TrinidadDolfan
1st Team All-Pro
Omar Kelly - I’ve never personally spent the night in jail, but I’ve heard it’s got a chilling effect on those who do.
Considering Dolphins defensive end Phillip Merling already needed motivation to shed his poor practice performer label, I wonder if a night in the slammer for assaulting his pregnant girlfriend, and the embarrassment he caused himself, his family, and his team will do the trick.
Phillip Merling
SOMETHING needs to get Merling to perform like the borderline first-rounder (Merling was the 32nd pick in the 2008 draft) he is. I’ll give him a pass for last season because Randy Starks beat him out for the starting spot, and nearly produced a Pro Bowl season.
While it’s a long shot the Dolphins release Merling, I wouldn’t be surprised if he got demoted during this weekend’s minicamp (five practices through Sunday) because this regime has plenty of defensive ends who are worthy of a significant investment outside of Merling.
There’s rookie Jared Odrick, who the team used a first-round pick on this year, and is banking on.
Tony McDaniel, who blossomed in his first season as a 3-4 end last year in a limited role, and Lionel Dotson, who players rave about because of his ability to pressure quarterbacks (I personally haven’t seen it for myself, but it’s kept the former seventh-round pick on the 53-man roster for two seasons).
The point is, Merling better get his act together or the Dolphins, and the rest of the NFL, will quickly turn the page. There’s no better time for him to do so than now…..
The inside linebacker group has been thinned out a little with Thursday’s release of Reggie Torbor. Those who have been following my work for a while aren’t too surprised considering I’ve long said he’s a long shot to stick on the 53-man roster. Not because of productivity, but because of Torbor’s bloated salary.
One of Bill Parcells’ golden rules are you can’t pay a backup starter money, and Torbor was slated to make $3,050,000 in each of the next two seasons. By comparison AJ Edds and Austin Spitler, the two rookie inside linebackers the team drafted, will each make about 1/10th that, $320,000 in base salary (this doesn’t include their signing bonus) if they make the 53-man roster.
For the record, it’s still not a certainty both Edds and Spitler make it to the 53-man roster because the Dolphins have only kept four inside linebackers on the active roster the past two years. Right now Karlos Dansby, Tim Dobbins, Channing Crowder are all in the drivers seat, and don’t forget about J.D. Folsom, last year’s seventh-round pick, who split the season on the active roster and practice squad.
But considering this is the amnesty year for salary cap mistakes, and Edds and Spitler potentially possess more upside than Torbor, who was entering his seventh season, this move was inevitable.
Torbor’s release means the Dolphins presently have 81 players on the roster. That includes the draft picks who haven’t signed yet. Before training camp opens in August one more player has to be cut.
For those who need help figuring out who is competing where, and for what job, take a look at this updated depth chart. I might make some changes after I witness today’s two practice sessions.
Quarterback Chad Henne has consistently said the Dolphins are going to take more shots downfield this season. He has the arm for it, so it makes sense. I’ll be watching to see if this is just talk, or something the team’s actually pulling the trigger on.
Also high on my list of things to watch for are:
Who performs better at free safety, Chris Clemons or rookie Reshad Jones?
How much work in team drills is starting tailback Ronnie Brown doing, and is he on track to participate in training camp?
Which interior offensive linemen is working where, and who are the front runners to be the opening game starters?
In case you haven’t already figured it out, me and Mike B’s twitter postings will scroll on the front of the Dolphins page all minicamp.
You can also Get Miami Dolphins breaking news text alerts on your phone by clicking on this link.
See you later today from highlights from this morning’s 10:30 a.m. practice sessions, and the one in the afternoon.
Deuces.
http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/sport...hins-wrap-dolphins-minicamp-begins-today.html
Considering Dolphins defensive end Phillip Merling already needed motivation to shed his poor practice performer label, I wonder if a night in the slammer for assaulting his pregnant girlfriend, and the embarrassment he caused himself, his family, and his team will do the trick.
SOMETHING needs to get Merling to perform like the borderline first-rounder (Merling was the 32nd pick in the 2008 draft) he is. I’ll give him a pass for last season because Randy Starks beat him out for the starting spot, and nearly produced a Pro Bowl season.
While it’s a long shot the Dolphins release Merling, I wouldn’t be surprised if he got demoted during this weekend’s minicamp (five practices through Sunday) because this regime has plenty of defensive ends who are worthy of a significant investment outside of Merling.
There’s rookie Jared Odrick, who the team used a first-round pick on this year, and is banking on.
Tony McDaniel, who blossomed in his first season as a 3-4 end last year in a limited role, and Lionel Dotson, who players rave about because of his ability to pressure quarterbacks (I personally haven’t seen it for myself, but it’s kept the former seventh-round pick on the 53-man roster for two seasons).
The point is, Merling better get his act together or the Dolphins, and the rest of the NFL, will quickly turn the page. There’s no better time for him to do so than now…..
The inside linebacker group has been thinned out a little with Thursday’s release of Reggie Torbor. Those who have been following my work for a while aren’t too surprised considering I’ve long said he’s a long shot to stick on the 53-man roster. Not because of productivity, but because of Torbor’s bloated salary.
One of Bill Parcells’ golden rules are you can’t pay a backup starter money, and Torbor was slated to make $3,050,000 in each of the next two seasons. By comparison AJ Edds and Austin Spitler, the two rookie inside linebackers the team drafted, will each make about 1/10th that, $320,000 in base salary (this doesn’t include their signing bonus) if they make the 53-man roster.
For the record, it’s still not a certainty both Edds and Spitler make it to the 53-man roster because the Dolphins have only kept four inside linebackers on the active roster the past two years. Right now Karlos Dansby, Tim Dobbins, Channing Crowder are all in the drivers seat, and don’t forget about J.D. Folsom, last year’s seventh-round pick, who split the season on the active roster and practice squad.
But considering this is the amnesty year for salary cap mistakes, and Edds and Spitler potentially possess more upside than Torbor, who was entering his seventh season, this move was inevitable.
Torbor’s release means the Dolphins presently have 81 players on the roster. That includes the draft picks who haven’t signed yet. Before training camp opens in August one more player has to be cut.
For those who need help figuring out who is competing where, and for what job, take a look at this updated depth chart. I might make some changes after I witness today’s two practice sessions.
Quarterback Chad Henne has consistently said the Dolphins are going to take more shots downfield this season. He has the arm for it, so it makes sense. I’ll be watching to see if this is just talk, or something the team’s actually pulling the trigger on.
Also high on my list of things to watch for are:
Who performs better at free safety, Chris Clemons or rookie Reshad Jones?
How much work in team drills is starting tailback Ronnie Brown doing, and is he on track to participate in training camp?
Which interior offensive linemen is working where, and who are the front runners to be the opening game starters?
In case you haven’t already figured it out, me and Mike B’s twitter postings will scroll on the front of the Dolphins page all minicamp.
You can also Get Miami Dolphins breaking news text alerts on your phone by clicking on this link.
See you later today from highlights from this morning’s 10:30 a.m. practice sessions, and the one in the afternoon.
Deuces.
http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/sport...hins-wrap-dolphins-minicamp-begins-today.html