I wish I could adequately share my excitement with all my friends and readers here. I hope by the time you finish reading you can feel it through my writing. It’s not that this team is the front runner for Super Bowl LVII, it’s that we’re actually in the running. It’s that our team has made a commitment this season acquiring assets to be a legitimate competitor in the AFC. Last week I was taking in all the moves and thinking to myself this team got a few nice players, a collection of adequate players but nothing exceptional. I felt we needed some top level talent. What a difference a week makes! We signed via Free Agency the top OT on the market, Terron Armstead formerly of the New Orleans Saints. Yes, he’s a LEFT TACKLE, and Tua is left handed, which means Armstead won’t be protecting Tua’s blindside. Doesn’t matter, we needed a high level player on the O-line and just thinking of Connor Williams and Terron Armstead on that left side is exciting. Both are excellent run blockers. Then the blockbuster dropped, and it happened so fast I couldn’t believe it. I’m getting rifled with texts from friends and fans of other teams letting me know that the Dolphins are in the running for WR Tyreek Hill. Who expected anything like that? BOOM! He’s here for the next 4 years for $120M. What???
The Miami Dolphins offense is going to be known as the LEGION OF ZOOM
So friends, as disappointed as I was last week, I couldn’t be more optimistic about our team. The totality of all the moves make it clear we wanted speed on the field, and with newly acquired Raheem Mostert, Tyreek Hill added to Jaylen Waddle, that’s some legit horsepower out there. You can read all the negatives about giving up all that draft capital and paying exorbitant amounts of money to a smallish WR, but F all those know nothings who write and say those things. The Raiders are brilliant for giving up loads of draft capital for Davante Adams and paying him, but the Dolphins are desperate. You could easily make the case that Tyreek Hill is as good or better than Davante Adams. Alright, so in reality, it all comes down to the prevalent belief that Tua just ain’t it, just isn’t good enough. I don’t think there’s a player in this league, possible league history who is judged as unfairly as Tua is. I can’t say whether he’s a top 10 talent at the QB position but please judge the man by what he had to play with. Worst O-line in football, a revolving door of injured receivers, no run game, and the proof of all that was how much worse and established NFL starter, Jacoby Brissett performed in Tua’s stead while he was injured. There seems to be no perspective at all when judging young Tua and I just hope with all my heart that this kid makes them all look stupid. For the most part, he can’t really win, because if he succeeds this season and the team wins, the new weapons will get the credit and Tua will just be a game manger surrounded by great players and a great HC. I can only pray they say that because we’ll be winning.
We all knew the offense was the unit that needed some TLC, and the Dolphins apparently agreed. While we managed to keep the defense intact, props to the Dolphins FO for making that happen, they really dug in to fix the offense. So just how does Tyreek Hill fit in with this offense. Just like in KC, just get him the damn ball. I don’t care if it’s a screen pass, a jet sweep, a 5 yard pass, 10 yard pass or a 50 yard bomb, just get him the ball and good things happen. He’s that dangerous receiver that absolutely must be accounted for at all times. You think Jaylen Waddle is excited? His 9.8 YPR is going to go up nicely with Hill in the lineup. You think Mike Gesicki is excited? BTW, both of those aforementioned receivers may see less targets, but I can almost guarantee you they will be making more big plays. Last year Will Fuller, AKA The Invisible Man was supposed to be the guy to take the top off the defense. That was the bottle rocket that went pffffffffffffffffft! It was such an unbalanced attack, it was the Penguin Show, Waddle getting 104 receptions with the next closest receiver being TE Mike Gesicki with 73.
The ball is going to be spread around a lot, and I’m sure WR Tyreek Hill will get his share of targets and receptions, as will Waddle and Gesicki, but remember all the RB’s we brought in here. First, Chase Edmonds, who’s averaged between 7-9 YPR, and our own Myles Gaskin who was one shy of 50 receptions. Raheem Mostert isn’t really used a receiver often but he’s so dangerous in space and finds angles and creases so quickly that he may get the ball more here in this offense. Ah, but keep in mind, we hired Mike McDaniel, run game coordinator. Mike loves to run, and although we don’t have a feature back per se, we have some guys that make big plays in Mostert, Edmonds and of course Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
OK, as Jen Psaki would say, let’s circle back to the O-line. Y’all know I felt we needed two quality guys, and I made it clear I wanted interior guys, expecting our talented young OT’s Austin Jackson and Liam Eichenberg to be reclamation projects of O-line Coach Matt Applebaum and Frank Smith. Instead, the Dolphins simply got the best OL available in Free Agency, LT Terron Armstead. Earlier and preceding the Armstead deal, the Dolphins picked up Connor Williams. Williams must be ecstatic that he’s going to be playing next to Terron Armstead. I don’t know if Michael Deiter is going to be our starting C, or if we look to the draft where we have significantly less capital, or possibly at post June 1st cuts for our new center. The right side of the line has yet to be determined but most definitely includes OL Robert Hunt. Whether he remains inside at RG or moves out to RT is still up in the air. One thing we know for certain, in possibly a symbolic move, is that Jesse Davis will NOT be the RT in 2022. If it were me, I’d leave Hunt at RG where he’s flourished, and make an open competition between young tackles Austin Jackson, Liam Eichenberg, Larnel Coleman and Robert Jones. Or as some have speculated here, maybe big man Solomon Kindley moves to RG and Robert Hunt is the new RT. All possible, but my thinking is that Solomon would have to be in tip top shape to play in this athletic offensive line scheme, where lots of movement is the plan. You have to move to fill a hole or gap, and you can’t be tardy or the play is blown up. I think Austin Jackson has a good shot and as I type that I can see M13 cringing about Jackson on Tua’s blind side. Eichenberg had mentioned last season he’s very comfortable at RT, so this competition should be a good one, and I feel we have enough knowledge there now with Applebaum at the helm, and with a couple of other guys with O-line experience to lean on.
