Yesterday I picked up a copy of Lindy's 2009 Pro Football preview magazine. Just like it has been for years, Donovan McNabb is on the cover for my region. :crazy:
Obviously these preview magazines don't really tell you anything about your team that you don't already know. I like getting them, because it allows me to read up on other teams and other players throughout the league. I personally believe Lindy's preview is by far the best one you can buy. Anyways, let me share with you some of the interesting nuggets this preview magazine has for our beloved Dolphins.
* How they see the AFC East shaking out:
1. Patriots
2. Dolphins
3. Bills
4. Jets
The quote beside the Dolphins prediction reads: "It wouldn't be surprising to see the Dolphins take a step back, but whatever happens, it will be fun watching how they use rookie Pat White."
The Patriots are the only team they see making the playoffs this season.
* Their view on our draft:
They gave the Dolphins an overall grade of B+. Compared to the rest of the division, the Patriots got an A, the Jets got a B- and the Bills got a B.
They gave a review of each pick, but I am not going to type everything they wrote. Instead here are some things that stood out in their review:
1. Says Clemons in the 5th round has a reach.
2. Nalbone was the first ever player drafted from Monmouth.
3. White should be very effective in the wildcat formation. If he doesn't pan out as a QB, he should be able to switch to WR and become an Antwaan Randle El type player.
4. Turner has been unfairly judged by what recent Trojan busts at wideout have done in the pros.
At the bottom of each team's review they have three bulletins(Good Move, Tell me why and Could surprise).
Good Move: Turner is not in the same category as some past flops from Southern California, and should fill a big need.
Tell Me Why: Why have so many critics blasted a solid Dolphins draft?
Could Surprise: White might find his way onto the field more than anyone imagines.
* NFL player rankings:
In this section of the magazine, they rank the best players at every position.
QB - No Dolphins QB in the top 10 listed.
WR - This group is broken down into best No. 1, Best No. 2 and Best No. 3. No Dolphins receivers listed in any section. Ted Ginn is listed as having a "Breakout Season" in 2009.
TE - Fasano is listed as the 9th best TE in the game. Also, Fasano has earned the label of "Breakout Season" for 2009.
RB - This group is broken into four groups. Ground-Based, All-Purpose, Second Backs and Third Backs. Ronnie Brown is the 2nd ranked All-Purpose back behind LaDainian Tomlinson. Ricky Williams is ranked as the 8th best Second Back. Patrick Cobbs is listed as the 4th best Third Back.
FB - No Dolphins in the top 10. Polite is listed as being the "Most Underrated" fullback.
OT - This group is broken into two groups. Left Tackle and Right Tackle. Jake Long is listed as the 6th best LT. Vernon Carey is listed as the 2nd best RT.
OG - This group is broken into two groups. Left Guard and Right Guard. Justin Smiley is ranked as the 8th best LG. No Dolphins in the top 10 at RG.
C - No Dolphins in the top 10. Grove is listed as having a "breakout season" in 2009.
DE - Broken into two groups. Left End and Right End. No Dolphins in either category. Langford and Merling are listed as being "The Best Future Tandem".
DT - Broken into two groups. Defensive Tackles and Nose Tackles. Jason Ferguson is listed as the 11th best NT.
ILB - No Dolphins in the top 15. Crowder is listed under the "Time is Now" section.
OLB - Broken up into two groups. Weak Side and Strong Side. Porter is listed as the 7th best weak side linebacker. Matt Roth is listed as the 10th best strong side linebacker.
CB - Broken up into two groups. Best No. 1 and Best No. 2. No Dolphins make either list. Vontae Davis is listed as the "Best Rookie".
S - Broken into two groups. Strong Safeties and Free Safeties. Yeremiah Bell is listed as the 9th best SS. Gibril Wilson is listed as the 8th best FS. (Side Note: They list Miami as having the 6th best secondary in the league)
K - No Dolphins listed in top 10.
P - No Dolphins listed in top 10.
* Position Grades:
Every year they look at each position for every team and give them a score on a 1-10 scale. 1 being the worst and 10 being the best. Though in all my years reading this magazine, I have never seen a score lower then 5.0. Here are the Dolphins grades:
Coaching: 8
Quarterbacks: 8
Running Backs: 8
Receivers: 7
Offensive Line: 7.5
Defensive Line: 6.5
Linebackers:7.5
Secondary: 8
Special Teams: 7
Intangibles: Even
* Other nuggets:
1. They list Pat White as our "Key Addition"
2. They list Andre Goodman as our "Key Loss"
3. With the return of JT, "Porter will be fresher and more dangerous than ever".
4. We have no real depth at NT.
5. Wilson is a "playmaker" and upgrade over Renaldo Hill.
6. Long will be a cornerstone left tackle for the next decade.
They have a section that ranks every NFL front office and puts them into different categories. The categories(from best to worst) are "The Penthouse", "Next in Line", "High Rent District", "On the rise", "Middling", "On the decline", "Cellar Dwellers", and "Projecting".
The Patriots are in "The Penthouse", the Dolphins are in the "On the rise", the Bills are in the "Middling" and the Jets are in the "On the decline".
