Another View: Must Question the Scouting Department

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Getting the right combination of head coach and quarterback is huge in the NFL. Miami has been looking for that combination ever since Don Shula retired. Instead of listing all the coaches since Shula, I thought another point of view was needed.

Miami's scouting department needs to be looked at just as much as the misses on coaches. Consistently missing on players hasn't helped any of the coaches in Miami.

A recent post talked about the most disappointing Dolphin players from last year. I went with Dion Jordan and Jamar Taylor as 1-2. Interestingly, they were drafted 1-2 a few years back. Lots of young players who haven't developed on that list IMO. Is it the coaching staff not developing players, or the scouting department not properly evaluating talent, or a bit of both?

I don't know how the scouting department is graded, but we can look at drafts going back 10 plus years to see why this team isn't where it should be. There are very few coaches who can overcome bad drafts after bad drafts.

 

[dlockz]

ANd somehow we promoted someone from our scouting department up to GM. I personally feel we should have looked at someone who has done it for a successful team who was ready to move up but for some reason we promote a guy who has been here for most of our lean years.
Hell somebody that has brought players in that has actually been to a few playoff games and maybe won a few lol Our Gm though is much like our OC just that in name

 

[Bumpus]

Another possibility:

The scouts don't make the draft board. They supply information about players. Perhaps they're providing solid information, but our front office just makes bonehead decisions about whom to select. :idk:

 

[LANGER72]

This team has a bad habit of avoiding the highly publicized players, and instead finding obscure players "that they feel good about"

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Another possibility:

The scouts don't make the draft board. They supply information about players. Perhaps they're providing solid information, but our front office just makes bonehead decisions about whom to select. :idk:

Probably a lot of truth there. I remember Dave Wannestedt vetoing Drew Brees for Jamal Fletcher. That move cost this team big because at the time the Dolphins had a lot of talent on defense and Ricky Williams leading a pretty nice rushing offense. Brees could have meant so much to this team.

At the same time, the scouting department obviously had Fletcher rated too high so there's that.

I guess I just want to know how the scouting department is evaluated. Do they look over scouting reports from each scout and see who is spot on and who isn't? Who is the most consistent?

 

[So Be]

All NFL teams, draft experts and countless millions of fans have the same guys rated at the top of the first two rounds. We did not take blind shots on players. They just did not work out, which is the case with half of the top picks throughout the league.

Also, everyone from owner to coaches wanted Jordan, and Taylor has lots of talent but cannot stay healthy.

 

[FrostyFinFan]

Another possibility:

The scouts don't make the draft board. They supply information about players. Perhaps they're providing solid information, but our front office just makes bonehead decisions about whom to select. :idk:

I'm thinking this is more likely. If I'm not mistaken, the scouts didn't change much between Ireland and now. So there recommendations may have been good. Ireland seemed to do whatever he felt was right. Hickey used the same probable information but made better picks. Who knows, maybe Grier was promoted because he was suggesting the guys that turned out better than the picks made by the GM at the time. We really don't know and probably never will. Just hope and pray Grier knows what he is doing.

On a different note, I was at the Dolphins facility the day of the new coach announcement. I was in Florida for a cruise and thought I would visit their complex in Davie. I had to come back because the first time I stopped, the place was locked down and crawling with press. When I returned, I visited with the security guy in lobby and noticed Grier coming down the steps with two ladies. I'm assuming they were family members of Gase. One a little older and one a younger woman. He was basically giving a tour to the ladies. The reason I mention this is because it shows that he is involved and not just wandering around waiting for Tbomb's directions. At the very least, he was entrusted with Gase's family members. Hopefully, this means he is trusted by Gase and Tbomb. I know some of you will think that yeah, he just does menial jobs for Tbomb, which could be true, but it didn't seem like it when I was there. Anyway, a little first person reporting from someone who lives no where near South Florida. A first for me.

 

[Locke]

ANd somehow we promoted someone from our scouting department up to GM. I personally feel we should have looked at someone who has done it for a successful team who was ready to move up but for some reason we promote a guy who has been here for most of our lean years.
Hell somebody that has brought players in that has actually been to a few playoff games and maybe won a few lol Our Gm though is much like our OC just that in name

You make a lot of assumptions brother. I would guess that the dysfunction we have heard about goes much deep than just the coaching staff. But if not, Tannenbaum, Grier, and everyone will be out together at some point. A new owner is badly needed in my opinion.

