NO sense.
He has a back injury so who knows how that will effect him going forward with his career never mind the Phins.
I’m going to get the paper, get the paper
Tim Knight says:
February 1, 2018 at 1:31 pm
Why do you want the draft before FA?
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You can control FA to a greater degree than ya can control the Draft. I think FA should be used to augment, not build. To know that ya have the building blocks in place (via the Draft) makes it far easier (and cheaper) than to use FA first.
yeah and our team does it backwards. they try to fill in all the holes they can by signing guys to one yr contracts and then augmenting thru the draft. they build nothing. they create more holes.
I agree to a greater degree.
The team hasn’t been built that way the last few years.
Tim,
what are you talking about? we signed Bushrod and Larsen to START! TO START!! WE signed Timmons to start!! We signed Allen to start!! We signed Hayes to start!! Hayes played well but even if we kept the two yr contract he’s up in age. Another hole created when he’s gone. WE have no long term solutions in these positions.
Oh yeah, we signed Fasano and traded for Thomas to start!! C’mon man. Enough is enough. How does a team get better when you’re doing this shit. I can see signing Hayes to come in and help split time with Wake if everything else was good or signing Timmons to come in and split reps with someone but as starters?
This mentality if fucked. No other way to put it.
professorloumiamidolphinsblog says:
February 1, 2018 at 1:45 pm
problem is the mentality this team has. they sign Hayes for one more year and it’s “we’re good there. no need to worry about that position”. and you know it. fuck that shit already. how do gain any consistency on a team when you’re constantly replacing guys every year?
this makes NO sense.
————
We can’t have a team comprised of ALL rookies, ya know. What’s more and under the latest CBA, every team MUST spend up to 90% of the new cap number.
William Hayes is a SOLID player and worth his weight in whatever money he makes… even if he doesn’t believe in dinosaurs. 🙂
Nobody said you need a team comprised of all rookies. But you don’t sign two backups to start on the offensive line.
you sign one, maybe two solid players in free agency and that’s it. this team fills in a huge amount of holes with FA’s they sign for a year or two and then they’re gone with no plan as to how they’re going to address their absence.
yeah, Hayes is coming off an injury and maybe he re-signs for something decent but tell me how that solves anything if we sign him to a two yr contract that gives us an out after year one and then we cut him to save cap? it doesn’t. and the brass hasn’t proven it’s got a plan in place to replace guys like this.
frickin magic 8 ball.
I don’t know how many of y’all have seen this, but it’s worth posting for those who haven’t seen it already. William Hayes REALLY DOESN’T believe in dinosaurs! This piece is hilarious!
Lou, you’re cherry picking a handful of players. Look at the lineups and who plays the most and tell me they’re all one year stopgap players. It’s simply not true.
No, I’m not. What’s the #1 weakness on our offense? You know it. The o-line and we go out and sign two backups as starters. We then have no plan to address how we’re going to handle James’ situation. First we wanted the 5th yr option and then we declined it.
So are we going to re-sign him or are we creating another hole there. Bushrod is done. We need a guard. Larsen is a backup. We need a 2nd guard. Pouncey we’ve kicked the can down the road on for years now. And then we may not have a RT and what are we going to do start and udfa there?
And that’s just the o-line. TE is a cluster fuck. We’ve got Gray who is a good blocker but that’s it. He’s not a starter. We have ZERO starters at the TE position.
And you’re telling me I’m cherry picking? Wow.
Yes you are. You’re selecting a handful of players when the majority of the lineups are made up of long-term investments, draft picks and even some UDFAs. All you have to do is look at the lineups for the answers. It’s not my opinion, it is what it is.
I don’t think signing bets to short term contracts and bringing in through the draft is such a bad plan
Maybe I’m missing what you guys mean by augment – what do you mean?
Augment= signing FAs to put us over the top. Ya don’t BUILD a team by signing FAs.
And we haven’t been doing that.
I don’t the no that’s what we did last year
I think we signed a few vets here in there to hold the place for yourger players
Hayes filling in the depth chart with a rookie like Harris kind of appears to be a good plan on its face
Rookies often needs time
Marching out a bunch of rookies seems like a bad idea
I look at signings in free agency as accomplishing two things. You sign a solid starter or two, if you can, so you eliminate the need to draft players to fill those spots. It frees up what you can do in the draft.
However, you don’t sign guys like Bushrod and Larsen, who are backups, and then say “okay, we don’t need to draft offensive linemen” because that’s exactly what they did. The only guy they drafted on the o-line was Asiata and he hasn’t seen the field. So what did it accomplish. Larsen went down with an injury and missed a good portion of the season. We had no depth in there to replace him and if we signed a guy who was a starter and Larsen as depth it wouldn’t have mattered. Bushrod is a FA again so now we’ve got another hole to fill.
So, you if we signed a starter on the o-line last year and maybe one guy as depth things probably would look better going into FA and the draft this year.
When you’re signing guys to one or two year contracts they can’t be starters unless you’re drafting their replacement and we didn’t.
Your first sentence would make sense if that’s what we did but we didn’t do that. We have nobody who we acquired thru the draft who will be replacing any of these guys.
Do we have a replacement from the draft for Bushrod? How about for Fasano or Thomas? How about for Timmons? Hayes? Nobody.
professorloumiamidolphinsblog says:
February 1, 2018 at 1:54 pm
Nobody said you need a team comprised of all rookies. But you don’t sign two backups to start on the offensive line.
———-
THIS is where we agree! However, you’re losing me on William Hayes: he’s a STUD.
who cares if he’s a stud if he’s only going to be around for one more year? both he and Wake are at the end of their careers. if we’re going to target someone in the draft who will be the replacement then I’m okay with it. problem is our front office thinks they have it handled when they do this and don’t do what’s needed.
That’s why we drafted Harris though
it’s not. Harris isn’t playing on the left side. he’s playing on the right. he’s going to replace Branch.
We CAN’T replace/upgrade every position via the Draft in any given year! That’s what you aren’t seeing, Bro.
We need a lot more draft picks…lol
EXACTLY, Pig!
Tim,
think about what you’re saying. We have ZERO guards this year who can start. ZERO and we have no starters at the TE position. It’s four positions but that’s a huge void that needs to be filled. You can call it cherry picking but that’s a lot to be lacking and that’s just on the offensive side of the ball.