Have we now increased the talent level on this team? CHECK! Have we brought in some game changers, playmakers? CHECK! Have we addressed the O-line? CHECK! The only negative I can muster right now is that I probably won’t watch Day 1 and 2 of the 2022 NFL Draft. It’s usually one of my favorites, until it actually happens and then most times I’m grumbling WTF under my breath, or actually screaming it. We still own picks #102 (RD3), pick #125 (RD4), pick #158 (RD5) and pick #225 (RD7). If we decide to look for competition at C via the draft, OL Cole Strange could be an option. Zion Johnson struggles to move in space so although he has some pop in his blocks, my thought is we’ll be looking for a more athletic mover like Strange, who has played mostly OG, and has only practiced snapping and hasn’t actually played C. He would be a guy that couldn’t take over immediately, but perhaps a year or two later. We could grab in an inside LB and I know most of you here love Leo Chenal. The big backer may not make it to pick #102 but I wouldn’t mind it if he ended up here if he did. We could also look at RB but I think the top 2, Hall and Walker will be gone, so we’ll be looking at some lower tier players. If we’re looking for a bigger back with a tough running style to complement all the smaller, faster guys, Zamir White is that type of guy.
Oh, back to that defense. So we basically re-signed everyone, the defense comes back intact, including the depth. ILB seems to be the spot I’d choose for an upgrade, I love our D-line and and I don’t think our LB is an issue, but I’d love another playmaker next to Baker inside. Chanel is a big, muscular thumper who can motor, but he’s not a good cover LB at this juncture, which means he probably won’t be. As you all know, I’d love Bobby Wagner, but I feel like our cap space is getting tight, but there always seems to be ways to manipulate that and make things work. Wilkins, Davis, Ogbah, Van Ginkel, Wagner, Baker and Phillips make up quite the front 7. Maybe Wagner will see what we’re building and more inclined to join at a friendlier price. Roberts is a fine 2 down LB, and he’s made some big plays so I don’t consider it a need, more a want. Despite trading away lots of draft capital, we’re not done building, we still have some free agency and the draft, and then after the draft the post June 1st cut downs, which always nets some choice players. Enjoy the build, I know I am!
#stangerstrong
GO DOLPHINS!!!
Finsmob Unleashed 
Take that Tua haters!!! Tua throws the best 3-9 yard pass ….. ever
Notice the completion % at 20+. Only 9 rec out of 25 targets.
Who can’t throw deep now, MAHOMES!
LOL
I’ll take those 19 & under stats all day when you add in the YAC.
If you watched some of Hill’s highlights, there were some deep passes where Hill had to wait for the ball or totally change his positioning to catch it. The “deep ball” is not a high percentage play even for a QB like Mahomes who can throw it as far as anyone.
I watched coach McD’s presser at the NFL annual meetings and he seems confident in some of the young OL on the team. He mentioned that we’re going to be playing a different scheme and the only position he penciled in was Armstead at LT. He said we’ll start phase one on April 4th when they can start talking football with the players and take it from there.
I noticed that too.
Mahomes only hit 9 out of 25 to his fave cheetah speed guy.
I don’t think that is very impressive at all.
And I too saw multiple times in the highlight reel where Hill did a complete 180 to get the ball thrown well behind him and also several where he literally geared down and waited for the ball.
From a MH article.
Per a league source, the Dolphins were interested in UM and former Jets receiver Braxton Berrios early in free agency and talked about financial terms before Berrios signed a two-year, $12 million deal. The Dolphins liked Berrios but ultimately were obviously happy with how free agency turned out, landing receivers Cedrick Wilson Jr. and Hill…
From an article….sourced?
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/barry-jackson/article259860080.html
Sorry…pay wall
It has “blogs” in the URL….lmao. Sourced?
That’s why I just posted the blurb. I was able to read it because I had just cleared cookies etc. But I’ll get the paywall soon enough. Don’t want to have to re-sign into everything all the time. LOL
me too … I considered us getting Berrios to be a good addition, but getting Hill is infinitely better.
Mike E., I completely agree with your ALL IN! I was just trying to figure why what you wrote had detractors….and I thought I pointed who the detractors were.
We are ALL IN!
McD is real….keeps impressing me and loved the excerpts from his pressers…thank you to whoever did that…
He seems pretty young to get it already….nice.
It’s going to be scary. Mike McDaniel and I go way back working together in Washington. He’s obviously been around one of the best in Kyle Shanahan for a handful of years. He’s going to do a great job putting players in position to succeed. They’re going to be explosive. It’s going to be a lot of fireworks. They’re going to be fun to watch.”
— Sean McVay on the Dolphins offense.
See you in the SB.
these memes are getting crazy
They already have t-shirts of Will slapping Chris on amazon
hmmmm
WOW, Armstead’s cap hit is only 3.9 mil this year. No wonder there were no more releases or restructures.
With all players accounted for now, we are 11.2 mil under the cap for the top 51 players.