 

[LANGER72]

All NFL teams, draft experts and countless millions of fans have the same guys rated at the top of the first two rounds. We did not take blind shots on players. They just did not work out, which is the case with half of the top picks throughout the league.

Also, everyone from owner to coaches wanted Jordan, and Taylor has lots of talent but cannot stay healthy.

No red flags about Jordan's character? We traded up from a great spot a few spots back to draft a bust. The scouting and GM really missed badly on that one. Probably one of the worst draft mistakes ever.

 

[Highzenga]

This is part of the problem. Lately, we have no idea who is responsible for making good or bad decisions. It used to be, if we picked a player that ended up being a bust, it was on Shula, or Jimmy or Saban. There really is still no true leadership in this organization. It should be, if Tannenbaum doesn't produce winning results, we get rid of him and all his people. The way it is now, Tannenbaum can blame Gase or Grier or vice versa. Then one guy gets fired but the other stays. That is not how you run an organization. Take a look at the Miami Heat. The buck stops with Pat Riley. If things don't work out that on him. We need a leader.

 

[Perfect72]

Koa Misi over Rob Gronkowski - should provide plenty of information on this group

 

[Rick Cartman]

Koa Misi over Rob Gronkowski - should provide plenty of information on this group

Oh man, if Odrick wasn't there in the 1st round Misi would of been the pick i remember hearing. Tuna Tits and Ginger Dumb Dumb were so in love with Koa Misi they were considering trading their 2011 First Round pick to get back into the first round to ensure they got Misi after getting Odrick. They couldn't get the pick in fast enough when their turn came up and his name was still on the board. What a plunder those two pulled off. It still makes me mad how long Ireland was allowed to stick around.

 

[AJ Duhe]

I don't think the scouting department is at fault. No GM or head coach takes the scouting department's opinion as gospel. If the scouts were consistently overrating the ability of players and the GM was making poor acquisitions based on those conclusions, then maybe you could put some more blame on the scouts. This does not appear to be the case. Let's look at a couple of failed players and you can clearly see who has to be held accountable.

Dion Jordan - many draft analysts were calling Jordan the best athlete and most explosive defensive player in that draft class. We've seen his athleticism first hand, but our coaching staff never found a way to properly harness his talent. Ireland traded up to get Jordan without confirming that his coaching staff had a plan on how to use him. Accountability: Ireland and Coyle

Dallas Thomas - looking back at where Dallas Thomas was picked, many teams had similar grades on him. None of our line coaches nor Philbin, who was supposed to have a background in O-line, could make Thomas a consistently better player. Worse yet, Philbin couldn't even spot how bad Thomas actually was. Accountability: Philbin, O-line coaches

Jamar Taylor - Taylor is another example of a player that the Dolphins had graded in similar fashion to other teams, but Taylor came with two problems. First, Ireland drafted an injured player that he projected to be ready. Taylor missed a lot of time his rookie year and basically didn't have any development that first year. Second, Taylor's physicality fits more in a press-man or cover 2 scheme. Coyle never called either. Taylor just didn't fit our scheme. Accountability: Ireland, Philbin, Coyle

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

All NFL teams, draft experts and countless millions of fans have the same guys rated at the top of the first two rounds. We did not take blind shots on players. They just did not work out, which is the case with half of the top picks throughout the league.

Also, everyone from owner to coaches wanted Jordan, and Taylor has lots of talent but cannot stay healthy.

Yeah, I get that. But other teams are consistently hitting at a higher rate.

As to Jordan, I loved the pick at the time but saw him as a linebacker. That might be a case of the coaches misusing his talents.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Here are some that Miami missed on.

JJ's first draft he took Darryl Gardner in R1 with Rey Lewis on the board. JJ also traded out of the first round and, thus, missed the chance to draft Randy Moss. Instead Miami drafted Avery. Lewis and Moss will both be Hall of Famers. Gardner and Avery weren't very good.

Wannestedt biggest miss was Drew Brees during a time when quarterback was the team's biggest needs.

Vernon Carey over Vince Wilfork. Misi over Gronk (wow). Odrick over Thomas (Safety with Seattle). Ronnie Brown over Aaron Rodgers. The list goes on and on.

I know other teams can put lists together, but man is that a lot of talent left going to other teams.