Hickey's selection process....

[HoneyB]

OP, is there a link you can refer to me, regarding this revolutionary method of drafting?

I think every team uses metrics, and their own moneyball type calculations.

Nobody knows how a boy in college will handle the punishment that comes with competing against MEN in the NFL. And they're coming out younger and younger, now. So when you talk about strength, speed, etc, most of it doesn't immediately translate because they need an off season to get bigger and stronger.

Once they're here and acclimated, will they take that next step to do what's necessary to sacrifice to become great players? Or will they just collect the paycheck and nurse every injury on the sidelines.

I think that to be special in the NFL you need some natural football agility, the kind that you don't have to work at it's just in you, and you need to be tough as nails, regardless of your size, you have to be driven, and you have to be smart. If you have those 4 things, I want you on the team. Things like "character" are separate from those 4 qualifications, imo, but it helps. Things like track speed and how much you can bench press, and how tall you are, also matter, but are different. Hand size helps with the QB and WR positions, but is also a separate metric. Guys who have it all, go in the first round, I guess.

When Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor were drafted, they did not have it all. They were skinnier or shorter than what was expected. They could have busted, but didn't, because they had the 4 things.

We got a guy Landry that's going to shine for us because of his toughness and competitiveness. I'm happy about that.

 

[fishbanger]

I like Hickeys moves in FA except for th finnegan signing. He should have put those dollars on a FA RT and used the number one pick on a CB.

I also liked hickeys first 3 draft picks. there is a good chance all 3 will start. I thought he could have done better in rounds 4 thru 7 and made sure to find a better MLB. I dont think Tripp will be a starter at that postion.

 

[dlockz]

No offense to the op but what is so revolutionairy about his drafting. How can one come to that conclusion without knowing the methods of the other Gm's and more importantly seeing the results lol.

 

[where's th'fish]

OP, is there a link you can refer to me, regarding this revolutionary method of drafting?

I think every team uses metrics, and their own moneyball type calculations.

Nobody knows how a boy in college will handle the punishment that comes with competing against MEN in the NFL. And they're coming out younger and younger, now. So when you talk about strength, speed, etc, most of it doesn't immediately translate because they need an off season to get bigger and stronger.

Once they're here and acclimated, will they take that next step to do what's necessary to sacrifice to become great players? Or will they just collect the paycheck and nurse every injury on the sidelines.

I think that to be special in the NFL you need some natural football agility, the kind that you don't have to work at it's just in you, and you need to be tough as nails, regardless of your size, you have to be driven, and you have to be smart. If you have those 4 things, I want you on the team. Things like "character" are separate from those 4 qualifications, imo, but it helps. Things like track speed and how much you can bench press, and how tall you are, also matter, but are different. Hand size helps with the QB and WR positions, but is also a separate metric. Guys who have it all, go in the first round, I guess.

When Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor were drafted, they did not have it all. They were skinnier or shorter than what was expected. They could have busted, but didn't, because they had the 4 things.

We got a guy Landry that's going to shine for us because of his toughness and competitiveness. I'm happy about that.

I think the truly "revolutionary" aspects of Hickey's draft process were that he took the time to work with coach Philbin and watch film together to understand his system, and the fact he had the coaches meet with scouts to brief them on what they were looking for. These simple things may seem too rational to warrant any special mention, but from what I've heard, rationality is scarce in this league. GMs ignore both scouts and coaches and scouts' takes are not as valuable because they are not briefed in the system. In other words, a lot of GMs are such control and ego maniacs that they basically don't trust anyone else's opinion but their own.

The second thing I liked about the process was the strong BPA factor. Two WRs? One in the 2nd round? It makes too much sense in a WR-deep draft, but teams like Oakland and Cleveland didn't take a single one. Of course he also drafted for need. Since FA became effective, a pure BPA method is madness.

The third thing I liked is that he went for small-school prospects, because you have to trust your scouts to do that. I'm not sure if there isn't as much film and the film is of lesser quality, but the one certainty is that those players were first located by scouts doing their jobs properly, and the GM trusted them enough to study them, as opposed to sticking to what he already knew of the more publicized big-school prospects.

 

[13marino13]

Im sorry NRA but i just do not understand the love for dennis hickey.

Its fascinating to me how one can make an argument that can so clearly apply to both the affirmative and the negative and yet be so oblivious.

NRA, Im not sure if the shoe fits you but I hope you can realize that one can speak just as passionately as you on the matter from an opposing standpoint and said standpoint would also not be incorrect.

Unless you are in some sort of "OBVIOUS know" that we are not privy to i.e. know Hickey personally (at which point bias may contaminate character assessment) why are you so certain about Chub's lack of certainty?

How can you have a quote to the "negative" when they haven't even played a single game yet? Give the guy a break

 

[JTC111]

I think the truly "revolutionary" aspects of Hickey's draft process were that he took the time to work with coach Philbin and watch film together to understand his system, and the fact he had the coaches meet with scouts to brief them on what they were looking for.

