Are the Pieces in Place?

[SF Dolphin Fan]

In today's NFL there are very few complete teams. Last year the Arizona Cardinals nearly won the super bowl despite having one of the worst rushing attacks in the NFL. What's my point? Well the Dolphins need players, but maybe they have enough pieces in place to make a serious run this year. Allow me to make three assumptions since this is a "paper" race at this time of the year. The assumptions:

1). The secondary will be vastly improved with the addition of Davis, Smith and Clemens through the draft and Wilson as a free agent.

2). Cameron Wake is the real deal as a difference maker opposite Joey Porter.

3). That Patrick Turner will be the big physical receiver to compliment Ginn, Camarillo and Bess. I, for one, really like this pick as I think he is a player on the rise.

If you look at each area of the team there are few weaknesses, although again I'd love to add a Bruce Smith or Lawrence Taylor type. Let's look first at the defense.

Defensive Line -- this group is top third in the league in run support, which is exactly the way Parcells designs it. Lankford is very solid, Merling might emerge as a pass rusher and played well at the end of the year and Ferguson is a good nose tackle. The Dolphins have good depth overall on the line, but still need that NT of the future.

Linebacker -- the middle linebackers are average, but again if Wake is the real deal the unit overall is above average.

Secondary -- just got a whole lot better and, at least, should be a little above average.

Now the offense...

Offensive Line -- some health concerns, but if Smiley and Thomas come back strong this could be a team strength and a top 10 unit in the league. Not many teams can match Long and Carey at tackle and Grove could really emerge in this system.

Quarterback -- Pennington was second to Manning in the MVP voting and the Dolphins now have two good young guys in Henne and White behind him. White should give the Dolphins a new dimension in the wildcat. Whether he ends up as the future starter is a question.

Running Back -- hard to match Brown, Williams and Cobbs. This is a top 5 unit in the NFL.

Wide Receivers -- even if Turner is the answer this unit is likely middle of the pack. But with a lot of youth players should continue to improve.

Special Teams -- the Dolphins spent day 2 of the draft looking for players who could be major contributors on the special teams. This unit was a weakness last year, although did come on in the second half of the season.

On paper, everyone in the AFC East had a good draft. The schedule is tough, Tom Brady is back. There are plenty of reasons to think Miami could take a step back. But this is a team that now has more talent than most. It has a chance IMO.

 

[Pinkboy]

The Dolphins are one draft away from being considered a team that is on the cusp of contending. When you look at the terrible drafts in this decade before the new regime came in, I think it was obvious that they would need 3 drafts and 3 offseasons to get the team they want to see on the field.

We are two-thirds there in my opinion. We need some more talent and more depth. Don't misunderstand me, the regime has done an excellent job of rebuilding the team so far. They rebuilt the O-line as Carey is the only one still here. Changed and upgraded all 3 QB spots. Brought in a new secondary, Bell is the only one left. And brought in new young DE's for the D-line (Merling, Langford and Starks in rotation). Plus added a few more pieces here and there with some nice finds.

But I think Dolphin fans will be much more confident about their team going into the 2010 season compared to their confidence going into the 2009 season. And that is because the team will have quite a bit more talent (AND DEPTH) going into the 2010 season as opposed to the upcoming one.

You give this regime 3 years of overturning the bottom of the roster and always improving it, believe me we will have some really nice depth as a team in 2010. You know how they are always saying they are looking to always improve the bottom of the roster, and look to improve it constantly.. That will pay great dividends as I think we will have a very deep team in 2010, and a talented team overall.

Don't forget that this 2nd offseason is not over yet with the June cuts fast approaching, and training camp cuts in August- it's how we got Penny. We will add some more players before September 2009.

 

[Butterfrog 2.0]

Good post, I agree the talent is there. A lot of things still have to go right though for Miami to be contenders such as..... The two rookie CB's turn out to be gamers sooner rather than later, Ginn continues to improve, Turner and/or London prove to be a legit weapon and provide that big target for Pennington, Wake is the real deal, Porter doesn't slow down due to age, Ferguson can keep strong at his age and/or Solai steps up, and maybe most important of all we don't get hit big by injuries. I think if the team just stays healthy then they're definately a playoff contender but a few other things have to go right as well for them to be competitive in the playoffs.

 

[Rio]

We Will Contend in 2010!

would need a windfall of extraordinary events to occur to duplicate last years results.
We are in year three of a four year project. It will take a full three seasons to basically rebuild.
The odds are totally against us duplicating our 2008 season, let alone improving on it in 2009.
Its not just filling in holes, its about coaching up new players & putting the finishing touches on systems of play. We're an easy draft &free agency & another years' experience away from the big enchilada.
Another moot point: we go no where until establishing a Franchise QB.
How long will that take?
Can Pennington nail it definitively in 2009? Or will Henne emerge as the starter midway through the season? What about WildCatPat?
Only the playing field holds the answers to these questions & the experience required to consistently play at the next level.
having said that: my personal expectations are for an exciting season with 8 or 9 wins & all close games played hard to the last minute of every game. There is still much to do before we can compete consistently at the highest levels.