That’s the way I was expecting all the 2022 cap hits, not sure why guys like Ogbah had such a large cap hit
Yeah, not sure either.
His cap hit is 20 mil next year though and like 16.7 mil for the remaining 3 years through 2026. They also put in an out clause after 2024 if we want to move on from him with only a 4.8 mil cap hit.
We are banking on the cap going up next year. Only thing that makes sense to me.
Correct
Lol, at the first post after the page turn, seems these anal ists that said Tua and Tyreek don’t fit have been proven wrong
Oh, but to make the short passes work there has to be a deep threat, FU Bruschi
Ha are these u75 blokes really serious or just pulling legs? What more will they come up with next on TUA. He musy have pissed on their Weetbix.
Until Tua averages 300 yards and 30 pts per game it will keep coming, and even then they’ll still throw a jab his way after a sub par game
Crazy, at this point in time in the offseason, I am trying to figure out what their plan is on (of all positions) a punter. lol
I am 100% on them drafting one and maybe another UDFA punter for competition. There are a few FA punters out there, including Palardy, but pickings are slim.
Dime a dozen, they’ll likely draft someone in the 6th or 7th and let him have at it
As for competition who knows, maybe they’ll wait for roster cuts, if the draftee or FA falters in PS
With 11m in cap space I expect someone else to be signed
Grier said Deiter will be competing at C, so someone will come in there, also expect an ILB
Other than P and RT, not sure what else they could bring in, that isn’t just a depth low end signing
I was just looking at the FA list. There are a few good players out there. Maybe wait until price comes down or see who else gets released. Teams are still well below the 90 roster limit. Most teams are still less than 70 players on the roster. We are still at 69 with 21 spots to fill. I don’t know
Some teams still have less than 60 players on their roster.
I think with the draft and UDFA’s it’s probably an average around 15 players.
Our top 51 cutoff is 965 mil right now
Seems awful high😜
MF13
The Fins do have someone at the Wyoming Pro Day
The Red Rocket rides again!
Some interesting takes on the team from GM Grier via Barry Jackson:
——————————–
On Parker
Grier said he has received calls about wide receiver DeVante Parker, as I reported on Twitter last week. The Eagles have interest, and Green Bay and Indianapolis also are possibilities.
“Yeah, we like having good players, you know? So we feel really good about that receiver room. I think the expectation is he’ll be here but we always listen. I’ve always said, here, the guys know me, we always listen for all players on the roster.”
——————-
On Gesicki
Grier indicated the team is not looking to trade tight end Mike Gesicki, who has signed his $10.8 million franchise tag.
“I think the one thing with Mike is at the end of the day we saw a bunch of tight ends got tagged with that market. Mike is a good player and our intentions are to keep good players. We don’t let them go. Mike is a very competitive person. He’s going to play.”
——————-
On Dieter
“Mike really developed as a kind of a leader, became much more vocal. He had an injury last year that was kind of a freak injury. The doctors said they hadn’t really seen anything like it when they were kind of going through that with me once he got hurt. So he really hasn’t played a ton of games at center still.”
“The interesting thing about him is every offseason, we’ve had multiple teams call and offer us picks for him. We know there’s still a developmental window for him to go but we’ll have competition [on the] roster as well.”
——————
On who will handle punt and kickoff returns:
“Tyreek Hill, the first thing he said was I want to make sure I’m back there getting a couple of returns every game. We’re fortunate with him, Jevon Holland, Jaylen Waddle, we have guys that can do it. And we also have a couple other guys that can return. So we’re not really worried about the return game. We’ll see how it sorts out.”
Full (no paywall)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/dolphins-grier-addresses-howard-contract-203656716.html
Interesting
Gee, I wonder what analytics will say they are supposed to do…..LOL
My guess is you just saw the last of “taking the ball” in play-0ff overtime!
Wyoming, many, I am sure, are there to check out and talk with ILB Chad Muma.
There is another Wyoming player who is on the draft diamond watch list and that is their Center/OG Keegan Cryder, 6’4” Weight: 308. He started every single game he has played in his college career (44).
He likens himself to Bucs OC Ryan Jenson in the way he likes to finish on his blocks and not giving up ground on pass pro.
A Center and an ILB? Hmmmmmm, Wonder why we sent someone there….
Wyoming’s OL was kind of a disappointment this year!
They were all seniors and had hopes of dominating? Sadly that didn’t happen!
He would be a great pick in the late rounds though!
I don’t think he could unseat Dieter!
I wonder if he can be anywhere close to what we expected when he was drafted
He’s one of those odd hybrid types coaches have to figure out what to do with and stick with, and it doesn’t seem like he’s had the opportunity to stick with a plan
If he gets – couple of good years in New England and the injury doesn’t set him back, I can see this being a good signing
But it’s heavy bust risk at this rate – they didn’t even give him a couple of years
Jesse Davis signed with the Vikings, and for about the same money and a possible starting gig. Good for him.
“It’s a one-year, $3 million deal for Davis. That comes with a $1.25 million base salary, a $1.5 million signing bonus, and $250K in roster/workout bonuses. The money, and Davis’s experience, make him the leading candidate to start at right guard for the Vikings this season — for now.
Good for him better for us
Wyoming, I think any Center after the top 5 probably don’t have a chance to unseat Deiter but would be good depth. Especially if it is one like Zack Tom who can play every position on the OL. He mainly started at LT and Center. Keegan Cryder, I think is one of the better late round prospects. I like his mentality.
