Trowa
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I'm not sure if it's exactly warranted at this point, but I'm feeling very optimistic about our WR corp going into this season. We've gotten rid of huge cap numbers in Chris Chambers and the slow as Christmas Marty Booker. Despite some hard feelings from some about these moves you can't deny that getting a 2nd round pick for the Chris Chambers that played in Miami and clearing up several million to sign other free agents for this rebuilding team is what's in the best interest for the Dolphins. I still think we need to add one more WR who can make plays to bolster a thin WR corp and really push Hagan and Wilford to give it their all. I think that guy could well be DJ Hall from Alabama with our 3rd round pick. This kid is a game changer on a Crimson Tide team that doesn't throw the ball all that much. In his senior season he racked up 67 receptions for 1005 yards and 6 TDs. And that was with John Parker Wilson throwing to him. Now those stats aren't the best around but he certainly demonstrated that he has all the skills and intangibles to translate well to the NFL. He's a dedicated, intelligent, and downright impressive WR who studies the game of football, stays out of trouble and works well with his QB. He would certainly be a welcome addition to the Miami Dolphins in my opinion.
Now lets examine the WRs we already have on our roster. The first of which being Ted Ginn Jr. Despite the controversy surrounding his draft position with Brady Quinn still on the board last year, the fact remains that he is ours now, we can't change the past and the Dolphins organization can only do everything they can to get the highest level of play out of Ginn. He obviously has world class speed clocking a 4.2 40 at the combine last year. And his speed and quickness translated well to the football field. His small size did at time make him easy to disrupt on the bump and run, but as the season progressed and he got more familiar with the game and his teammates his stats improved tremendously. In the first 11 games of the season he had 15 receptions for 240 yards, 9 for 1st downs and 1 TD. In the final 5 contests he had 19 receptions for 180 yards, 9 for 1st downs and a TD. And there were several other times when he was open and had beaten his man deep that Cleo Lemon was just not able to get the ball to him. This kid is a burner and I think will only continue to progress as we establish consistency in the offense. This isn't even counting his punt return for a TD and his 22.7 yard KR average. And we all know that it takes 3 years for a WR to really shine in the NFL. So I think there is plenty of reason for optimism with this kid.
The next guy I will examine is the guy I'm projecting to be our #2 guy at this point, Ernest Wilford. The first thing that jumps out at you about Wilford is his size. At 6'4'' and 218lbs this is not some guy who can just push around. And adding a 6'4'' WR who can win most jump ball situations is a huge boost to a team that had one of the lowest red zone scoring percentages in the NFL last year. Wilford has been in the league for 5 years now and over that time has 141 receptions for 1994 yards and 14 touchdowns. 108 of his receptions have been for 1st downs and he has a 14.1 ypc avg. That means that 87% of the passes this guy catches go for touchdowns or first downs. Definately a guy who can move the sticks for you and due to his size makes an amazing option as a #2 outside WR. You can't expect him to put up Terell Owens or Randy Moss numbers but he is clutch and was definately a good signing for this team.
Derek Hagan, with the departure or Booker, Welker and Chambers over the past 2 seasons, has kind of stumbled into the #3 WR spot by default at this point. The knock on Hagan to this point in his career has been a lack of focus and poor hands. Both of these are very valid points and are major concerns as far as his development goes. But he does have the potential. He was a standout at Arizona State and his size (6'2'' 203lbs) indicates that he could become a successful WR in this league. His rookie season saw him play in all 16 games with zero starts racking up 21 rec for 221 yards and 1 TD. His sophomore season saw him again play in all 16 games starting only 1 and accruing 29 receptions for 373 yards and 2 TDs. There is definately a marked improvement over the 2 seasons. Again this is a guy who I think will benefit from stability in the offense and the coaching staff. This will be his 3rd Head coach in his 3rd season in the NFL. Key number there is 3rd season in the NFL, the breakout year for WRs. If Hagan can focus in and improve his game I think he can be the guy we thought he would become when we traded Chris Chambers to the Chargers. It's certainly not time to give up on him yet.
Finally there are some of our new free agent signing and some of our depth players. Greg Camarillo finished the year with 8 receptions for 160 yards and 2 TDs. He's certainly not going to play a major role in the offense this year, at least not that I see. But after the game winning TD against the Ravens in OT I say he deserves to be a life long Dolphin if he wants to. David Kirkus is another guy who will most likely be used as a special teamer if he even makes the final roster. In 3 years of NFL service beginning in 2003 he has compiled 2 starts with 15 receptions for 308 yards and 1 TD. Not very good numbers at all and nothing to inspire much confidence or make you think he will make a huge impact on this team. And then there is our most recent addition Tab Perry from Cincinnati. Another player who, if he makes the final roster, will contribute mainly on special teams. In 3 years with the Bengals he started 1 game and had 10 receptions for 109 yards and 1 TD. He also averaged 23.7 yards on 75 kick returns but missed 28 games over the past 2 seasons with a hip injury. So not a reliable option though I would like to see Ginn taken off kick return duty and worked more into an actual WR role.