Competition is the Elixir of Success! Let them compete.

 

[GoonBoss]

I think we still need to get better up the middle on D. We need to improve our MLBs and NT. That is key to the 3-4. I see more questions than answers though, on D. We could turn out to be very, very solid, or terrible if Porter gets old, and Wake doesn't turn out to be the beast everyone thinks he is, we're in trouble.

We are improved at the Safety position, and, CB position. However, rookie secondary players are question marks, in reality.

The starting OL makes me happy, but, if an injury comes......And one or more probably will....We're in trouble. One or two key injuries bring us back to last year, where we just weren't able to line up and, run the ball without misdirection and, trickery. I mean, I'll take it any way I can get it, but, I'd like to just be able to beat the other team one physicality.

I think we're another year away from a serious SB run, but, even then, we have to look at the very real possibility of Pennington not being here, and MAYBE not even Brown. There are lots of questions that won't be answered for a couple of years yet.

 

[CitizenSnips]

I think we have to believe this secondary has the chance to be Elite. Adding Gibril as a proven FS and drafting two high potential guys should make us pretty set in coverage.

Smith and Davis are going to give up as many plays as they make in their rookie seasons, but with 3 other solid Vets in the secondary, you have to believe this unit can cause some damage.

 

[Asicswrg85]

Year one was Inside / lineman
Year two was outside / skill players
Year three will be depth and the finishing touches

Then we will be SERIOUS contenders

 

[Phinatic8u]

Yes in year 3 draft our first 2-3 picks will be on NT and ILB in that order

 

[JFoxx]

I think we may have solidified several spots with the draft, f/a and pick-ups, but it remains to be seen. If they don't play up to expectations, then we have to regroup on those positions. If all goes well with these, then we probably could use help at NT, ILB and possibly #1 WR (unless someone blossoms/gels this year). We could be very close this year, but between the tough schedule and some growing pains with the rookies and 2nd year guys, it might take another year (two at most) before we are serious SB contenders.

 

[X-Pacolypse]

One more solid Draft, then I believe Miami will have the pieces in place.

 

[LDaniel7]

Don't forget that this 2nd offseason is not over yet with the June cuts fast approaching, and training camp cuts in August- it's how we got Penny. We will add some more players before September 2009.

Patriots are loaded. They are gonna have to cut some great talent. Their PS is gonna bear looking at... same w. Steelers. There's gonna be a Harrison cut this year, imo. The Harrison story is intriguing: cut from Stillers and then able to be picked back up after milling around, etc. Look for that this year, imo.

LD

 

[j-off-her-doll]

They're in a position to compete. They should be much improved from last season. If Brady's healthy, it will be difficult for them to win the division. It's too early to say just how all our pieces will fall in line, but we should compete for a playoff spot, and once you're in the playoffs anything can happen.

We're definitely not in Super-Bowl-or-bust mode. I'd be very happy if we won a playoff game.

 

[VT Dolphan]

Eh, I'm not drinking the punch just yet.

The secondary was a strength last year. Even if you do consider Davis and Wilson to be talent upgrades over Goodman and Hill, you have to take chemistry into account. It will take those guys a few weeks before they really get comfortable communicating and playing with each other, so I think the pass defense could get off to a bumpy start. I would not argue that the secondary has more talent than last year, but it isn't just about talent, it's about playing as a cohesive team.

Maybe my dissatisfaction with this past draft has a lot to do with it, but I don't think we're ready to compete for a championship just yet. The depth along the offensive line was pathetic prior to the draft, and...well, lets just say not much has changed. I felt that if we really nailed this draft like we did last year, we could be a legit contender. Obviously you can't judge a draft immediately after it, but I don't have a real good feeling about this one.

Not to mention all the things that went are way last year: Pennington's unreal comeback, a full season of Ronnie, the novelty of the wildcat, no serious injuries, favorable schedule. Not to be a downer, but do you really expect all those things to repeat, because I sure don't.

 

[ticophin]

Yes, the process to have a competitive-playoff-superbowl team might by a year or two shy in some peoples opinion....But, do you think guys like Porter, Penny, Fergie and W.Allen are not going to shed blood in the field to get that ring this year? After all, we won the division last year, so, in my mind, and after a 10 game turnaround, sweeping the AFC East on the road, sendind Favre to hell, and going to the playoffs, with this regime, anything is possible!

 

[napsndreds]

yes