If we drafted a LG (on day 2 or 3) but signed an average vet LG as well – is that what you want to see the team do?
but we didn’t
Zero guards is not accurate but yes we need upgrades there. The TE position has not been good for us so I agree there. This isn’t about not needing upgrades, it’s about how the team is being built and what you’re saying is not true. I don’t feel like typing out the lineups, all you have to do is look it up and see how we acquired the majority of the players who start, play significant roles and the entire roster.
then I guess we’ll agree to disagree because all we have at guard right now is depth and we’ve got nothing solid as starters. same with TE. this team did nothing to address either position for the long term and all they do is continue to sign guys in free agency who are short term, stop gap players to fill the void for a year or two and kick the can down the road.
so, we have a need to fill both guard positions with starters and we still need two starting TE’s. that’s a lot to have to go out and get in one free agency period and one draft and we’re not going to do it.
I wouldn’t want us to try and solve all that in one offseason either because I’ve seen what happens.
MF,
tell me where we have been getting better thru FA and the draft. show me it because we haven’t. again, two spots that stand out. Offensive line. We signed backups as starters and we failed to address the o-line in the draft by drafting at least one guy who can possibly start for us even if it takes a year to learn.
We also failed to address the o-line in FA by signing at least one guy who could be as solid starter for us for more than just a year or two.
Then there’s TE. Didn’t sign anyone who was an answer there and failed to address it in the draft.
So, you’ve got to do it in one place or the other. You either sign a guy in FA or you draft a guy who you view as the answer. We did NEITHER.
You’re preaching to the choir, dude… we agree on this point.
ESPECIALLY regarding our O-Line.
Bushrod was not a backup, he just switched positions. Larsen has also started a bunch of games. Didn’t we draft Asiata even if it takes a year to learn? I think everyone agrees the TE position needs to be revamped. No teams have everything. Still none of this adds up to what you’re saying as far as how the team has been built. You seem to be turning your concerns into a false reality.
yeah, neither was a backup on this team because we didn’t have anything else but they’re backups at best. these guys are not starter material at this point.
show me exactly how it is not a false reality. who do we have on the roster right now who is the starter at LG and RG and who are the two starting TE’s? where are they?
Bushrod was a starting LT with CHI and made a pro bowl one year. He wasn’t a career backup.
Lou – One more quick thing, I’ve seen you bring up Mauluga as one of your chief complaints, but we both know if McMillan wasn’t injured, we weren’t looking for Rey Maualuga. We had little choice, it happened the 1st play of Game 1, so the choices were slim, and if it wasn’t Maualuga, it would have been a different washup
That’s a solid point, Mike E. At least we were trying to be competitive.
And the same can be said of signing Jay Cutler.
Yep – Right on w/Cutler
my point is instead of going after another washed up player with a history of partying we should have just gone with what we had. they don’t know how to address needs properly and they spend money like a kid in a candy store.
lou,
To me, it’s about player evaluation. They did make moves/decisions. They were just not very good choices. The trade with Philly was crap. Larsen has always been a very average player. Expecting him to be anything else was a major stretch. Bushrod was very mediocre with us, and they still chose to stick with him. Asiata was a serious project from day one. Nobody with half a brain should have expected him to play his first year. He was a 4th rounder for a reason. Fasano is nothing more than an extra OL at this point in his career, but i’m guessing they signed him to block anyway. Thomas was a bad decision, and at least Gase should have known better. So, it wasn’t that they didn’t make moves. It’s that the moves they made were questionable. I question the talent evaluation skills of this FO because of this stuff and how they’ve handled the roster and depth chart.
Asiata was a 5th RD
I agree. they made moves but they weren’t very good ones. EXACTLY what I’m talking about. and then they did nothing to address it in the draft. even if they just went after one o-lineman early or one TE early. something. or if they signed one guy at TE or on the OL who was someone we could count on for more than a year. but they didn’t. these moves didn’t help us one bit. not one.
MikeE,
Oops!
lou,
You probably need to get ready for some more disappointment. Lol
I’m sure I do. lol. especially when Mikey says they want to have the roster set going into the draft. that’s what got us to this point.
I LOVE this year’s crop of TEs. If we don’t select one on day 2 of the Draft, we’ll have FAILED once again… unless Adam Breneman lasts to day 3.
I’m glad to read that. TE is our white whale. And heck yeah I’d give our first for Gronk…..even with the injury concerns.
Saying we’re not good enough in some areas is one thing, but this team is not built in a piecemeal way is my point.
There are 23 players we drafted since 2014 that are still with the team. Jones, Pouncey and Tannehill are the only ones left from prior to that. Then there are some trades we made, FA signings to long-term contracts and UDFAs. The short-term players we signed along the way who were stopgaps were just that. But they’re not the core of the team.
sure it is. offensive line and TE. piecemeal. that, in and of itself, is huge.
Pouncey, James and Tunsil were all drafted. G and TE has been an issue. I think there are more positions than that. LOL
Are you guys ready for TE Mike Gesicke to JUMP out of the stadium come the Combine? I’m ready!
I would like him to jump right into Davie!
Lou, you’re changing the subject to areas we need to upgrade. That’s not what you were talking about earlier about how the FO has gone about building the team. Every team fills some areas with some stopgap players. Our core is not made up of that. You even wrote an entire piece about this a year ago or so saying we’re not doing that and this is a team on the rise, doing it the right way. LOL
they aren’t areas we need to upgrade. we need starters at both guard positions and at TE; not upgrades. everything we have in house right now is depth.
Semantics. Upgrade to me means better players who start.
Tim,
Who exactly is the core of this team? Guys we are building around long term?
Randy, do you know who’s on the team and how we acquired them? Let me guess, you’re going to now twist this into but they’re not very good right? That’s not what started this discussion or what it’s about.
stangerx says:
February 1, 2018 at 2:51 pm
I’m glad to read that. TE is our white whale. And heck yeah I’d give our first for Gronk…..even with the injury concerns.
