The thing that makes me laugh most about Fin Heaven are the amount of negative people that post on the board. The amount of people wanting Orlando Brown over Damion McIntosh and the outrage over John Tait, etc just cracks me up.
The bottom line is that Miami have done really well to this point in free agency. I have got to say that after 2 months of idiocy, the front office and Rick Spielman specifically have played FA brilliantly. I am thrilled with what we have achieved. We made our 5 moves, we have now done the great thing which is let the market settle, let players and agents see the real market and I would imagine us moving back in in a few days time for another OL and then waiting a while before maybe bringing in a WR and a DT.
Jeno James, to my mind, was the best pure G in free agency. He was a guy that I kept championing early in the 2003 season as a Free Agent we simply had to sign and I was over the moon to see him as a Fin. He is a tremendous puller from LG, he's big, nasty and finishes his blocks really well. That gives us a really nice, young left side with Wade Smith, who apprently already has changed physically after a tough offseason programme in the weightroom. James was cheap as well. I applaud the FO for going after Woody, but in reality, he got too much money and Rick pulled up realising that you could get 2 more decent OLmen instead of just Woody and AN Other if we stopped bidding. It was ABSOLUTELY the right move. With the loss of Todd Wade - wow, did Houston overpay or what???? - three new OLmen was a necessity.
I was happy to see us not ink John Tait either. Tait was the 5th best run blocker on that KC line and he got a huge salary for a guy who will be 30 at the start of the season. Another great job by Rick. BTW, for all the naysayers about why John didn't sign in Miami - I know John a little from 4 interviews that I did with him pre and post his drafting. His faith is THE single most important thing in his life. As a devout Mormon, he was incredibly happy to be in KC and not NY or Miami or one of the media centres, because it didn't suit his mindset. That was why he signed for the Midwest Bears. The signing of McIntosh is a tremendous one. He has mammouth potential - he will be 3/4 times cheaper than Tait with youth and potential on his side, plus versatility as he's played LT for San Diego the past 2 years. McIntosh was much the better signing than Orlando Brown. He's not been the same since the eye injury and he was disappointing in 2003. Ditto Ephrahim Salaam. He's a below average run blocker. I would like to see us now add Bobbie Williams, or make a RFA move for the Ravens RG Bennie Anderson. Williams can play inside or out and we need the versatility of guys who can play T if one of the starters goes down. I was disappointed that we didn't ink Cosey Coleman, but I have faith in our FO. BTW - we need a back up center.
In hindsight, I like the Feeley move. There is no question that he is coming in as the starter in my mind. I like the fact also that Jay is here. We have a proven vet off the bench. Win win in my eyes.
At WR, I think the best FA move was the one that sent Justin McCareins to the Jets for the 41st pick. That means the Jets will look at either LB or most likely a CB like Dunta Robinson in R1 pushing a WR down towards us at 20. I wonder if and when the market settles, whether we bring in Darrell Jackson for a looksee? I think with the McCareins deal and the TO and Northcutt mix up's Jackson's agent overinflated the market place. His price will slip. One note on WR's pertinent to the draft. I see us more likely bringing in a senior, like Lee Evans, or Rashuan Woods, because of the more immediate impact that they can make. Clearly we are looking for a guy that will come in and be AT LEAST a #3 from the get go, not someone that will need to be nursemaided.
Defensively, the market for Wally is almost gone. I'd be happy to re-sign him and I think they are waiting for the Madison restructure to do that officially. I would like to see us sign a DT at some stage.
At LB, it was a shame to see Hendricks go as he has been our best ST player for 3 seasons now. It also means that Corey J and Eddie Moore will have to step up. I really like Moore and think he could be a nice player for us. Shame about Kaceyvinski, as he too is a ST's maven. I think our future MLB is already on the roster in the form of Morlon Greenwood, BTW.
In the secondary, the deal for Reggie Howard is nice. I really liked it - having seen Carolina 6 times this past season, he was impressive. He seemed more adept in a zone than tight man, but when called on to play press he looked good. He doesn't look back for the ball always, but I love the way he hits. Thank god we have a DB who can tackle. He really brings the load and whatever happens, we now have 3 very good corners. The nickel CB was on the field 60% of the time last season, so it's a vital spot. Plus, with Sam getting older and Pat's knee's a mild concern, we have a starter here. Plus he's going to help out on ST. And at 6-1 195, he could always play safety as he has the hitting ability and the range.
I like the Akins deal - he's a nice STer and with the loss of Gamble and Hendricks, he will become our #1 guy in that department.
Overall, I think we've played it really well. It's been a solid 1st week for the Dolphins.
Don't underestimate what we've done. We've weeded out arguably the worst OL in football and brought in 2 hugely talented players, one of which went to the SB and the other helped clear the way for LaDainian Tomlinson to run all over the NFL for 2 years. We've added a 2 year starter at CB who went to the SB and one of the best ST's players in football. Plus a young talented passer. This team is MUCH better than it was 7 days ago, no matter what the Fin Heaven nay sayers will have you think!!!