Obviously there is a lot more information about the Dolphins and the NFL then what I listed above. This is just a small glimpse at Lindy's preview of the Dolphins.
Obviously these preview magazines don't really tell you anything about your team that you don't already know. I like getting them, because it allows me to read up on other teams and other players throughout the league. I personally believe Lindy's preview is by far the best one you can buy. Anyways, let me share with you some of the interesting nuggets this preview magazine has for our beloved Dolphins.
* How they see the AFC East shaking out:
1. Patriots
2. Dolphins
3. Bills
4. Jets
The quote beside the Dolphins prediction reads: "It wouldn't be surprising to see the Dolphins take a step back, but whatever happens, it will be fun watching how they use rookie Pat White."
The Patriots are the only team they see making the playoffs this season.
* Their view on our draft:
They gave the Dolphins an overall grade of B+. Compared to the rest of the division, the Patriots got an A, the Jets got a B- and the Bills got a B.
They gave a review of each pick, but I am not going to type everything they wrote. Instead here are some things that stood out in their review:
1. Says Clemons in the 5th round has a reach.
2. Nalbone was the first ever player drafted from Monmouth.
3. White should be very effective in the wildcat formation. If he doesn't pan out as a QB, he should be able to switch to WR and become an Antwaan Randle El type player.
4. Turner has been unfairly judged by what recent Trojan busts at wideout have done in the pros.
At the bottom of each team's review they have three bulletins(Good Move, Tell me why and Could surprise).
Good Move: Turner is not in the same category as some past flops from Southern California, and should fill a big need.
Tell Me Why: Why have so many critics blasted a solid Dolphins draft?
Could Surprise: White might find his way onto the field more than anyone imagines.
* NFL player rankings:
In this section of the magazine, they rank the best players at every position.
QB - No Dolphins QB in the top 10 listed.
WR - This group is broken down into best No. 1, Best No. 2 and Best No. 3. No Dolphins receivers listed in any section. Ted Ginn is listed as having a "Breakout Season" in 2009.
TE - Fasano is listed as the 9th best TE in the game. Also, Fasano has earned the label of "Breakout Season" for 2009.
RB - This group is broken into four groups. Ground-Based, All-Purpose, Second Backs and Third Backs. Ronnie Brown is the 2nd ranked All-Purpose back behind LaDainian Tomlinson. Ricky Williams is ranked as the 8th best Second Back. Patrick Cobbs is listed as the 4th best Third Back.
FB - No Dolphins in the top 10. Polite is listed as being the "Most Underrated" fullback.
OT - This group is broken into two groups. Left Tackle and Right Tackle. Jake Long is listed as the 6th best LT. Vernon Carey is listed as the 2nd best RT.
OG - This group is broken into two groups. Left Guard and Right Guard. Justin Smiley is ranked as the 8th best LG. No Dolphins in the top 10 at RG.
C - No Dolphins in the top 10. Grove is listed as having a "breakout season" in 2009.
DE - Broken into two groups. Left End and Right End. No Dolphins in either category. Langford and Merling are listed as being "The Best Future Tandem".
DT - Broken into two groups. Defensive Tackles and Nose Tackles. Jason Ferguson is listed as the 11th best NT.
ILB - No Dolphins in the top 15. Crowder is listed under the "Time is Now" section.
OLB - Broken up into two groups. Weak Side and Strong Side. Porter is listed as the 7th best weak side linebacker. Matt Roth is listed as the 10th best strong side linebacker.
CB - Broken up into two groups. Best No. 1 and Best No. 2. No Dolphins make either list. Vontae Davis is listed as the "Best Rookie".
S - Broken into two groups. Strong Safeties and Free Safeties. Yeremiah Bell is listed as the 9th best SS. Gibril Wilson is listed as the 8th best FS. (Side Note: They list Miami as having the 6th best secondary in the league)
K - No Dolphins listed in top 10.
P - No Dolphins listed in top 10.
* Position Grades:
Every year they look at each position for every team and give them a score on a 1-10 scale. 1 being the worst and 10 being the best. Though in all my years reading this magazine, I have never seen a score lower then 5.0. Here are the Dolphins grades:
Coaching: 8
Quarterbacks: 8
Running Backs: 8
Receivers: 7
Offensive Line: 7.5
Defensive Line: 6.5
Linebackers:7.5
Secondary: 8
Special Teams: 7
Intangibles: Even
* Other nuggets:
1. They list Pat White as our "Key Addition"
2. They list Andre Goodman as our "Key Loss"
3. With the return of JT, "Porter will be fresher and more dangerous than ever".
4. We have no real depth at NT.
5. Wilson is a "playmaker" and upgrade over Renaldo Hill.
6. Long will be a cornerstone left tackle for the next decade.
They have a section that ranks every NFL front office and puts them into different categories. The categories(from best to worst) are "The Penthouse", "Next in Line", "High Rent District", "On the rise", "Middling", "On the decline", "Cellar Dwellers", and "Projecting".
The Patriots are in "The Penthouse", the Dolphins are in the "On the rise", the Bills are in the "Middling" and the Jets are in the "On the decline".
Obviously there is a lot more information about the Dolphins and the NFL then what I listed above. This is just a small glimpse at Lindy's preview of the Dolphins.
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