———
If I recall correctly, you LOVED Dustin Keller. Well I’m here to tell ya, Stanger, that you’re going to LOVE Mike Gesicki! 🙂
Keller was the girl I loved in high school and then her Dad got transferred out of town (even if in this case cause of knee injury). What is Gesicki gonna cost us?
Probably 2nd rd. Big TE from PSU. I like him too. He’s not like Keller though.
I’d put in the 2nd for him. And maybe not Keller, but looks like a little Gronk with more footspeed and less size….and assume less blocking.
He’s about 6-6 250 so he’s a pretty big dude but not 265 like Gronk.
I like Landry like everyone else, but I’d be willing to let him slide and build with the money and the draft at OL, TE, and DE. Would be willing to take a QB if he drops at #11 too.
And yes that would be figuring next year is not going to be anything other than a short-lived run. Would set us up a foundation going forward though.
Stanger and all….
“Seams” right to me….would still need a Fasno though.
Tim,
Sorry, I wasn’t trying to back you in a corner or anything. When you mentioned the core of the team it made me think to myself what that was, and I was just curious what your thoughts were.
Sorry I came off like that. We have a lot of young players on the team that have to pan out. The discussion was about Lou saying our FO builds the team with short-term stopgap players when that’s not the case. Most of our starters and role players were drafted with some long-term FAs and UDFAs. Then he started honing in on G and TE. I agree those positions need to be upgraded and we haven’t done a good job there. But the core of the team meaning starters and significant role players even on STs, are not mostly made up of stopgap FAs.
Timmons, stop gap. Hayes, stop gap. Bushrod, stop gap, Fasano, stop gap. Larsen, stop gap. Thomas, stop gap. It’s a 53 man roster but there’s 22 starters and 6 of them are stop gap players. That’s quite a lot among starters. would be a different story if you’re going with stop gap for depth but for starters that’s ridiculous.
That’s 27% of the starting lineup. Not too high I guess.
M – I like Gesicki and Goedert
Those are my top two TEs. Goedert is the ‘do-it-all’, Gesicki is the 6’6″ redzone threat who is ‘Elastic Man’.
I’d be thrilled to have either of them. Once I got over the shock! 😀
SAME, Brother!
Where has Brian in NY been? Huge Gesicki fan right there
INDEED! I hope Brian is doing alright.
Yeah, haven’t seen Brian in awhile. Hope all is well with him.
Erich Sternkopf
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@L_Bell26 I speak on behalf of the New York Jets, well give you $60 million in cash if you come play for us
Le’Veon Bell
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Le’Veon Bell Retweeted Erich Sternkopf
that ain’t enough to come run with the Jets…
LOL
The reality for Bell is teams are leery about paying RBs anywhere near that type of money.
Tim,
I agree. I just wonder what the core of this team is. I have questioned the leadership for many years. I see a severe lack of it, and I think that has to come from your core players. Honestly, I could easily get rid of every single offensive player and start from scratch. Even Landry…who I like as a player…is a piss poor leader because he seriously hurts the team with his selfish antics. You just can’t have that from a “leader” on your team. Fans may like it because they think it shows passion, but what it really shows is a lack of discipline and a “me first” selfish attitude that ultimately only hurts your team. And, if it’s coming from your best players…guys who should be leading by example….it only compounds the negative impact.
That’s a fair point Randy. I think Landry definitely needs to learn to keep himself in check
Lunch is over. Go Dolphins!
I could be happy with just about any of the TE’s in this draft. At least we addressed the position by filling one of the holes we have and there’s quite a few who would do that for us and not be seen as just filling a hole on the roster.
We could easily end up with a TE and an o-lineman at a minimum in this draft and at least we’re getting help where we need it the most. We may even be able to get two guys at one of those positions and still get one player at one of the other positions.
And I also don’t look at the draft like this. We go into the draft with Kwon, Anthony and Kiko on the roster and say we’re good and then if Smith is there at #11 we pass because we say we don’t need a LB. We may not need a LB but when you’ve got a shot at a guy like Smith how do you pass him up when he looks to be a clear cut upgrade to a guy like Kiko?
So, you say, “well, if we draft Smith what do we do with the LB’s we got”. Well, you trade Kiko, that’s what you do. That’s how good teams get better. You get a bona fide blue chipper to replace your “steady” guy at LB and then you get either a player in a trade who can help you or you get a pick that you can use to help your team.
You’re under-valuing Kiko… he, too, is a STUD. It’s well documented how he was compromised by newbies playing next to him. And THIS is an example of how we want to BUILD, as opposed to just signing more newbie FAs every year.
Kiko is far from a stud. He’s steady like one Misi guy I know but studly he’s not.
and don’t get me wrong. If both Smith and Nelson are there it’s a tough call and only because we need a starting guard and Nelson looks to be a day one starter. If we didn’t have the need we have for a starting guard there’s no way I advocate to take Nelson at #11 because taking a guard that high is insanity but we’re in the position we’re in because our brass chose to kick the can down the road.
so, not a sexy pick but it eliminates the need to address it any time in the future. we go o line or TE in the 2nd and we’re on our way. that’s just one way we can go. there’s others but I wouldn’t be disappointed with that
professorloumiamidolphinsblog says:
February 1, 2018 at 3:39 pm
Kiko is far from a stud. He’s steady like one Misi guy I know but studly he’s not.
———
We’re going to have to disagree on this one, and it’s all good.
to me, a stud is a playmaker. he makes tackles but he’s not a playmaker. so he’s solid but I wouldn’t say he’s a stud. if he’s got a playmaker next to him it could elevate his game too because he may become more effective. but I don’t believe he improves the play of the other linebackers. JMHO. not trying to be a dick. or a douchebag.
I dont think i could call him a stud either. I think he is a good bit better than Misi, but his play recognition and pre-snap reads are pretty weak. He is plenty athletic to cover but his football IQ isnt where it needs to be to be a really great MLB, and its not good enough for him to be a stud OLB either.
Id call him a good but not great LB.
and that’s one of the problems. he’s definitely better inside than he is on the outside and he’s not going back inside with Kwon there. it will be interesting to see with Kiko, Kwon and Anthony how things work out this season.
In any case, it should be somewhat better than what we had last season.