Tom is really athletic also
BBM — and where do you figure the last of those Top 5 gets taken? I’m all for our first selection being a C, but wondering what that gets us without a trade-up.
I’ll say this for Coach Bohl. If your not a high effort guy, your probably not going to play!
“By hitting Rock, he announced that his wife was incapable of defending herself — against words, This patronizing, paternal attitude infantilizes women and reduces them to helpless damsels needing a Big Strong Man to defend their honor least they swoon from the vapors. If he was really doing it for his wife, and not his own need to prove himself, he might have thought about the negative attention this brought on them, much harsher than the benign joke.”
— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with an interesting take on “the slap.”
Sooooo she should have hit Chris Rock? 😆
I’d say a stand up and an angry FU would have sufficed.
So what do we do next before the draft?
Bring in Wagner
They said they was something big coming
He is busy in Ukraine
Get real familiar with players to be taken in the bottom of the third and after.
Stanger, we know Linderbaum will be gone. Cole Strange is a very good interior OL and an OC prospect but expect him gone in the 2nd. I would think it just depends on how the first 2 rounds and half of 3rd round go. I think we will have a good shot at a good OC at #102. At least 2 of Jurgens, Lindstrom, Fortner and Tom should be there.
If a good ILB falls to 102, I am taking him and an OC in the 4th. That’s just me.
Thanks and good to hear that at least a possible guy to match against Dieter in camp will be there.
And Grier did say “but we’ll have competition on the roster [for Dieter] as well.” That doesn’t sound like Tretter. I’m thinking he just tipped a C in the draft who can compete. But not like it was a huge secret the other teams didn’t know.
Cowboys say they won’t be signing Bobby Wagner
“According to Peter King, he’s looking for a one-year deal around $11 million”.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/cowboys-say-they-wont-be-signing-bobby-wagner/ar-AAVDs1i?ocid=uxbndlbing
Wagner is still talking with Wagner, so he’s at least considering moving from the West Coast. Why not us?
Voices in my head
LOL, “Wagner is still talking with Wagner”… RED FLAG!
*Baltimore is still talking with Wagner.
LOL
We just happen to have 11 million in cap space how convenient
😆
Maybe with what we’ve done in FA he might consider us a contender now. 😉
I was thinking the same thing. 😀
FDA has approved a second booster of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines for people over 50. Must have been at least 4 months since the first booster. I figure will give it 6 months.
That BA.2 subvariant of Omicron is spreading and hit China and UK pretty bad. Nothing wrong with playing it safe.
No thanks. Haven’t even got one shot yet after I had it over a year ago. My doctor says he isn’t even getting the first booster. Said he even wouldn’t have gotten the first if it wasn’t required to keep his position.
Up to you of course. I’m gonna play it safe. As I recently learned bein entubated is no fun at all.
Tim Knight says:
March 29, 2022 at 2:33 pm
So what do we do next before the draft?
—————
I’d say IF we’re going to make one more splash signing, get Bobby Wagner or JC Tretter. If we don’t (which I’d be fine with, being I don’t want to get into cap problems in the near future), I’d be drafting the best ILB/MLB or Center available when we select in the 3rd round.
IF we’re truly all-in, I’d expect us to land either Wagner or Tretter. That would be indicative that we’re actually vying to win it ALL this year.
It also may be indicative of Steve Ross getting ready to move on very shortly. The amount of money he’s doled out this year just in signing bonuses is remarkable. He wants to WIN NOW, before he sells the team.
I think we are truly all in to try and go as far as we can. You can’t guarantee you win it all but what we’ve done in FA is definitely saying we want to be in the mix.
What about defensive assistants?!?!?! (6)
Why must it be on offense?
I was wondering the same thing.
Exactly, Rockphin and Tim.
Yeah if it was defensive it wouldn’t be “offensive:”
Well we already met that requirement so we’re good.
I wonder how many draft picks a team gets if any of these folks are hired and promoted by another team?
Teams that lose a minority coach or executive to a head coach or general manager job with another team will receive a third-round compensatory pick for two consecutive years.
Fluff Piece but I hope Embree works his magic here too.
Rockphin says:
March 29, 2022 at 3:48 pm (Edit)
What about defensive assistants?!?!?! (6)
Why must it be on offense?
—————-
Because the defense is not allowed to touch the offense anymore
Jason Whitlock and Glenn Beck on this issue of mandatory women/minorities on football staffs. Our Miami Dolphins were mentioned…
Didn’t listen to the whole thing, yet, but will. When Beck bought up hookers, I thought about Cleveland hiring massage therapists to their offensive staff for Watson.
What ever happened to hiring/bringing along the best person QUALIFIED? NFL is following politics. Just look at who our VP is, a joke. Just like the new supreme court nominee. She was nominated by Biden because she is a black woman. He said he was going to nominate a “woman”. Didn’t matter if there were others more qualified. Now he has nominated one who can’t give a definition of what a woman is and she is a woman who has given birth to children.
^, and Glenn Beck is one of the best in the biz, IMO.
Now by the same token, I’m seriously not trying to get into politics. However, the NFL is making politics their agenda. I only posted this video as a response to the NFL’s political agenda.
I had/have no agenda by opening the floor to general political debate on this board… just this one issue. And it occurred to me that most agree, regardless of political affiliation, that what the NFL is doing here is wrong.
