Besides their desire to upgrade at middle linebacker, the Dolphins also have made cornerback and defensive tackle priorities. What we’re hearing as teams approach the March 10 start of free agency: Well before joining the Dolphins’ front office, Mike Tannenbaum said cornerback is critical for Miami in a division with Tom Brady. Tannenbaum also said this a couple of years ago: “The fastest way to lose games in pro football is not to have corners. Other things you can survive, but if you can’t cover on the outside, it’s dismal.”
The Dolphins want to add at least one quality corner to upgrade over Cortland Finnegan, and free agentsKareem Jackson and Brandon Flowers are among those who have been discussed internally, according to a person with knowledge of Miami's discussions. (I'm sure there are other cornerbacks also of interest to Miami; these were merely two of the names we know have been talked about.) Jackson, 26, a five-year starter for Houston, had three interceptions in 13 games in 2014 and quarterbacks had a 74.1 rating in his coverage area. Flowers, 29, played for the Chargers in 2014 --- quarterbacks had an 84.2 rating against him --- after six seasons in Kansas City. His family lives in Delray Beach and a friend said the Dolphins would hold some appeal to him. Pro Football Focus rated Jackson 11[SUP]th[/SUP] and Flowers 15[SUP]th[/SUP] among 108 cornerbacks for 2014.PFF said Flowers had “a superb first year in San Diego. Not going to fit in every scheme but put him in the right spot and he’s a top-tier cornerback” and said Jackson “has done very well to rebuild a reputation that looked almost beyond salvaging after his first two years in the league. Jackson has rebounded with some impressive play and can be one of the better No. 2 corners in the league.”
The Dolphins approached All-Pro Darrelle Revis last offseason, but Revis wanted to sign with a Super Bowl contender. A Revis confidante expects the Dolphins to call him again, but it’s highly questionable if Miami has the cap space to seriously compete for him, considering it must address several other needs. Besides Revis, Tannenbaum also has a history with Arizona free agent Antonio Cromartie (31 picks in nine seasons), so he cannot be ruled out. Cromartie, according to PFF, “rebuilt his rep in the first half of the season but didn’t follow that up with the kind of strong second half that would have everyone expecting a big short-term deal come his way.”Other corners set to become free agents include Seattle’s Byron Maxwell, Dallas’ Sterling Moore, the 49ers’ Chris Culliver, Jacksonville’s Alan Ball, New Orleans’ Patrick Robinson, the Giants’ WalterThurmond, Cleveland's Buster Skrine and Green Bay’s Tramon Williams.Signing a quality free-agent cornerback in this market will be pricey, and it will be interesting to see how much Miami is willing to spend on Jackson or Flowers or any of the others mentioned here.
Remember, Kevin Coyle strongly implied after the season that the Dolphins cannot go into next season counting on Jamar Taylor or Will Davis as starters. And waiting until the draft to find a starting cornerback to pair with Brent Grimes would be risky.
Upgrading on Finnegan isn't Miami's only cornerback issue. Though the Dolphins want to re-sign slot corner/safety Jimmy Wilson, several teams like him and Miami will have stiff competition.
### Defensive tackle: A lot hinges on whether the Dolphins can re-sign Jared Odrick (expect Chicago, Jacksonville and others to pursue him; Miami wants to keep him but knows it might be outbid) and whether they keep Randy Starks, who is awaiting word on his fate. He has a $6 million cap hit if he’s on the team, $1 million otherwise.We're told the Dolphins like Minnesota free agent Tom Johnson, who made only two starts in the past four seasons but had 6.5 sacks in 2014 and was rated 23[SUP]rd[/SUP] among 81 defensive tackles by PFF. The Dolphins also like Denver’s run-stuffing Terrance Knighton (12[SUP]th[/SUP] by PFF), but he would be far more costly and it’s unclear if they will be able to compete financially for him. Atlanta’s Corey Peters (34[SUP]th[/SUP] by PFF) was mentioned to me as another name on Miami’s radar PFF said Knighton plays “some stellar run defense” and is a “streaky pass rusher” and Peters “rebounded nicely from a devastating Achilles injury with a solid 2014.”
Among other tackles available: Detroit’s trio of Ndamukong Suh (a serious Dolphins pursuit would be very surprising), Nick Fairley (very costly) and C.J. Mosley; Green Bay’s Letroy Guion (facing felony charges on possession of marijuana and a firearm), Arizona’s Dan Williams, Kendall Langford (the former Dolphin and ex-Ram), ex-Cowboy Henry Melton; and Chicago’s Stephen Paea (skilled pass rusher who graded out below average against the run).The Jets’ Kenrick Ellis, who has a background with Tannenbaum in New York, is a backup option. Baltimore standout Haloti Ngata naturally would be appealing if he’s released. The Dolphins are expected to keep Earl Mitchell and like A.J. Francis and Anthony Johnson as fourth/fifth tackles.
### As we noted last week, the Dolphins want to upgrade at middle linebacker and are eyeing a few including David Harris, Mason Foster and versatile Dan Skuta.
CHATTER
### Though the Dolphins think highly of San Francisco free agent Mike Iupati, they have expressed some hesitance to spend a ton on a guard, and there are more pressing needs. They conveyed to Shelley Smithearlier this offseason that they like him and want to give him another chance to compete to start, barring a change of heart. And general manager Dennis Hickey envisions Billy Turner as starting-caliber. Among free agent guards: Denver’s Orlando Franklin (will get a lot of money somewhere), JamesCarpenter, Clint Boling, Todd Herremans, Rob Sims, Vlad Ducasse (played for Jets under Tannenbaum) and Willie Colon.
Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/spor...chatter-heat-captax-change.html#storylink=cpy
The Dolphins want to add at least one quality corner to upgrade over Cortland Finnegan, and free agentsKareem Jackson and Brandon Flowers are among those who have been discussed internally, according to a person with knowledge of Miami's discussions. (I'm sure there are other cornerbacks also of interest to Miami; these were merely two of the names we know have been talked about.) Jackson, 26, a five-year starter for Houston, had three interceptions in 13 games in 2014 and quarterbacks had a 74.1 rating in his coverage area. Flowers, 29, played for the Chargers in 2014 --- quarterbacks had an 84.2 rating against him --- after six seasons in Kansas City. His family lives in Delray Beach and a friend said the Dolphins would hold some appeal to him. Pro Football Focus rated Jackson 11[SUP]th[/SUP] and Flowers 15[SUP]th[/SUP] among 108 cornerbacks for 2014.PFF said Flowers had “a superb first year in San Diego. Not going to fit in every scheme but put him in the right spot and he’s a top-tier cornerback” and said Jackson “has done very well to rebuild a reputation that looked almost beyond salvaging after his first two years in the league. Jackson has rebounded with some impressive play and can be one of the better No. 2 corners in the league.”
The Dolphins approached All-Pro Darrelle Revis last offseason, but Revis wanted to sign with a Super Bowl contender. A Revis confidante expects the Dolphins to call him again, but it’s highly questionable if Miami has the cap space to seriously compete for him, considering it must address several other needs. Besides Revis, Tannenbaum also has a history with Arizona free agent Antonio Cromartie (31 picks in nine seasons), so he cannot be ruled out. Cromartie, according to PFF, “rebuilt his rep in the first half of the season but didn’t follow that up with the kind of strong second half that would have everyone expecting a big short-term deal come his way.”Other corners set to become free agents include Seattle’s Byron Maxwell, Dallas’ Sterling Moore, the 49ers’ Chris Culliver, Jacksonville’s Alan Ball, New Orleans’ Patrick Robinson, the Giants’ WalterThurmond, Cleveland's Buster Skrine and Green Bay’s Tramon Williams.Signing a quality free-agent cornerback in this market will be pricey, and it will be interesting to see how much Miami is willing to spend on Jackson or Flowers or any of the others mentioned here.
Remember, Kevin Coyle strongly implied after the season that the Dolphins cannot go into next season counting on Jamar Taylor or Will Davis as starters. And waiting until the draft to find a starting cornerback to pair with Brent Grimes would be risky.
Upgrading on Finnegan isn't Miami's only cornerback issue. Though the Dolphins want to re-sign slot corner/safety Jimmy Wilson, several teams like him and Miami will have stiff competition.
### Defensive tackle: A lot hinges on whether the Dolphins can re-sign Jared Odrick (expect Chicago, Jacksonville and others to pursue him; Miami wants to keep him but knows it might be outbid) and whether they keep Randy Starks, who is awaiting word on his fate. He has a $6 million cap hit if he’s on the team, $1 million otherwise.We're told the Dolphins like Minnesota free agent Tom Johnson, who made only two starts in the past four seasons but had 6.5 sacks in 2014 and was rated 23[SUP]rd[/SUP] among 81 defensive tackles by PFF. The Dolphins also like Denver’s run-stuffing Terrance Knighton (12[SUP]th[/SUP] by PFF), but he would be far more costly and it’s unclear if they will be able to compete financially for him. Atlanta’s Corey Peters (34[SUP]th[/SUP] by PFF) was mentioned to me as another name on Miami’s radar PFF said Knighton plays “some stellar run defense” and is a “streaky pass rusher” and Peters “rebounded nicely from a devastating Achilles injury with a solid 2014.”
Among other tackles available: Detroit’s trio of Ndamukong Suh (a serious Dolphins pursuit would be very surprising), Nick Fairley (very costly) and C.J. Mosley; Green Bay’s Letroy Guion (facing felony charges on possession of marijuana and a firearm), Arizona’s Dan Williams, Kendall Langford (the former Dolphin and ex-Ram), ex-Cowboy Henry Melton; and Chicago’s Stephen Paea (skilled pass rusher who graded out below average against the run).The Jets’ Kenrick Ellis, who has a background with Tannenbaum in New York, is a backup option. Baltimore standout Haloti Ngata naturally would be appealing if he’s released. The Dolphins are expected to keep Earl Mitchell and like A.J. Francis and Anthony Johnson as fourth/fifth tackles.
### As we noted last week, the Dolphins want to upgrade at middle linebacker and are eyeing a few including David Harris, Mason Foster and versatile Dan Skuta.
CHATTER
### Though the Dolphins think highly of San Francisco free agent Mike Iupati, they have expressed some hesitance to spend a ton on a guard, and there are more pressing needs. They conveyed to Shelley Smithearlier this offseason that they like him and want to give him another chance to compete to start, barring a change of heart. And general manager Dennis Hickey envisions Billy Turner as starting-caliber. Among free agent guards: Denver’s Orlando Franklin (will get a lot of money somewhere), JamesCarpenter, Clint Boling, Todd Herremans, Rob Sims, Vlad Ducasse (played for Jets under Tannenbaum) and Willie Colon.
Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/spor...chatter-heat-captax-change.html#storylink=cpy