Kiko plays…that puts him ahead of Miso. Lol
You sir have a point with that statement 🙂
Thats some good news. I really dont care if he can pick up his career as long as the dude can walk and have a normal life. I really hope he doesnt try to force the issue and try going back to football unless they feel like he doesnt have a chance to re-aggrivate.
true. only thing that matters is he’s healthy.
Good to see.
Miso hooooorny. lol
Uncle Luke! 😀
And I’m not talking about Ben Solo/Kylo Ren! 😀
Han solo…………get it haaaaaan solo……..get it…….
Well ya got that magical hand so….
I’ll take miso soup over Misi any day
Thats hot……… the soup i mean.
I’m Hand Solo
😆
I look at Brady and how much time and effort he puts into doing what he does and maybe some won’t agree because of the cheating thing but I don’t think there’s a qb who works harder to be the best at what he does than him.
So when I look at that and I look at this crop of qb’s coming out I don’t care where they’re drafted. If there’s one of them who wants to be the best from this draft class, even if he’s taken in the fourth round, that’s entirely up to him. there’s a lot of qb’s in this class who have the skills. they just need to decide how good they want to be.
And what about UDFA QBs? Tony Romo comes to mind.
And how about young Case Keenum?
true. If you’ve got something to work with that’s all you need. you need to make the decision on how good you want to be and there’s plenty of qb’s in this class who can elevate themselves above the competition if they just make that decision. being good enough isn’t good enough.
I’ve always been a competitor. so that’s my mentality. if I’m one of these qb’s drafted in the 3rd or 4th rd I’m going to make every team in the league that passed on me sorry they did.
Thats one of the reasons i like Allen, i think he is one of those guys, its a lot of why i like Luke Faulk too.
I dont really see Baker Mayfield that way though, and thats one of the things that bothers me about him the most.
I dont see Darnold that way either.
I still go back to that second New England game and wonder where that type of catching has been all year. Our defense and offense looked totally different and we didn’t have that level of game planning and play calling before or after that game.
SB7, I think the big deal in that game was Gronk was out. Its not so much that Gronk is so dominate that we cant defend him, well its a little about that, but its also that without him we were able to play press at the corners more without fearing Gronk would wind up with only one person spying him and essentially having to cover him in man because there was no one to pick him up after he crossed a zone with a middle to deep slant. The game they destroyed us in, they pretty much did that to us over and over, and part of the problem went back to Alonzo’s weak football IQ. He needed to stay with Gronk and he let him go after he crossed his zone, even though Howard was in man on the outside.
So its the fact we were able to scheme our defense more properly because we didnt have to account for him.
We also beat up Brady and forced him into quite a few bad throws.
professorloumiamidolphinsblog says:
February 1, 2018 at 4:06 pm
true. If you’ve got something to work with that’s all you need…
——–
Now apply this thought process to FA…
At the end of the day it’s about good players. I don’t care how we acquire them as long as it’s not reckless spending.
And no Lou, I don’t mean a group of players who are disorganized, not a fit and just slapped together. LOL
Randy, I know you’re not on now, but core players to me means the main guys you roll with on game day week to week. Leadership and discipline is another issue.
Hopefully some of the coaching changes can help with the discipline.
Gronk had a little to do with it, but we were running plays on offense and using players and formations we hadn’t seen. The defense was more attacking. They even make Kiko look like he could diagnose a play.
You are right, we did seem to have an overall better team gameplan and not just on defense, but the defensive part, the aggressiveness was because they didnt feel as threatened that we would get exploited with Gronk out. Which makes me kind of wish he’d piss Belichick off and get traded to the Browns so we could be aggressive against them all the time lol.
Even though we lost our last 3 games and we weren’t playing great or anything, we did play better down the stretch since the Broncos game. So maybe the team was coming together a little bit. Lots of new guys had played more by this time.
We definitely played better towards the end. It wasnt completely embarrassing like it had been a few times earlier in the year. We couldn’t get it together enough to put us over the top in a few games that were close, but we were a heck of a lot more competative.
Even the undisciplined stuff got better, not completely error free but for the most part it was reduced. The refs were not our friends this year, and we got a lot of calls that were complete bullshit.
D, agree on both of your recent posts.
Except we did have 14 penalties in the last game against BUF where we unraveled a bit. But I didn’t watch that game, family was in from Georgia.
It wasntas bad as the number seem. We did kind of come unwraveled right at the last, but we also got some BS calls too. Completely BS.
I think my problem with the statement of “any of these QB’s can elevate themselves” statement Lou is that they are in these pseudo tiers because of either the evaluations on them is they arent able to do that as well as another or that they have more obstacles to overcome to make it to the same point. I dont disagree that people who push themselves can achieve beyond expectations or the ceiling that people may have put on them. The problem is, that evaluation and those ceilings arent consider bunk because there is legitimacy to them. Even in my job, i hire people and develop them and i feel i can develop just about anyone, but i have seen it first hand that some people have to struggle twice as hard to do half the work. Some people have natural gifts, or come from backgrounds where the tools they have are more refined/developed. Thats not to say some cant completely shock you, i have seen that too, so i dont tend to place a label on a person until i have seen with my own eyes, and done my own evaluation of where their struggles and limitations are.
What im saying is, these guys who are going into the draft, and the rounds they are taken comes from people who have been watching them and evaluating their struggles and know if its just a training thing or if its a lack of past development, etc, they know what seems fixable and whats a “this kids going to really have to bust ass to get past this obstacle” thing. They also can tell from their past how much those obstacles have held them back and therefore how much they might hold them back moving forward when the competition level jumps and the speed of the game gets quicker. You cant brush that off and just say well a 4th could turn out as good as a 1st. Yes it can, but its a hell of a lot less likely to and thats not just opinion its been proven year after year after year.
I heard Patrick Peterson on WFAN today and he said college does QBs a disservice because they don’t know how to read a lot of coverages and make NFL throws.
Thats what i was saying yesterday. The reason i like Allen is he is from one of the few systems left that are still playing in a pro-style. Most colleges play spread or some sort of read option form that is easy for a college to take a really good athlete and use him as a QB to make it hard for another college to match them on defense to stop their offense. Its an easier way to win games and championships, etc. Even Alabama has moved over to doing it. Its just hard not to to compete with the rest of the teams that are, and the bad part is the NFL is fighting moving over to it themselves and its a losing battle. When the feeder system is sending you these type players, you either adapt so that you can keep using what your getting from that feeder system, or spend years and years waiting for that one player to come through that came from one of the last holdout systems in college still doing things the old school way.