Matt LaFleur: Packers ‘definitely need to get some speed’ at receiver
————–
I bet they might even draft 2. Seen mocks where they see them taking Nakobe Dean at #22 and WR Christian Watson at #28. Some have them taking WR Dotson.
I’m hearing that the Pack are interested in DeVante.
Or Devante Parker
Beer to M13 🍺
Grazie!
I don’t know if the video posted mentions it, but the complaint in regards to the Rooney Rule not working is that minority candidates are largely defensive coordinators. They are more likely to get passed over for offensive coordinators, especially previously fired coaches who tend not to get second chances. Not saying I agree with it or that it’s right, but that’s the “logic” behind it.
I’m all for fairness and people who are qualified to get opportunities. But this is a form of social engineering. It all started in 1965 with Affirmative Action which was put in place to end bias and discriminatory hiring practices based on race, creed, color or national origin. The problem I have with what the NFL is doing is you’re forcing employers to do it regardless of qualifications. You have to do it. That’s a slippery slope.
That said… the reason this is happening is because of centuries of discrimination. Nobody can deny that.
It’s pretty defensive of the nfl to make these offensive requirements.
If a minority person or a woman is hired in a NFL personnel dept., can they only scout offensive players? It’s like Union rules, moving a ladder for a drywall person is not allowed by the electrician who needs to do something. There always needs to be some common sense.
Did Joe Biden put that NFL mandate in place? I figure it might have been him since he campaigned that he was going to nominate the first black woman SC judge.
You mean the one who doesn’t know what a woman is? It’s all starting to make sense now.
The league is pandering to the players.
The players are the ones who drive the sport and entertainment. Fans buy the players jerseys, not owners or commissioners etc. I don’t follow the NFL or sports based on who the owner or commissioner is. I have a really nice Charles Clay jersey from years ago. He was one of my favorite players at the time. I don’t have pictures of Roger Goodell and Stephen Ross on my wall. LOL
This is the nfls’s explanation of why offensive coaches specifically
The NFL offered the following explanation for the change: “In recent years, head coaches have predominantly had offensive backgrounds. We believe this resolution will assist greatly in continuing to source and identify diverse candidates earlier in their career, providing pipeline depth and furthering developing the diverse offensive pipeline.”
Personally I don’t think the NFL really gets it
The offensive background this is really just wild
FYI
It’s illegal, under the civil rights act of 1964 to hire based on race or gender
It doesn’t matter that’s it’s not white men
It applies across the board
It matters that it’s a protected class and both race and gender are protected classes
It’s still very illegal
What the nfl is doing is not supported by the law
The “offensive” part is particularly eyebrow raising
I think this policy is meant to be challenged to provide a defense in court to the Flores suit
Then when a court tells the nfl they can’t force hires of women or minorities
They can plead in defense to the Flores suit, they tired this rule, but this rule was found to be illegal
If you are wondering what the difference between this rule and the Rooney rule is, the Rooney rule only requires an interview, not a hiring
The hiring is what makes it illegal
You seem to have nailed this one, good assumption
How many Dolphins fans are going to buy #10 jerseys now? I’d say quite a bit. 😉
Panthers are takin the Canadians to the wood shed tonight!
The new hiring rule is stupid.
They actually never had a rule that required actual hiring until now
All the old rules just required interviews
It’s hard for me to believe the nfl isn’t motivated by the Flores suit
Flores really fucked with teams and I don’t think he has a leg to stand on. He let his own ego get in the way of life.
The AFC is flat out stacked this year, don’t expect to see anyone with a great record
Jets, Jags and Hou seem weak, and Clev, when Watson gets suspended, and Pitt mediocre otherwise you could make a case for everyone else to win the conference
During the off-season we went from to have 1 of the top 100 players (Howard) to 3
https://sportsnaut.com/nfl-top-100-players/
and 2 players are still out there (Wagner and HoneyBadger)
The next ones are Tua, Waddle, Holland and Phillips. 🙂
You got to make the playoffs at some point or they really don’t look at your players
This simulations takes individual OL performance and adds it together to come up with a ranking
Last year we were 24th….higher than expected
And this is how much we improved
Wow! Tua might be able to throw deep this year
We won’t need him to when waddle and hill get 1000 YAC each this season
Tua’s ability to scramble and get rid of the ball quickly took us from 32 to 24, while Wilson’s holding the ball too long dropped him, so where ever he ppllayyys he’ll mmmake the pass blocking look worse than it is
I can’t wait for Tua to show his skill set is better than what the haters think he is. Pocket presence, accuracy, mobility to improv and deliver. He’s 2/3 years removed from his hip surgery. That’s your core. But the dumb media and fandom from other teams keep acting like he has no skills. He can only throw 5-10 yards. Yeah okay whatever you say doofus brigade. LOL
I don’t get all the talk of Bridgewater taking over for Tua midseason, we know who he is a game manager, if he was a franchise QB he’d still be in Denver
He’s the backup. Nothing more. But he has a lot of starting experience and that’s what you want in a backup QB over a 5th round guy who has never played in the NFL and probably won’t be in the next few years.
We know this but the media refuses to get it
I’m all in on getting a high caliber center before an ILB.
I think we need that ILB, that thumper, side line to side line, blitzer, 3 down talent to make our D elite. I want an elite D now….lol!
If we don’t don’t win because of an ILB thumper than WTF? LOL
Side line to side line, blitzer, 3 down talent? Baker is that and we take him for granted.