So obviously there is plenty of room for improvement in this WR corp, and the depth we have is not ideal, but this is a rebuilding team and I think we have some solid building blocks here with Ginn, Wilford and Hagan. As I stated earlier I am really hoping we target DJ Hall in the 3rd round of this draft. I really like that kid. And just imagine having DJ Hall as flanker, Ernest Wilford on the outside and Ted Ginn in the slot. I think that the offense is headed in the right direction and that once we establish an offense that will be in place more than one year and a quarterback who will be our starter for more than one year these young guys can really develop their talents. Say what you will about our WRs and yes at times all of them have played poor football, but familiarity and chemistry with team mates is possibly more important to the WR position than any other position on offense. Of course this is all just my opinion, I could be wrong.
Now lets examine the WRs we already have on our roster. The first of which being Ted Ginn Jr. Despite the controversy surrounding his draft position with Brady Quinn still on the board last year, the fact remains that he is ours now, we can't change the past and the Dolphins organization can only do everything they can to get the highest level of play out of Ginn. He obviously has world class speed clocking a 4.2 40 at the combine last year. And his speed and quickness translated well to the football field. His small size did at time make him easy to disrupt on the bump and run, but as the season progressed and he got more familiar with the game and his teammates his stats improved tremendously. In the first 11 games of the season he had 15 receptions for 240 yards, 9 for 1st downs and 1 TD. In the final 5 contests he had 19 receptions for 180 yards, 9 for 1st downs and a TD. And there were several other times when he was open and had beaten his man deep that Cleo Lemon was just not able to get the ball to him. This kid is a burner and I think will only continue to progress as we establish consistency in the offense. This isn't even counting his punt return for a TD and his 22.7 yard KR average. And we all know that it takes 3 years for a WR to really shine in the NFL. So I think there is plenty of reason for optimism with this kid.
The next guy I will examine is the guy I'm projecting to be our #2 guy at this point, Ernest Wilford. The first thing that jumps out at you about Wilford is his size. At 6'4'' and 218lbs this is not some guy who can just push around. And adding a 6'4'' WR who can win most jump ball situations is a huge boost to a team that had one of the lowest red zone scoring percentages in the NFL last year. Wilford has been in the league for 5 years now and over that time has 141 receptions for 1994 yards and 14 touchdowns. 108 of his receptions have been for 1st downs and he has a 14.1 ypc avg. That means that 87% of the passes this guy catches go for touchdowns or first downs. Definately a guy who can move the sticks for you and due to his size makes an amazing option as a #2 outside WR. You can't expect him to put up Terell Owens or Randy Moss numbers but he is clutch and was definately a good signing for this team.
Derek Hagan, with the departure or Booker, Welker and Chambers over the past 2 seasons, has kind of stumbled into the #3 WR spot by default at this point. The knock on Hagan to this point in his career has been a lack of focus and poor hands. Both of these are very valid points and are major concerns as far as his development goes. But he does have the potential. He was a standout at Arizona State and his size (6'2'' 203lbs) indicates that he could become a successful WR in this league. His rookie season saw him play in all 16 games with zero starts racking up 21 rec for 221 yards and 1 TD. His sophomore season saw him again play in all 16 games starting only 1 and accruing 29 receptions for 373 yards and 2 TDs. There is definately a marked improvement over the 2 seasons. Again this is a guy who I think will benefit from stability in the offense and the coaching staff. This will be his 3rd Head coach in his 3rd season in the NFL. Key number there is 3rd season in the NFL, the breakout year for WRs. If Hagan can focus in and improve his game I think he can be the guy we thought he would become when we traded Chris Chambers to the Chargers. It's certainly not time to give up on him yet.
Finally there are some of our new free agent signing and some of our depth players. Greg Camarillo finished the year with 8 receptions for 160 yards and 2 TDs. He's certainly not going to play a major role in the offense this year, at least not that I see. But after the game winning TD against the Ravens in OT I say he deserves to be a life long Dolphin if he wants to. David Kirkus is another guy who will most likely be used as a special teamer if he even makes the final roster. In 3 years of NFL service beginning in 2003 he has compiled 2 starts with 15 receptions for 308 yards and 1 TD. Not very good numbers at all and nothing to inspire much confidence or make you think he will make a huge impact on this team. And then there is our most recent addition Tab Perry from Cincinnati. Another player who, if he makes the final roster, will contribute mainly on special teams. In 3 years with the Bengals he started 1 game and had 10 receptions for 109 yards and 1 TD. He also averaged 23.7 yards on 75 kick returns but missed 28 games over the past 2 seasons with a hip injury. So not a reliable option though I would like to see Ginn taken off kick return duty and worked more into an actual WR role.
So obviously there is plenty of room for improvement in this WR corp, and the depth we have is not ideal, but this is a rebuilding team and I think we have some solid building blocks here with Ginn, Wilford and Hagan. As I stated earlier I am really hoping we target DJ Hall in the 3rd round of this draft. I really like that kid. And just imagine having DJ Hall as flanker, Ernest Wilford on the outside and Ted Ginn in the slot. I think that the offense is headed in the right direction and that once we establish an offense that will be in place more than one year and a quarterback who will be our starter for more than one year these young guys can really develop their talents. Say what you will about our WRs and yes at times all of them have played poor football, but familiarity and chemistry with team mates is possibly more important to the WR position than any other position on offense. Of course this is all just my opinion, I could be wrong.