Well why dont teams just start playing spread in the NFL you might say. The problem with that is the spread is its based on having better athletes than the team you are facing does on defense. If you do, you beat them, but if they can match you, then you are shut down on offense and you better hope your defense can carry you. The big problem is the NFL is all the top athletes so spread isn’t as easy to pull off. There are a few systems that do ok with it,but the championship teams are playing pro-style. The Eagles and the Patriots are pro-style, the Vikes are pro-style, the Saints are pro-style, Atlanta and KC, pro-style. Buffalo, Carolina (sorta kinda), and Titans (another sorta kinda) are the only systems that are spread like and made it to the playoffs. To be honest if spread worked better in the NFL, we would have one of the better QB’s for it with Tanny, it just doesnt. So this is why you take Allen and work to get his accuracy stuff fixed IMO. He’s a rarer prospect than given credit for.
Damnit, why do strawberry Twizzlers have to be so freakin good.
D’s shortest post ever. JKBBLOL
probably pretty close to it lol.
LOL, you’re right though.
If there was a total post count, i believe Tim would have it hands down, but if it was number of words, there are couple here that might be up there too, but id bet i have at least double what they have combined lol.
I think in the past it would be me, but not in recent years. Part of why I post as much as I do is because I’m always in front of a fucking computer. LOL
Tim is the elder statesmen of the blog
One of. 🙂
D, if Josh Allen isn’t a Jeff George or Ryan Leaf type character just to sample a couple of guys, I’d probably take him #1 because he has all the tools you look for and you can’t teach his size, athleticism and arm strength. If he’s a football guy who wants to be great, it would be hard to pass on him. I believe fundamentals can be taught and improved. Some college QBs don’t have NFL skill but people keep pointing to college production and success. We’ve seen that before, that doesn’t tell the whole story at the next level. Now you’re playing against players who are the best you’ve ever faced every week. Not all guys can handle that.
Josh Allen is the opposite of George and Leaf in terms of character. I think he will be the #1 overall pick
It really depends on Cleveland i think, they may go for a FA QB and then draft Barkley. With their OL which isnt awful, and two pretty good receivers (as long as Gordon can pass his piss tests), add a QB like Cousins, and then draft Barkley, and that becomes a formidable offense. I mean its still Cleveland and they could find a way to fuck up a wet dream, but they would have the talent to be pretty damn scary on paper. Then it will be about who trades up and whomever that is going to take their guy.
I have heard the G-Men like Rosen, i have heard the Jets like Mayfield (which probably means they are going to attempt some sorta spread-like hybrid. Chicago has their next QB, Indy doesnt seem interested in drafting a QB that high with Brissett and Luck still around, The Broncos would probably take Allen, but they have been rumored to be after a QB in FA as well, the Buc are still holding out that Jameis is going to turn the corner, Raiders have Carr, and SF has Garopolo. It would probably only take a couple of moves for us to wind up in a spot to where Allen was a real possibility, i almost guarantee we will be in play for Darnold or Mayfield, just depending on whom the Jets took. I wouldnt want either of them id rather take another player and go after Faulk in the 2nd or 3rd. Still i think Allen is an outside shot to be there and id for sure take him if he was.
Yeah, but at least when he is doing that, he is playing in a system he is familiar with instead of having to learn a whole new one while at the same time adjusting to the same factors. I knw its not a guarantee, that’s one thing i do agree with Lou on, none of them are guarantees, but to me he is probably only one off of the least riskiest prospect this year. Rosen to me is very polished, but just lacks some of the upside, he also played at UCLA which is a big market college team and he played in a power conference which means he is use to stronger competition, etc. Still Allen’s upside with what seems to be advantages over most college QB’s because of his college system, makes me pretty comfortable with him. If we got the chance on him id take him, and if we miss, we miss, that shit happens, but im not wanting to be kicking myself for passing on player that could be franchise altering if he does become a success.
I agree with you on Allen he is the one QB I would not pass on if we had a shot at him
I don’t think he’ll suck. He might just fall in the middle because of whatever, but I don’t think you’ll bust with him. He has too much talent.
Tom Brady is the creepiest man alive
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2018/01/31/tom-brady-son-kiss/
I think his kid is still young enough its not overly creepy, but that second kiss was a little more than i would have done. The first one, id call that acceptable with a kid thats 8-10, which im assuming is how old he is. Im not a fan of kiss on the lips with a son anyways, but that’s me and i know of a few guys that are cool with it. I had a buddy that kissed his dad on the lips and the dude was in his 20’s at that time.It really creeped me out, so i dunno, different people run their lives differently i guess.
He’s 11
SQUEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAL!
LOL It is pretty creepy but it could have just been an odd photo
Ken says:
February 1, 2018 at 7:30 pm
Josh Allen is the opposite of George and Leaf in terms of character. I think he will be the #1 overall pick
———
You mean Josh ROSEN, right? Josh Allen isn’t even certain to go top-10.
No I think when all is said and done Josh Allen will be #1 overall and I have seen a number of mocks with him up there
You are behind the imes M13, Allen has been rumored for the Cleveland pick for a couple of weeks now.
LMAO!!!
😆
M13, Allen is definitely in the mix for #1 overall.
No, no he’s not. He’s a project and I can assure you that John Dorsey isn’t going to select him @ R1P1.
Okay, we shall see.
Dorsey said he doesn’t like playing rookie qb’s and I don’t believe he’s going to take a guy with the 1st pick who’s going to sit because he can’t play.
D:
Cleveland is definitely going QB at 1 and still probably get Barkley at 4. The only question is which QB and I think it is Allen. He clearly has the most upside of any QB in this draft. Cleveland could start Kizer until Allen is ready
Well ill keep my fingers crossed for Cleveland to pull a Cleveland and not do it lol, i wasnt all that interested in QB at 11 until i really started looking into Allen and weighing things out, but the more i think about it them more i hope that is something that happens. We likely have the luxury of giving him a year or two to develop so i thing thats an ideal situation to be in. Faulk is someone i still think very highly of, but he has no where near the ceiling that Allen has shown to have.