I think I read somewhere a lot of missed tackles. I also don’t recall us stopping the run. Baker is not enough or needs help or both.
I don’t think we’re where we need to be on D yet….
We need to be able to compete against tough running teams, and if it only takes an ILB to do that, why not get one?
Who knows if the guy we might get can be effective, but we have to try to improve the run D
He had that AL and excelled. He has never been close to that since. Breathe….lol!
That was to TK’s 10:36 post.
Or 10:27…lol. I give up!
Tua vs Chad Pennington
They’re both accurate and get the ball out quickly, Tua has a stronger arm, can run and scramble, therefore his floor is higher, than Pennington’s ceiling
So he can’t do this?
There’s something to Tua’s deep throw comp % and the amount of throws he goes deep, as if he doesn’t take enough chances deep
How much more accurate can you be? The NFL is sleeping and bashing on Tua and he is going to Joe Montana fuck them up. LOL
If he only throws over 20 yards when guys are wide open of course he’s going to have a better comp%
He needs to take more chances to loosen up the D
We’ve given Tua a complete O, he won’t be Bama Tua, because no NFL team has that advantage, but he can be close enough
steveccnv…we aren’t good enough against the run…and I don’t think we take Baker for granted….it’s just not enough…
I think it’s the last hole on D honestly…otherwise it’s played by committee…that’s a fucking hole in my mind…lol
We know you like holes, a lot of us do. 🙂
Lol!
Why are you saying that to me I agree we’re not good enough against the run
Because I’m agreeing with you!
Just guessing if he has an extra tenth of a second or more he will see the open man downfield….and hit him…lol.
The thing about single coverage on speed guys is they usually create the separation early so the QB can throw to spot…like theyvdo in practice…lol
If your top 2 needs are OC and ILB, the 3rd and the 5th round are not so bad to get those players
Maybe even move up from 5th round
Still want that punter though….lol
Why not 4th?
I’m superstitious…..lol
Actually i thought we traded our 4th before I just did a mock….
ILB more important than P
We did trade a 4th, but we had Pitt’s 4th too
If C, ILB and P are your biggest needs, you’re doing pretty good. 😉
I want that punter, too…although I’ve been hearing about one similar but greater hang time….lol.
The thing with Airaiza (sp) is that he kicks 50 yard FGs. too. I believe that is accurate…can’t look up right now…lol
In the no shit Sherlock dept, Florio says Chiefs Bills playoff game was a big factor in OT rule change
He’s Einstein, how could we possibly question his intellect? LOL
https://twitter.com/theflyingpig44/status/1509005886697652232?s=21&t=GM6VnxaMxJTWe0wzo0G7kw
I think I just found my new favorite player in the draft
https://www.youtube.com/
How do his lowlights look?
Like him getting bullied by the OL
His scouting reports discuss his weaknesses
But day 3 picks are going to come with warts
Steve, Tua just getting the ball in playmakers hands is all that matters. I don’t care what the distance of his throws are. There’s too much made of that right now. Look around the league. It’s about accuracy and situational football – down and distance. Nobody cares about whether it was 17 or 27 yards in the air when Cooper Kupp was blowing up the league. 😉
He needs to make things easier on everyone, by taking more chances deep
Fonzi once said you’ve had to hit someone to get a reputation to scare people
Taking the OL out of the equation (it is what it is …… or was!) I would also suggest that there is a component of distance per attempt which the HC/OC determines through play calling (featuring multiple reads) which is inextricably linked to the confidence a HC has in his QB.
I think it is widely accepted that Flo had little confidence in Tua. It’s up to Tua now to convince Mike Mac that he should be given more freedom. That freedom has to be earned. How he “uses” Tua is going to be one of the most fascinating developments in the lead up to the regular season. My gut tells me TT/MM is going to be a good combo.
Mostly agree uk. I just don’t know how one can take the OL out of the equation….I truly don’t and I’m glad we’ve tried to address it.
Otherwise, it’s just hating…lol.
Probably didn’t make myself clear Krishna, I meant that you cannot mitigate for an OL breakdown on any play, but even one blocked well often didn’t result in a long pass. What I meant is that given the same blocking for Tua under MM and Tua under Flo (thankfully impossible as you say) I believe MM will give Tua more opportunity to succeed by placing more confidence in him and sticking with that approach.
Agree with that and I’m not saying or making excuses for Tua. He needs to bring it.
Right now I’m a believer in McD and one of those rare coaching talents that truly plays to players’ strengths. Incorporating those strengths as you design the offense is what I believe he is capable of doing.
And for both, show me!
Hit Hill with a couple of bombs early in the season and they’ll back off
Or 21-28 points at half time. 😉
Hill, Waddle, Gesicki/Wilson, Chase/Mostert and co. If we can’t score TDs with this group, I give up! LOL
Without an OL, I don’t know how you “score YDs with [any] group.”
Lol…TDs
I think I remember (lol) one of Tua’s first starts at AL he threw deep to a wide open WR for a TD. I do remember me thinking his anticipation was off the charts.
UK – I’d say there was a lot of both, Flores showing little confidence in Tua, and Tua knowing that he wasn’t going to get the time he needed so he made some quick decisions, sometimes too quick in order to avoid a negative play, such as a sack. I suppose you could say Tua had as much confidence in the O-line as Flores had in him. 🙂
“I suppose you could say Tua had as much confidence in the O-line as every single Dolphin fan!” works too 😂
Indeed!!!
