Finsmob Unleashed

I feel pretty neutral on the hire of new DC Anthony Weaver. I love that he came from a great organization like the Baltimore Ravens, but unless he’s bringing his players with him, that doesn’t mean as much as it sounds like it should. John Harbaugh is an excellent Head Coach, and I’m not sure how much it matters who his assistant coaches are. The Ravens have one of if not the best front offices in the NFL. I’ve put this stat up before, and every time I do it’s kind of astonishing. John Harbaugh is 160-99 as the Baltimore Ravens Head Coach over the last 16 years. That’s a ridiculous .618 winning percentage. and have made 11 playoff appearances during that time including 1 Super Bowl victory. The list of assistant coaches he’s had is extensive, big names litter the list. To me, the best aspect of bringing Anthony Weaver here is the base defense will be very similar to what we ran here in Miami.

I don’t know how much of an influence DC Anthony Weaver will have on acquiring personnel, but the salary cap of course is going to impact much of they proceed in doing so. You have to figure that one of the main priorities will be to re-sign DL Christian Wilkins. He’s been the epitome of what we strive for, honing his game, improving each season, and even more importantly, playing every single game the last 3 seasons, as well as tallying top snap counts on defense within each game. Our 1st RD pick (#13) in 2019, he has evolved into one of the NFL’s best interior defensive lineman. As we know, the Dolphins did offer Christian Wilkins a contract less than the top 10 DL and Wilkins bet on himself and now will be cashing in on that bet in 2024 as he had his best season with the Dolphins.

Right now, the linebacker position is a sore spot for the Dolphins. Weaver in Baltimore had a couple of the top inside linebackers, Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen. The pair combined for an absurd 291 tackles, each topping 80 solo tackles, and both near the top of their team in passes defensed (Smith 8, Queen 6), so these guys were also very involved in coverage. For the Dolphins, OLB Andrew Van Ginkel led the team with 8, and it’s anyone’s guess if we can find the money to re-sign AVG this season. I think you can pencil in ILB David Long Jr. as one of the inside backers, but it’s very questionable as to takes the other inside LB spot. Then of course, we have the unfortunate issue of filling in for 2 of our best pass rushing OLB’s Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips until they are ready for action. It’s fair to say both will miss a few games, hopefully neither miss 1/2 the season or more. 

On the Baltimore defensive line, DE Justin Madubuike had an absolutely outstanding season, finishing with an impressive 13 sacks, after managing just 8 total in his first 3 seasons. Madubuike originally was playing DT, or RDE, and then was switched to LDE, and he really took off after the change of position. I think the most glaring difference on the D-line is the Ravens NT, Michael Pierce. He is the complete opposite of the body type we currently have at NT in Raekwon Davis. Raekwon is 6’7 325, while the Ravens NT Michael Pierce is a stout fireplug at 6’0 355. Guess what folks? Raekwon Davis is now a Free Agent, and as GM Chris Grier says, “He’s earned the right to be a Free Agent”. Don’t be surprised if Raekwon Davis is not back with the Dolphins in ’24. Free Agents that might fit the bills are former Kansas City Chiefs DT Derrick Nnadi (6’1 320), former Dolphins and Detroit Lions DT Benito Jones (6’1 335), and former Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings DT Khyiris Tonga (6’4 338). Currently on the roster is DT Brandon Pili who may able to eat his way to becoming a potential NT candidate as well.

Let’s get back to the linebackers. If we started the season today, I would imagine David Long Jr. (LILB) and Channing Tindall (RILB) would start inside, and as I mentioned that both Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips will most likely be unavailable to start the season, Cameron Goode and Quinton Bell bell are the only outside backers. Is it possible that we actually keep LB Jerome Baker on the roster, and make a position switch for him to outside linebacker? With all the money we need to shave, I say there are some long odds on that, and we will have to be creative to find suitable replacements for Chubb and Phillips, unless one of them, perhaps Cam Goode can make a splash next season.

At safety, well, we’re kind of fresh out of safeties. Jevon Holland is our only returning safety as DeShon Elliott, Brandon Jones and Elijah Campbell are all Free Agents. At cornerback, the picture isn’t much brighter. Once again, the salary cap vulture will be taking away a player or two from this unit, and it may finally come to play that CB Xavien Howard is no longer a Miami Dolphins. That leaves Jalen Ramsey, Kader Kohou, Cam Smith, Keion Crossen, and Ethan Bonner. There may be a cut or two at CB as well, but you’d have to expect Cam Smith will be given every chance to earn and secure a starting spot next season. There’s been a lot of buzz about how Anthony Weaver transformed Baltimore Ravens S Kyle Hamilton into a Pro Bowl safety. I don’t expect to use an early pick on a safety, Hamilton was a 1st RD pick in 2022, so Holland would be the guy who’s already on the cusp of being that type of player, but I wouldn’t mind if we could find the money to bring back DeShon Elliott next season. He’s a gamer, played in 15 games last season and finished 2nd in tackles. He’s also a physical player, a good partner with Holland. Depending on what Grier, Weaver and McDaniel think about Cam Smith, we may be forced to draft another cornerback, but whoever we draft early, we MUST hit on that player, and get early and important contributions from both. This is what has to happen when you put yourself in salary cap peril.

GO DOLPHINS!!!