I don’t like Falk’s arm strength. I think he has a below average arm
I think its average to maybe slightly better than average, but yes i would like to have a guy with a little better arm.
CLE has a chance to really change the dynamic of their team. They got the defender last year in Garrett. Now QB at #1 and BPA at #4. Maybe Barkley. How quick things can change.
They have suffered through 1-31 though to get to the point they can make such a big swing lol. As bad as people are about our team, imagine what things would be like if we have been 1-31 over the past two year lol. You’d have to take down the dolphins player collage and put up pictures of bullet holes, charred buildings and open rooms with feces all over the place to represent the destruction that would have occured in that wake,
The word is Josh Allen is in consideration for #1, or certainly Top 10, but that word doesn’t mean a whole lot. We’ll find out in a couple of months.
M13, if you’re CLE who has won 1 game the last 2 seasons, don’t you think they have some time to build their new direction? Josh Allen has the most talent of all the QBs. He also has the classic pocket stature that teams prefer in a QB.
Are you talking about Andrew Luck or Josh Allen?!! Josh Allen is ALL OVER THE PLACE in his pocket stature, pocket presence, his throwing motion, his throwing mechanics, his footwork, and his accuracy! Even YOU stated as much last week! Sheesh!
You’re not really reading anyone. This is one of your absolutes. It’s all good.
LOL @ y’all who put the Senior Bowl atop any other thing in the draft process. I suppose nobody should ever declare for the Draft early… like Myles Garrett. 😆
I dont put it atop of anything, its another part, but the trend and the word among scouts right now is that Cleeland is very much interested in Allen at 1, that has nothing to do with the Senior Bowl.
Has nothing to do with the Senior Bowl. Been listening to stuff on the radio with the Super Bowl as well as the NFL offseason. Josh Allen is a hot commodity and he was before the SB. I remember when Phillip Rivers went from a January 3rd rd pick to #4 in April. True story. 🙂
I disagree with Allen as the #1
But I know its out there
Its really about whether the Browns like him or not
I think its crazy but….
This isnt our opinion, though i think it makes sense to me. There is nothing that says that any of the other QB’s offer any more right off, so with that it makes sense to take wich ever you see with the biggest long term development. I can see what they are saying with Allen, and i fully admit i could be wrong, but it seems as if some others in the scouting community, etc are right there with us.
His physical skills are head and shoulders are above every other QB in this draft but he is raw. However the projection of the skill set at the next level and that is why at the end of the day he comes in at #1 overall
Agreed and CLE has the time to do this. Then they draft again at #4. Even if Allen becomes the starter in game 7, no big deal. He is who I would take at #1 at least today. LOL
M13, you are borderline asinine with how you are reacting. No one is jumping you on your opinion that he isnt a top 10 and we are just trying to explain to you how we have come by the belief that he could be the number 1 overall. I know this is the part where you tell me how im overreacting to what your saying because im calling you out for it but dude, stop and read your stuff, you are acting as if we rolled up to your house walked into your kitchen and shit in the silverware drawer. We didnt i promise, that shit was there already lol 🙂
He gets caught up in iron clad opinions about players who he will tout for 4-5 years as they go from team to team or even out of the league. JK/BB M13 but you still use Bess as your avi. LOL
Hey maybe we can get Allen in the 4th since M13 and John Dorsey said he is a project.
OOOOOOOh we can be sneaky and take him in the third, people will say its a reach but they will never see it coming.
Im busting your balls here man, but i am kinda sick of you doing this. Its not all the time but you get unhinged sometimes and then as soon as you get called on it you crab walk yourself out of the blame. You dont have to insult people like they dont have a fraction of your draft sense just because its not how you feel about it. Not asking you to agree, im just asking you to let us have our opinions without insinuating we are idiots for believing it.
D,
what i’m saying is if you look at guys like Benkert, Woodside, Ferguson and see their skills they all have the accuracy, the arm strength, move well in the pocket, etc. They have the basic skills necessary to be a quarterback; to play the position and they’ve all done it fairly well enough in college.
any one of those guys wants to elevate themselves to the next level and become as good as any of those guys who are rated ahead of them or even surpass them they can because they’ve got a place to start from; a good base. the don’t suck.
the point is, if they want it bad enough they can do it. Tom Brady wasn’t Tom Brady when he came out of Michigan. He wasn’t even close. Take a look at his picture from the NFL Combine; he looks like a doofus.
You have the tools you just need the desire. If you’re going to go in there and just go thru the motions and make your throws in practice and what not you’re going to get out of it what you put into it. But if a guy is busting his ass day in and day out, and that’s what it’s going to take, he will eventually get to that level. Brady did it and so can others. He didn’t just magically pick up a ball in camp one day and start ripping it.
Can every one of them do it? No. It would be naïve to think that every qb in this draft class can do that but there’s guys who will go 2nd, 3rd and probably even 4th, and I mentioned 3 of them, if they want it bad enough they can do it. Problem is people usually won’t want to sacrifice what it will take to get to that level.
I dont disagree with any of this, i just believe that Benkert, Woodside, etc are more uphill battles to become great. I do agree they all have competent and capable QB skills too, again, i just think there are more tools in Allen’s tool-bag and they are 24volt and not 18volt. Yeah i can get the job done with an 18 volt and for some jobs its everything i could ever want but there are more project ill have where that 18 volt is likely to fall short and that 24volt was needed to reach the level needed. Im sure Benekert could be a top nothc QB, good, to great even, but i think there is a less likely chance of it than Allen.
There is a reason people ooooh an ahhhhh over the fact that Brady is as good as he is despite being a 6th round pick, and thats because he defied the odds, Peyton Manning just lived up to what people thought he would be.
He defied the odds because he busted his ass. He didn’t just magically defy the odds because people missed on him. He did what he needed to do to make everyone sorry for passing on him.