Some props from the media
https://www.si.com/nfl/dolphins/news/miami-dolphins-going-for-it-in-2022-and-it-was-the-right-plan-all-along
It kinda summarizes what we’ve done, the plan Grier laid out, and now in a position to make the moves we’ve made this year in FA.
You have to give Grier props…just saying.
The o-line is important to talk about, and lord knows we have enough coaches where o-line and blocking are a focus. However, I’m excited to see what Darrell Bevell can do with Tua on a personal play level. We still need Tua to improve along with this o-line.
Absolutely!
Improve as in stop throwing the boneheaded ints and throw deep more often even when it isn’t wide open, otherwise he was really good last year
The biggest improvement will come from help around him, jmaginative playcalling, less of a Ds ears peeled back
Survival mode is not coming from a place of strength….lol….for sure!
From my cave….anyone hear about the Chris Rock/Will Smith “moment”? Lol!
I don’t believe physical violence was appropriate (it looks real to me as in some photos it seems his face welled up like a handprint…lol), but I do believe family should be off limits and would certainly have been in his face.
And, Rock took it like a rock…impressive…lol
No offense Steve, but sometimes you say things and I wonder what games you’re watching.
Your typical insult, perhaps you’d like to elaborate
Your simple mind only watches the game with emotion
One good thing about Hill (There are many good things about Hill.) is the rep.
No one needs to wonder if he can get open deep. We’ve all seen it on TV … a lot.
The D knows they can’t play casual on Hill and make Miami prove he can get behind the DBs.
He has the tape, and he had tape with Matt Moore and Alex Smith before Mahomes.
Same with pro bowls. A guy comes in with that many accolades and that in and of itself will force the D to pay extra attention to him.
I don’t think NFL HCs are as bull-headedly stupid about Tua’s fake news weak arm as is the Twitterverse at large.
“The Saints have all raved, you hear GM Mickey Loomis stopped me again and said (Terron Armstead is) one of the best human beings you’ll ever be around.” Chris Grier
This is not a FA who is going to take the big $$ and go into a shell.
As Mike E said in his editorial above … “Dolphins are ALL IN,”
’nuff said
And from his pressers with us to articles I’ve found on him at KC,
another good thing about Hill is he is NOT a diva.
I hate WR divas.
Oh he’s a cheetah all right, and he’ll challenge you to a race if you talk smack about that,
but he’s not a spoiled princess who needs to be handled with deference.
I can find no record of him whining about Kelce getting the ball more or even having to share targets with the other WRs. He names those guys in his farewells as brothers.
… …
This is very important because of us already having a guy with 140 targets in Waddle,
both because Hill will need to share and also to teach Waddle the rookie that it is ok to share.
Piggy, if you are looking at a later round ILB, I like Micah McFadden or Grant Morgan. Morgan is only 5’11 but 235 pounds with a nonstop motor. I posted McFadden before but here is Morgan.
“jmaginative playcalling”
Steve
good one
can’t wait to see McDaniel use that on Offense
serious
BBM and Piggy
I think you have both shown that there will be good guys available at ILB for us to take at rounds 4 and 5 who can play in this league.
Thing is, we don’t need any depth guys at that position.
We have Roberts, Scarlett, Riley, and even Eguavoen. Plus Munson and Hodge tbh.
We need more than JAG.
So I would want to make sure the guy has starter potential at least.
Good thing is that ILB is like RB, devalued a bit so good ones fall to the top of Day 3.
This FA makes me want Great not good. Great is needed to advance in the playoffs.
No one we currently have is a so called run stuffer, we need that, not sure why Flores got rid of Raekwon McMillan
If we picked before a pick like the 4th…
yes you are correct although Roberts does knock RBs backwards and Riley is a slasher and Scarlett is a huge thumper LB, still …
they are all just good, just second stringers in my book.
We need a true starting ILB so that that is not a weakness that DCs can easily spot and take advantage of.
… …
I ask myself, if we had even a borderline all pro ILB,
what would be our weak link on D?
SB
In all the hordes of moves we’ve made this off-season, it’s easy to overlook hiring Bevell,
but that’s the one that might be the sneakiest route to the playoffs.
And how brilliant was that of McDaniel and Grier?
I mean they hired multiple layers of OL coaches, because that is the glaring weakness.
But even with bad OL play, BAD OL play, we were one game away from playoffs two years in a row.
Hiring a QB whisperer for Tua is thus genius.
I hope Tua listens.
So let’s start with a 9-8 base. Let’s say the 10-6 had a better OL.
Let’s say changing from Stone Cold Flo to rookie hyperdog McDaniel is a wash.
Not even Cowturd or Lil Mike Flowergirl can say the roster is not better.
The OL improvements should get us 1 more W, so
10-7
I’ve got Will Smith here for you if you think The Cheetah is not good for plus 1 W.
11-6
Holland, Phillips, Br Jones (and Waddle) being rookies cost us the Atlanta game last year.
12-5
Mostert and Edmonds (and C Wilson) are a huge upgrade at RB / 3rd down play, chunk plays, and taking it to the house …
worth 1 W a year.
13-4
Having a real FB and a guy who was borderline all-pro at a position where our HC made Jstcsykjyk
a star is worth a 4th down conversion or a goal line score instead of a FG like we had to settle for last year, which cost us a W
14-3
and last but not least, Bridgewater vs. Brissett in for 3 games is not an automatic 0-3.
15-2
Go Dolphins.
