Free agency is still a long ways away, the combine is still a long ways away, and then not knowing who you get in free agency going into the draft make this way to early to do. What the heck though.
Restructure:
Marshall
Dansby
McDaniel
Extend/Restructure:
Long
Bush
Starks
Cut/Severly Restructure:
Bell
Resign:
Langford
Merling
FA:
Matt Flynn QB
Evan Mathis OG
Erin Henderson OLB
Brent Grimes CB
Reggie Nelson FS
Pierre Garcon WR
Mario Williams OLB
Jerom Messam RB (signed)
add role players
Draft (1st 4 picks only for now, trying to learn the deeper draft picks)
1)Riley Reiff OT
2)Orson Charles TE
3)Harrison Smith SS
4)Jack Bequette DE
Potential: OL set, TE set, RB set, WR set, QB set, DL average/above average, LB mostly set/set ILB depends if someone steps up which I think they will, CB average/above average/should be set if they would ever play to their potential, S average/above average?
I think that would be a pretty sweet offseason. Also a pipe dream probably.
No GUTS!! Try this:
(1) F/A SIGNINGS: MARIO WILLIAMS (alternative: AVRIL), CARL NICKS, JEROME MESSAM, REGGIE NELSON, and HILLIARD (RFA, I believe).
(2) RESTRUCTURE-AND-EXTEND: MARSHALL, LONG, DANSBY, SOLIAI, BUSH, STARKS, and McDANIEL.
(3) CUT OUTRIGHT: BELL, MISI, I-A-F, SLATON, and MERLING.
(4) TRADE: BESS, LANGFORD (sign and trade, alternative to "LET WALK", below).
(5) LET WALK: HENNE, CAREY, and LANGFORD.
(6) EXTEND: MOORE... for 5 Yeears, w/more money, etc..
(7) DRAFT: Depends on how MIAMI does at F/A. But assuming that (a) MIAMI gets either NICKS or GRUBBS (sp?), and (b) has the good sense THIS season to save a little extra "cap" money to pick up a "cap casualty" OLman (an "aging veteran" who has a little gas left in his tank and STILL WANTS to play football--MIAMI did NOT go after one last season, and once everyone good was gone, had to settle for COLUMBO and move CAREY to G!!!), MIAMI won't NEED a 1st Round OLman. With M WILLIAMS/AVRIL, a DE/OLB pass-rusher isn't a big need, either: it's always desirable, but not a need.
Round 1--T RICHARDSON; if he's gone, then either UPSHAW or COPLES. No trading down: we want a topshelf playmaker, on "O" or "D".
Round 2--WEEDEN/TANNEHILL. If both are gone, best available TE. (NOTE: I'd like to trade up for BLACKMON, but that's a pipedream!! This is the only REALISTIC place where I'd trade up, to the top of the 2nd, w/picks 4, 5, 6, 7, to get it done!)
Round 3--Best PR/KR, regardless of position. (This would let CLYDE concentrate on becoming a deep threat WR.)
BESS PICK--Best DB available, preferably a CB.
I would NOT risk megabucks on P MANNING. I would also not "mortgage the farm" to get RG III. And FLYNN has a very thin resumee, and has always worked on a great team w/a great OL and great "weapons", not to mention coaching. LSU and GB are worlds apart from the 2011 MIAMI DOLPHINS. I wonder how FLYNN would do on a brand new team, w/no preseason worth mentioning, and gettinog only "back-up QB's reps", w/COLUMBO-CAREY guarding his right side, the lingering stench of PARCELLSBALL, and the "weapons" that MIAMI had last season? And lastly, there's the question of "armstrength": FLYNN's "arm" is no bigger than MOORE's.
MOORE posted 6-6, after an 0-3 start. By my count, COLUMBO alone/almost alone (CAREY) accounted for 6 stalled drives/game. Seeing as how DALLAS beat us by 1, DENVER beat us in OT, and the GIANTS and N.E.II both beat us by 3, and considering how good CARPENTER is, ONE lousy FG more beats 2 of those teams (DALLAS and DENVER), and a TD or 2 FGs beats the 2 best teams in the freakin' NFL. And seeing as how, even under HENNE, CLEVELAND beat us by 3 and HOUSTON and SD beat us by 6, ONE TD beats ALL of them.
I believe in putting the blame where it belongs. QB is certainly NOT the problem here: we all (deep down) know--repeat, KNOW--where the problem(s) were. I feel that MOORE has ALL of the tools to be very solid and maybe even a "franchise" QB. I also feel that he has earned a solid shot at the starting QB position: in fact, it should be HIS TO LOSE. It would take the STRONGEST testimonial of FLYNN by Coach PHILBIN for me to consider FLYNN at all! And I certainly wouldn't hand him the starting QB job, no matter WHAT Coach PHILBIN wanted. And ABSOLUTELY AND POSITIVELY, I would not give ANY back-up QB "KOLB MONEY". That was tried: we all saw the results. (We ourselves got a small sample w/AJ FEELEY. Remember him? Money and a 2nd Round Draft pick: how'd we do?)
I choose to believe my own eyes, and use my intellect. I've seen MOORE perform, and I've seen what he had to deal with. It wasn't a superior situation like GB and LSU, and it wasn't great coaching. And I have considered FLYNN's resumee--all 2 games of it--and the other factors that I mentioned. He's an unknown at best, even for PHILBIN. College gets you only so far, especially when you're on a powerful team. So does "practice". As to NFL game experience, a "warning light" keeps coming on for me: "insufficient data"!! And I'm talking about the ONLY data that really matters: NFL games that count!
Here's a final thought. I value Coach PHILBIN's opinion, but even w/his strong endorsement of FLYNN, I'm STILL UNEASY. After all, CAM-CAM was a great OC who came to MIAMI to be HC, and liked BECK in the 2nd Round. Remember him? How did THAT work out for us??? As to what ROSS wants, ROSS is an idiot as to things football.