If just one of those qb’s I mentioned came into the league with the same mentality and said “i’m going to make every team that passed on me sorry for passing on me” there’s no doubt in my mind they can do it because if you watch their tape they all have the starting point to work with. It’s all about desire. If they were a guy who should go in the 6th or 7th rd or udfa then it will be almost impossible for that to happen. Odds are against them. But I don’t believe for a second that qb’s taken 2nd, 3rd or 4th can’t surpass what guys taken ahead of them are capable of doing.
players at other positions are taken in other rds all the time and have success. quarterback is no different. I think people get way too excited about a qb in the first rd.
I seriously don’t know how anyone can look at Josh Allen and think he’s a first rd pick or a first rd talent and then disagree with me that a qb who isn’t a 1st rd pick can elevate themselves to that level because that’s Allen in a nutshell.
He’s a 3rd rd pick who will need to bust his ass to improve his accuracy, his mental state and overall skill level at qb in order to be the 1st rd pick everyone thinks he is. This guy is NOT a day one starter and he’s not even a first year starter. He’s going to need to sit and learn for at least a year before he can play.
He has freakish athletic skills that no matter how hard some of the other guys work they will never have. Yes Allen is raw and will need time but his physical skills are superior and that is why he is in the discussion for #1 overall. Also by all accounts he is a hard worker with a great attitude
I don’t care what kind of physical skills a qb has. If he doesn’t have it upstairs he isn’t going to make it. Give me the smart guy over the freakish athlete 7 days a week.
Michael Vick was a freakish athlete at qb. So was RGIII.
I am not disagreeing that a QB needs to have it upstairs but ideally they have it both physically and mentally and there is reasons to believe Allen may have that
D,
I don’t even know what you’re talking about. It’s alright to have a difference of opinion, ya know. And don’t use the term “we” when talking about a minority consensus, just because you found one or two others who agree with you.
I don’t overreact, I have an opinion… and I’m certainly not “asinine”, as my history would dictate. Keep it jovial or just keep my name out your dental. I don’t have time for another one of your bi-polar attacks, as you had last week with both O-Rob and me on two separate occasions. And ‘smiley faces’ don’t hide your true intentions, to be sure.
Take a damned pill and RELAX. I’ve eaten crow before and can do it again… and I’ll SMILE while eating crow in front of y’all. Why? I don’t take myself so seriously. YOU? Not so much. I think it would KILL you to eat crow. You should be thankful I don’t throw your crows in your face.
Thats funny that you choose bi-polar, you should know about that. You are asinine:
“mf13ss says:
February 1, 2018 at 8:09 pm
Are you talking about Andrew Luck or Josh Allen?!! Josh Allen is ALL OVER THE PLACE in his pocket stature, pocket presence, his throwing motion, his throwing mechanics, his footwork, and his accuracy! Even YOU stated as much last week! Sheesh!”
You consider this the statement of a man who is saying “oh i just dont see it, or man thats not my opinion on this” or is that a dude that is saying, you guys are fucking retarded, this guy is horrible, he’s a project, and even you are flip flopping now Tim.”
Also your history dictates you are asinine like this from time to time. There is a history of it man.
You need the pill bro, you have never eaten crow, as i said you crab walk out of it like you are trying to do now.
“You should be thankful I don’t throw your crows in your face.”
Oh ya mean lie you are doing right now…..
The reason you have to eat crow M13 is you jump in and do this stuff and then you gotta try to save face, and to be honest you really arent eating crow, you are just holding it up to your face and pretending to chew. You cant apologise because you have no feelings of sorrow for what you do, thats why you excuse it and try to turn the blame on someone else.
Im sorry man, you walked yourself into this shit, and as far as im concerned you can got the route OCRob went too. I like you, but i also am not going to take your shit either. You guys are a lot alike, maybe ya”l should start a board and post together, it could be the “OH if you dont agree with my opinions ill talk down to you and then play victim when you pop me in the mouth board”….although thats a pretty long title for a board so probably dont make that your url or no one would ever go there.
Tim Knight says:
February 1, 2018 at 8:28 pm
He gets caught up in iron clad opinions about players who he will tout for 4-5 years as they go from team to team or even out of the league. JK/BB M13 but you still use Bess as your avi. LOL
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YOU can bust my balls, Bro! We have that type of camaraderie and I RESPECT you!
You do come off as snarky towards others and broad brush people. The Senior Bowl influencing everyone is one of those remarks. I’m going by the buzz, not just my opinion. I think Josh Allen is somewhere between Big Ben, Wentz and Flacco as a projection. I would take him if I’m CLE. You have time to develop him. If Hue Jackson wasn’t going to be fired after 1-15 and 0-16 they’re in for the long haul. They have a chance to do it right. I’m intrigued by their opportunity.
there is a lot of buzz where Allen is concerned and there’s a lot of hype where he’s concerned. sometimes I think people look at athletic ability and arm strength on a qb and just go nuts over a guy without paying attention to the things that really matter like accuracy and decision-making. the #1 thing that makes a qb is his ability to think and if he can’t, if he doesn’t have it upstairs then those first two traits don’t mean shit.
it’s not to say that Allen doesn’t have it, he’s just not shown it like you would want to see from a guy who people are projecting to go in the first rd. he’s definitely going to take some time to develop and he’s a guy who can go either way.
If he turns out to be a guy you can develop his ceiling can be tremendously high but his floor is as low as you can go. The guy can bust out in his first season. it takes a either a lot of balls to take a player like that or a ton of stupidity. one or the other. If you’re a team that can afford to take a chance on someone like that then maybe you will. but Cleveland can’t afford to and neither can Miami.
professorloumiamidolphinsblog says:
February 1, 2018 at 8:43 pm
I don’t care what kind of physical skills a qb has. If he doesn’t have it upstairs he isn’t going to make it. Give me the smart guy over the freakish athlete 7 days a week.
Michael Vick was a freakish athlete at qb. So was RGIII.
————
BOOM!
And that right there is why Case Keenum has become a success story.
Give me Nick Foles and a bottle of vodka!!! I don’t know what that means but I’m frickin tired.
It seems clear to me that Foles gets it from the neck on up.
D,
You’re bumping your gums again. And please refrain from dropping F- bombs, would ya?
where is the F bomb…and since when do you give a shit about it. Talk about lame reply. You wanna police my grammar too while your at it, since thats another really lame comeback you could throw out there.