Except the AFC is brutal this year
Anyone can win the tough west, the North that we play with the addition of Watson makes 3 brutal games, Colts get Matty Ice, and maybe can beat Buffalo for a change
Sure we’ve improved, but so have others
We don’t play all 16 AFC teams.
… …
We swept the Patriots last year.
Waddle
Holland
Bridgewater
Howard
Hill
Tua
Waddle
Holland
Gesicki
Howard
Hill
Ogbah
Maybe 🤐 is Gesicki
OK Steve,
the AFC is tough. F’ that.
So are we.
We play Pitt, Houston, Chicago, and Detroit this year, in addition to the jest and the patsies.
They are all obviously inferior, so I’m counting that as 8 Ws.
I’m thinking Deshaun is suspended for our game at least.
That’s 9.
It’s time for us to split with Buff.
10-1
Minne and Balt don’t scare me at all.
12-1
GB with no WRs and a QB known to take a lot of sacks should be ours for the taking.
Cincy QB same as GB on sackability, although great WRs, only a partial OL, and we sack a lot.
Dicey, but I say we split with these two.
13-2
Chargers with Kahlil is scary, but Tua’s quick release helps, and JC Jackson can’t guard Hill AND Waddle.
coin flip, but the Chargers always blow at least one game a year.
This year it’s us.
… … 14-2
AT the 49rs, wow what a story line. Does insider knowledge help Kyle or Mike more?
Depends on SF’s QB play. If it’s Jimmy G or Trey while he’s green, we got this.
15-2
Ok 15-2 it is
haha
Thnx bro
but why not us?
The freakin’ Titans went 12-5 with Tannehill at QB and the King hurt half the year.
🎲 is Ogbah
The good news is we do NOT play most of the Big Splash teams:
LV
Denver
Indy
TB
Kyler nor Mahomes
or the Rams.
Not even Jax.
I ask myself, if we had even a borderline all pro ILB,
what would be our weak link on D?
Naples, I get what you are saying about ILB. How much longer do we keep filling that position with 1 year contracts? Though, I believe we are solid with what we have mainly because they are all resigned players and familiar with the defense.
This is why I want Leo Chenal at #102 even if we have to trade up a bit.
Another thing is, I wonder how much Damone Clark falls with the announcement of his surgery? With all our LB’s resigned, we could snatch him up and give him time to rehab. He could possibly fall all the way to the 5th round and be a potential steal. In that case we can grab the best OC at #102.
I still want Chenal though.
What’s your thoughts on Quay Walker LB Georgia?
He seems to drop there every now and then.
Darrian Beavers LB Cincinnati
Troy Andersen LB Montana State
Should be available @102
Regarding the schedule, I think at least one prime time game for us will be vs the 49ers.
Yeah a Monday nighter, then the following short week we’ll play at Bengals with them coming off of a bye
Missed on Chenal but I would take this.
Strange can learn the OC position behind Deiter and be and immediate backup at OG.
Kevin Austin would be looked at higher if he had a better QB than Coan. He’s 6’2 200 and ran a 4.43 at the combine.
Lastly, I was surprised Ty Chandler was still there at #247. He is 6′ 210 and ran a 4.38 at the combine.
Adding speed to more speed!
102. Troy Andersen LB Montana State
125. Cole Strange OG/OC Chattanooga
158. Bryan Cook S Cincinnati
224. Kevin Austin WR Notre Dame
247. Ty Chandler RB North Carolina
Austin has just had some injuries plague him.
He’s got some skittles
Good YACer
Wyoming, I think I might take Quay Walker over Chenal. He would be another one to trade up for if he is there in the top of the 3rd. I keep seeing both Walker and Chenal gone by pick #85.
I think Beavers and Anderson are there when we pick at #102. I chose Anderson and his better athleticism over Beavers in this last mock.
2022 AFC WIN TOTALS BETTING ODDS
from Draft King
Buffalo Bills 11.5 (Last Season – 11)
Cincinnati Bengals 10 (Last Season – 10)
Kansas City Chiefs 11 (Last Season – 12)
Denver Broncos 10 (Last Season – 7)
Los Angeles Chargers 10 (Last Season – 9)
Baltimore Ravens 9.5 (Last Season – 8)
Tennessee Titans 9.5 (Last Season – 12)
Indianapolis Colts 9.5 (Last Season – 9)
Miami Dolphins 9 (Last Season – 9)
Las Vegas Raiders 8.5 (Last Season – 10)
New England Patriots 8.5 (Last Season – 10)
Pittsburgh Steelers 7.5 (Last Season – 9)
Jacksonville Jaguars 6.5 (Last Season – 3)
New York Jets 5.5 (Last Season – 4)
Houston Texans 4.5 (Last Season – 4)
“We love Chase. He can do it all. We thought he was a first- and second-down back. And on third down, he’s one of the best receiving backs I’ve been around. Work ethic, mental toughness, conscientious. He prepares. I can’t say enough good things. Miami hit a home run with that one.”
— Arizona Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury on Chase Edmonds.
bbm
I concur with all of that @ 2.10 above.
I love the 7th rounders:
“Kevin Austin would be looked at higher if he had a better QB than Coan. He’s 6’2 200 and ran a 4.43 at the combine.
Lastly, I was surprised Ty Chandler was still there at #247. He is 6′ 210 and ran a 4.38 at the combine.
Adding speed to more speed!”
Competition for that last spot at each position and maybe hit a sleeper / steal.