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Dolphins D vs Seattle D

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EireTiger

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When I look at the difference between Miami and Seattle's defenses some key things stand out, forcing turnovers and tackling. The three key players that provide Seattle a significant advantage over Miami are Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Bobby Wagner. If we could address these positions in the draft and free agency we could climb closer.

There are options available, we can improve at CB by re-signing Grimes (comparable contract Carlos Rogers.)and developing the two highly rated CBs we drafted last year. Jamar Taylor's combine stats are superior to that of the number 1 CB this year, Dennard. His injuries and those of Will Davis should not be an issue this year and provide an opportunity for the coming season.

At safety Jairus Byrd just hit the market, do what it takes to get him (comparable contract Dashon Goldson) It weakens a division rival, brings information on an opponent we play twice and significantly upgrades a position of weakness.

At LB, let's go for Ryan Shazier or CJ Moseley in the draft and upgrade that position.

i know we need to address the OL and DT but these moves do not preclude us from doing that. We can resign Grimes and sign Byrd with$20M to spare.
 
Jairus Byrd will be highly sought after by plenty of teams. If we're able to sign him, it'd be huge. He probably won't even end up hitting the market, as the Bills would be crazy to not lock him up long-term. Plus they could still slap the franchise tag on him again then work out a long term deal
 
Buffalo won't tag Byrd and he doesn't want to stay there because he feels they are short changed him. Adding him to our defense gives that playmaking type safety to pair with Jones. I would like to see Jenkins get more playing time because he played well down the road last year and anything is better than Wheeler. At CB, let the young guys play some this season to see what they got. Re-sign Grimes because he was phenomenal last year for us. With those three bring in someone like Sam Shields if the price is right or another veteran and hope that Patterson can stay healthy if not, cut um.
 
My first thought of this title is that Miami's and Seattle's do not compare at all.

But I can see where you're coming from with those moves. If Grimes and Byrd are signed (like your plan), and Miami brings in 2 free agent linemen (hopefully), the first round in my opinion will still be dedicated to offensive line. The remainder of the draft, I would peg Miami's needs as DT, RB, OLB, TE (to give Miami flexibility in two TE sets).

I would also expect Miami to make a roster decision on Matt Moore and Dimitri Patterson. That would free up a lot of additional space.
 
Jairus Byrd is not the same ball hawk that Earl Thomas is...Thomas has better coverage skills IMO.

You've keyed on 3 of the more talked about players for Seattle and left out the main reason all three are so effective...the front 4. Seattle gets consistent pressure on the QB with a number of different players without having to blitz much, if at all, and they stop the run extremely well. I'd be more interested in getting Red Bryant, who may get released from Seattle, than Jairus Byrd.
 
I disagree with you, I think our front 4 is comparable to the Seahawks. Look how many passes were completed on us with quick drops by the QB or deep down the middle or over the top. Just having Patterson healthy in the few games he played made an incredible difference in our defense this year. Despite poorer coverage (less coverage sack opportunities) and fewer sacks from our LBs, the Dolphins only had 2 fewer sacks than the Seahawks (MIA - 42, SEA - 44). That would indicate our front four might have been even more effective than Seattle's. Imagine if they had Sherman, Wagner and THomas playing behind them.

If we had a Safety who could make plays in coverage it would make a world of difference. Rashad Jones had a horrible year this past year (after getting a fat contract) and Clemons is too stiff to be an elite safety in coverage.
 
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Strange that no one has mentioned the most obvious difference, and the most obvious reason the Seattle defense is so good and successful at tackling and forcing turnovers.

Their physicality.

Watch how much more physical their DBs are than ours.

It's a glaring difference. Seattle DBs are all up in the receivers space giving them fits.
 
Seattle D plays with intensity and fierceness well above that of Miami. If that bit is instilled we can be similar but if not, we are not close.
 
JCane said:
Strange that no one has mentioned the most obvious difference, and the most obvious reason the Seattle defense is so good and successful at tackling and forcing turnovers.

Their physicality.

Watch how much more physical their DBs are than ours.

It's a glaring difference. Seattle DBs are all up in the receivers space giving them fits.
Click to expand...

The defender can make contact for 5 yards, and this would let him disrupt routes or even knock the WR to the ground. But, Coyle has his CBs playing 10 yards off the WRs allowing easy 5-8 yard passes and 1st down conversions. And, Miami's defense is full of poor tacklers.
 
EireTiger said:
I disagree with you, I think our front 4 is comparable to the Seahawks. Look how many passes were completed on us with quick drops by the QB or deep down the middle or over the top. Just having Patterson healthy in the few games he played made an incredible difference in our defense this year. Despite poorer coverage (less coverage sack opportunities) and fewer sacks from our LBs, the Dolphins only had 2 fewer sacks than the Seahawks (MIA - 42, SEA - 44). That would indicate our front four might have been even more effective than Seattle's. Imagine if they had Sherman, Wagner and THomas playing behind them.

If we had a Safety who could make plays in coverage it would make a world of difference. Rashad Jones had a horrible year this past year (after getting a fat contract) and Clemons is too stiff to be an elite safety in coverage.
Click to expand...
That doesn't take into account pressures and knockdowns. How many times did Seattle sack Manning in the super bowl? I think it was only once, but the pressure they applied all game forced 2 INTs and a number of errant throws. It was Manning's 2nd lowest rated game all year. The pick 6 he threw was a result of someone hitting his arm as he was throwing the football...no sack recorded but the hit made the play. Not to mention nobody missed a tackle for Seattle...not just the 3 guys you mentioned.
 
JCane said:
Strange that no one has mentioned the most obvious difference, and the most obvious reason the Seattle defense is so good and successful at tackling and forcing turnovers.

Their physicality.

Watch how much more physical their DBs are than ours.

It's a glaring difference. Seattle DBs are all up in the receivers space giving them fits.
Click to expand...

While thats true...its also an unfair comparison because of schematics. We play off-man man and zone quite a bit...while they let their corners press and play bump and run. Our DBs are built towards that style of play. We had the corners to play a physical press style with Davis and even Smith (not saying he was good but its his strong suite) but instead elected to move away from that due to the scheme Coyle wants to run.

Basically what Im saying is we cant compare ourselves to the Seahwaks when we play a completely different style. They are more talented though..and one could definitely argue that the physical scheme is the way to go in this league.
 
Although those three players are better than anything the Dolphins have, the biggest difference is scheme and heart. Our defense, hell, our entire team lacks heart.
 
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