The bottom line is that Miami have done really well to this point in free agency. I have got to say that after 2 months of idiocy, the front office and Rick Spielman specifically have played FA brilliantly. I am thrilled with what we have achieved. We made our 5 moves, we have now done the great thing which is let the market settle, let players and agents see the real market and I would imagine us moving back in in a few days time for another OL and then waiting a while before maybe bringing in a WR and a DT.
Jeno James, to my mind, was the best pure G in free agency. He was a guy that I kept championing early in the 2003 season as a Free Agent we simply had to sign and I was over the moon to see him as a Fin. He is a tremendous puller from LG, he's big, nasty and finishes his blocks really well. That gives us a really nice, young left side with Wade Smith, who apprently already has changed physically after a tough offseason programme in the weightroom. James was cheap as well. I applaud the FO for going after Woody, but in reality, he got too much money and Rick pulled up realising that you could get 2 more decent OLmen instead of just Woody and AN Other if we stopped bidding. It was ABSOLUTELY the right move. With the loss of Todd Wade - wow, did Houston overpay or what???? - three new OLmen was a necessity.
I was happy to see us not ink John Tait either. Tait was the 5th best run blocker on that KC line and he got a huge salary for a guy who will be 30 at the start of the season. Another great job by Rick. BTW, for all the naysayers about why John didn't sign in Miami - I know John a little from 4 interviews that I did with him pre and post his drafting. His faith is THE single most important thing in his life. As a devout Mormon, he was incredibly happy to be in KC and not NY or Miami or one of the media centres, because it didn't suit his mindset. That was why he signed for the Midwest Bears. The signing of McIntosh is a tremendous one. He has mammouth potential - he will be 3/4 times cheaper than Tait with youth and potential on his side, plus versatility as he's played LT for San Diego the past 2 years. McIntosh was much the better signing than Orlando Brown. He's not been the same since the eye injury and he was disappointing in 2003. Ditto Ephrahim Salaam. He's a below average run blocker. I would like to see us now add Bobbie Williams, or make a RFA move for the Ravens RG Bennie Anderson. Williams can play inside or out and we need the versatility of guys who can play T if one of the starters goes down. I was disappointed that we didn't ink Cosey Coleman, but I have faith in our FO. BTW - we need a back up center.
In hindsight, I like the Feeley move. There is no question that he is coming in as the starter in my mind. I like the fact also that Jay is here. We have a proven vet off the bench. Win win in my eyes.
At WR, I think the best FA move was the one that sent Justin McCareins to the Jets for the 41st pick. That means the Jets will look at either LB or most likely a CB like Dunta Robinson in R1 pushing a WR down towards us at 20. I wonder if and when the market settles, whether we bring in Darrell Jackson for a looksee? I think with the McCareins deal and the TO and Northcutt mix up's Jackson's agent overinflated the market place. His price will slip. One note on WR's pertinent to the draft. I see us more likely bringing in a senior, like Lee Evans, or Rashuan Woods, because of the more immediate impact that they can make. Clearly we are looking for a guy that will come in and be AT LEAST a #3 from the get go, not someone that will need to be nursemaided.
Defensively, the market for Wally is almost gone. I'd be happy to re-sign him and I think they are waiting for the Madison restructure to do that officially. I would like to see us sign a DT at some stage.
At LB, it was a shame to see Hendricks go as he has been our best ST player for 3 seasons now. It also means that Corey J and Eddie Moore will have to step up. I really like Moore and think he could be a nice player for us. Shame about Kaceyvinski, as he too is a ST's maven. I think our future MLB is already on the roster in the form of Morlon Greenwood, BTW.
In the secondary, the deal for Reggie Howard is nice. I really liked it - having seen Carolina 6 times this past season, he was impressive. He seemed more adept in a zone than tight man, but when called on to play press he looked good. He doesn't look back for the ball always, but I love the way he hits. Thank god we have a DB who can tackle. He really brings the load and whatever happens, we now have 3 very good corners. The nickel CB was on the field 60% of the time last season, so it's a vital spot. Plus, with Sam getting older and Pat's knee's a mild concern, we have a starter here. Plus he's going to help out on ST. And at 6-1 195, he could always play safety as he has the hitting ability and the range.
I like the Akins deal - he's a nice STer and with the loss of Gamble and Hendricks, he will become our #1 guy in that department.
Overall, I think we've played it really well. It's been a solid 1st week for the Dolphins.
Don't underestimate what we've done. We've weeded out arguably the worst OL in football and brought in 2 hugely talented players, one of which went to the SB and the other helped clear the way for LaDainian Tomlinson to run all over the NFL for 2 years. We've added a 2 year starter at CB who went to the SB and one of the best ST's players in football. Plus a young talented passer. This team is MUCH better than it was 7 days ago, no matter what the Fin Heaven nay sayers will have you think!!!
I also wonder if Rick would actually cut him to make more cap room. I remember him saying many times that there are some tough decisions that will have to be made on the defensive side.