Seriously??? You don't think this is what happens with other teams??? You think this is revolutionary and Hickey is the first guy to think to talk to his coach about personnel needs???

 

[ChambersWI]

Seriously??? You don't think this is what happens with other teams??? You think this is revolutionary and Hickey is the first guy to think to talk to his coach about personnel needs???

I think that was more sarcasm on his part.

In past drafts I think Ireland had a plan in place, and in theory he picked positions of need but he was not always good at finding players that fit. With Sparano, I think he was in a bit over his head in terms of having a clear vision for the team so he didn't oppose Ireland's pick, but Philbin clearly has had a vision for what he wants and he and Ireland clashed.

The other complaint you hear a lot about Ireland is what players he supposedly liked, but he misjudged their value. He liked Kaepernick, but thought he'd fall to our 2nd pick. He liked Jimmy Graham but thought he could be had a round later, ect ect. You could argue that Hickey reached on a few picks outside of James, but part of being a GM is finding guys that you and your staff wants and getting him. Obviously 2 of those guys were James and Turner (who Hickey admitted they almost selected instead of Landry in round 2).

 

[Fin Thirteen]

If I was trying to find a common denominator between all of Hickey's FA and draft picks, it'd be that he has focussed on players who are passionate about the competitive/confrontational aspect of the game. Smith, Delmas, Finnegan, Mitchell, James, Landry, Turner, Lynch, Tripp, Aikens, Johnson, Hazel... they all come across as guys who love going out and competing on gameday. Guys who just want to get better so they can win the next snap or the next game.

Contrast with the players like Wallace, Carroll, Clemons, Thomas, Wheeler, Jones, Egnew, Sims, Martin, Jerry..... these are all talented guys who don't seem to make the most of their abilities because they don't want it like other players do. What we saw in multiple past seasons, exemplified by our final two games of last season, was a team with a dearth of competitors - guys who refuse to lose.

I hope we've added quite a few this offseason and we'll finally have a team with a bit of a spine and some fire in the belly. I can't stomach much more of this tame rinky-dink play (a couple of players excepted).

 

[phintim]

I sure hope many of you are correct on the upside you see in Hickey
The first fact is that he came from the Bucs whom were about to release him. This is the same Tampa Bay Bucs who have not exactly been a powerhouse franchise of late and acually have underperformed the Dolphins.
The second fact is according to multible sources the Dolphin GM job was turned down by a number of propsects before Hickey basically inhertiting the job by default.
I am happy and because I have no choice to hope we accidently got it right with Hickey. The draft this year if broken down included by NFL anaylsts are whatever you want to call them included a reach on James, a possible steal on Laundy if he can run fast enough and then basically a bunch of small school studs outside of the TE from Ga. While I do not consider myself a draftnik after making these observations I have watched the phins draft closely since the days of Shula and my personal observation consider this a medocre draft which does not say much for a team that has not done very well in the draft overall these past 20 plus years. On a more positive note I tend to follow the opinions of Ck, Hoops and Slim on this site whom I believe are a bit more nuteral on their opinions of our draft and Slim for one seemed positve after the first 3 rounds which gives me a little more hope. Ck I guess makes more of his posts somewhere else after getting bashed here in the past.
I for one do not believe Ireland got rid of Vonte Davis, Richard Marshall, Dansby, Kevin Burnette and Reggie Bush without Phibins blessing. All these players have gone somewhere else and played better which of course points back to Philbin the coach.

 

[where's th'fish]

Seriously??? You don't think this is what happens with other teams??? You think this is revolutionary and Hickey is the first guy to think to talk to his coach about personnel needs???

No, he's not the first. But I've heard Matt Waldman talk about the dysfunctionality of NFL franchises. I couldn't find the article I remembered, but I found a more recent one:

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/futures/2014/futures-my-expansion-franchise

I’ve talked with enough current and former NFL scouts and consultants to understand that scouts may do the legwork, but they are rarely afforded a true voice in the war room. There’s a mentality among scouts that if they want to keep their job, they better be extraordinarily selective about stating their opinion when not asked directly.

... [some] scouts and general managers who possess a fantastic trove of knowledge ...have to unlearn the current NFL paradigm of management through fear that many organizations use. Current management practices of the NFL have "ruined" many of the experienced candidates.

Then he talks about things he would do if he had an expansion franchise, such as:

Coaches, scouts, and the front office will work together. The head coach and his staff are the chefs ...If he cooks steak better than anyone, then I’m not going to complain to the media that he doesn’t do enough with pasta. The front office and scouts will have to become pros at selecting the best meat, accompaniments, and drinks that make it the top steakhouse in the world. If his specialty is sushi, then forget the pasture; we’re raising anchor and shoving off to sea. In return, the coaching staff -- from the head coaches down to the position coaches -- will have to embrace their role as educators. They will work with me, the front office, and the scouts to define what’s essential for good player evaluation...

The implication is that this model is not the rule.