D says:
February 1, 2018 at 8:51 pm
…You consider this the statement of a man who is saying “oh i just dont see it, or man thats not my opinion on this” or is that a dude that is saying, you guys are fucking retarded…
———–
Do you actually read what you type? Dude… you couldn’t bust a grape in a food fight.
No Jay Z lines allowed
Ok so i didnt see that one, but that’s how your reasons feels dude. How about farking…does that help you? BTW you are on here all the time and you throw down cuss words too so again…STOP BEING A VICTIM.
There’s guys who defy the odds all the time. Wentz wasn’t recruited out of H.S. He chose to go to NDSU and was drafted in the first rd and there were a lot of scouts who said he lacked the accuracy to play at the next level. He didn’t do great in his first season but he busted his ass during the offseason and improved significantly.
So, do I believe that a guy like Allen can do it? Sure, but he’s going to need to bust his ass and he’s going to need to want to bust his ass. If he gets to the next level and he has the attitude that “I’ve arrived and don’t need to work at it” then it’s not going to happen for him. If he says “I’m a top 5 pick, why do I need to bust my ass so much?” then he may not succeed. However if his attitude is that he wants to live up to being that top 5 pick then he’ll bust his ass.
And that’s why I also believe there’s others who will not be taken as high who can do the same. Rudolph, Benkert, Woodside, Ferguson, Lauletta. Guys who have the tools to start with but who will need to bust their asses if they want to be the best. Will any of them do it?
Lou, my big deal is the IF they decide to….
If any of them decide to they will succeed, and then with that IF if on is the same potential for that as another, then why wouldnt the one with the better skillset be the better IF. Im not sure im getting what you are saying, do you feel that the person drafted int he 4th is more likely to have that extra drive or what? Why do you feel Allen doesnt have that drive? Why dont you think he had it from the head up?
Err neck up.
I don’t know that he doesn’t have that drive. I do know that he lacks the skill at the position of a guy like Rosen and he will really need to work hard to get to that level. If he wants it enough then he’ll do it. Not saying he can’t. I said he’s a project and I wouldn’t want to take the time to develop another project in Miami.
Now for a team who’s got a starter where he could sit and learn and has the luxury of using a first rd pick on him that’s okay but we don’t have that luxury. Neither does a team like Cleveland.
Why do I think he lacks it from the neck up? Because when I watch him I don’t see a guy who’s doing a lot of pre-snap reads, I see a guy who’s calling a play. Catch rock and throw like Mayock is fond of saying. A Blaine Gabbert type. Doesn’t require him to think a lot. Just us his arm and athletic ability to make plays .So I see a guy who’s behind from a developmental standpoint.
And it makes me wonder if he’s capable of doing more and if he is then why don’t his coaches trust him to do more.
Secondly, I don’t see his misses as being that he lacks touch. I see them as a mental thing. He doesn’t trust himself or something. Don’t know exactly what it is. Get’s nervous. Again, don’t know. But, it’s not about practicing to develop accuracy and touch, it’s more an upstairs thing there too.
I don’t see a guy who comes up to the line of scrimmage right now and is looking at a D and says “oh yeah, I can see what they’re doing here” And, I understand that very few qb’s can do that in college but I just don’t know if he’s that smart.
Tim Knight says:
February 1, 2018 at 8:52 pm
You do come off as snarky towards others and broad brush people…
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I’ll try to do better in the future. THANK YOU for your constructive criticism. And if I may do so myself (constructive criticism toward you), you, too, come off as snarky towards others at times.
I think that’s one of the reasons why Home targeted you as much as he did. You’ve heard these same comments from others in the past, as well. Perhaps we ALL should try to be a little less snarky towards others.
Thanks again, my friend.
I’ve done it too. I did it today to Randy but apologized for it. I did it with OD not long ago. Sometimes we type the first impression we have. Not always a good idea. We all should learn from it. It’s like when driving and you get into some road crap, it’s better to not yell and give the finger. You have a better chance of getting home. On a blog, you have a better chance of being respected.
So i apologize Tim, but…..you do it too…. you cant do it can you. Thanks again, my friend, thanks for reminding me im snarky even though you are snarky, thanks .
What? This was to M13 and my own admission to being guilty of it. How was this a slight at you?
This is why Tim is the elder statesmen of the blog
M13, im not the only person that sees it. You do this shit. Im sorry you feel like im the only one that has a problem with it. I am definitely the target it of it from you. You have told me i dont use my own words that o copy other people when i put up my opinions on players. You have told me that you really dont like to read other people opinions regurgitated through my posts and i need to be original with my thoughts. You just pulled that shit with the oh you just got excited about seniro bowl and lost your mind thinking Allen could be a top 10. I mean you do shit all the time, and you just brush off your guilt and try to make me look bad. I take the position of defending myself and then im a asshole. You need to own your issues so you can get past them and you need to stop playing a victim when you start shit and then get called out for it. Your first shot back at me was to call me bipolar and maybe you know a lot about the disorder, but you also are one of the first people to get personal with your shit, so again man, you are no saint, and you are no victim.
Ken says:
February 1, 2018 at 9:05 pm
No Jay Z lines allowed
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😆
That’s an old-school expression that was born WAY before Jay-Z was born!
Oh so you used someone elses material in your post….hmmm.
It is also a line in 99 Problems
M13 doesn’t deserve an apology until he can learn to give one.
😆
Not only have I ever demanded an apology from ANYONE, I’m probably the ONE who has apologized more than ANYONE else. And I LEARN from my mistakes!
*never
D,
You’re playing the victim again… or shall I say, STILL.
I see D has me confused (YET AGAIN!) with my man O-Rob regarding the demanding of an apology. I don’t demand apologies… that’s not my style.
My two cents not that it is worth that but M13 was a bit snarky in his discussion of Josh Allen but D went from 0 to 60 in under a second. My feeling is that there is nothing on a football blog that should set anybody off. You don’t like what someone says then ignore it. I have fallen into the trap myself and got into some wars when I shouldn’t have. I am trying to be better about that now. Life is too short to get worked up about who is going to be the #1 overall pick
I think that’s a fair assessment. And as I stated previously, I shall try to do better in the future… I didn’t mean to sound like a dick, but in retrospect, I can see that I did.