RealDriscoll
Still Perfect.. and You're Not.
The Miami Dolphins will contend in 2010
Let’s look at what the plan was for Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland, and Tony Sparano because understanding that gives one true perspective on where this team is currently and where the are heading for the future. The first part of the plan was to build the offensive and defensive line. The Dolphins signed free-agent guard Justin Smiley who when healthy is one of the league’s top notch guard and they made sure to further address the offensive line by drafting Jake Long and Donald Thomas. Jake Long has made it to the Pro-Bowl in both of his seasons as a Miami Dolphins and more importantly the trifecta nailed the 1st overall pick. Had we had drafted Chris Long or Glenn Dorsey this team would still have been in the bottom-feeders of this league. The Dolphins decided to keep Vernon Carey around and upgrading the Center position by signing Jake Grive. Right now our Offensive Line has 4 pro-bowl quality players in Carey, Grove, Smiley, and obviously Jake Long. Donald Thomas has played well but need to overcome the label of injury prone. Nate Garner came onto the scene this year playing four positions on the offensive line and really giving us some serious depth options on the line. In fact Garner ended up starting 9 games in 2009; we also have seriously upgraded our defensive line in the past two seasons. We signed Randy Starks as a free agent two seasons ago and this guy is the one of the top 3-4 Defensive Ends in this league. We drafted Kendall Langford and Phillip Merling who are young players who are stout against the run and are getting better and better. We traded a 7th round draft pick to the Jaguars for Tony McDaniel who has provided some nice depth for us. We have a serious whole at nose tackle and after watching Paul Soliai closely since taking over as the starter after the injury of Jason Ferguson I am convinced he is a good depth player but is not our answer as a starting nose-tackle. Goal number one was accomplished as the Dolphins now have one of the best starting offensive lines in all of football and a great rotation at defensive end.
The 2008 Draft is turning out to be special with the dominant Jake Long being selected with the additions of Donald Thomas, Phillip Merling, and Kendall Langford but no selection under Bill Parcells has been as important as when the Dolphins selected Chad Henne. I have not missed a Chad Henne snap and I have seen not only our Quarterback of the future but our player of the future. Throw the stats out the window as that is not what is important when reviewing the play of essentially a rookie Quarterback and you will know what I am talking about. Henne has made his share of mistakes and the most encouraging part is that he always bounced back and made a big-play to follow a mistake. Whenever we needed a big throw Chad Henne made it 9/10 times and we got a chance to see Henne roll off three games in a row where he threw for 300 yards; we got to see Chad Henne tie Chad Pennington’s record of 17 straight completions. The things that stand out to me about Henne are his poise and his live-arm. I watched this kid make throws that only one quarterback in the history of the Miami Dolphins (Dan Marino) has been able to make. Apparently I am not the only one who is impressed with Henne as he is receiving rave review and to the extent that NFL.com listed Chad Henne as a Pro-Bowl Quarterback in the future. The big-time passing game has been revived in Miami and finding this guy some weapons should be priority one this off-season.
The jury is still out on the 2009 Draft Class in Miami but I can tell that the three players we selected in this draft are ball-players. Vontae Davis was our 1st Round Pick and he a fellow rookie corner Sean Smith had their share of ups and downs but these guys played very well for a pair of rookie corners. Davis was physical as expected but made some big plays as well with his 4 interceptions in which he returned a Trent Edwards pass to a Miami Dolphins touchdown. Sean Smith didn’t get any picks in the regular season but showed great success against the NFL’s elite receivers such as Reggie Wayne and Andre Johnson. The guy who really impressed me this season was Brian Hartline; Hartline caught 3 touchdowns and ran another one in but this guy showed reliable hands, grit, and even the knack for a big play. Pat White and Patrick Turner have been major disappointments thus far but to call them a bust would be unqualified as they are young into their playing careers. On a site note I wish Pat White a speedy recovery from the horrible hit he suffered. I cannot believe they waived the flag they initially throw.
I guess it’s hard not to be optimistic about the future when you have seen what Jeff Ireland has been able to do to this franchise in just two seasons and it helps that Vontae Davis, Jake Long, Sean Smith, Brian Hartline, Chad Henne, Phil Merling, Randy Starks, Kendall Langford etc. are young players who are going to be around making plays for us for a long time to come. Am I disappointed? Nope I can say I really am not. The Dolphins lost Chad Pennington, Ronnie Brown, Will Allen, and Jason Ferguson who were four of the best players on this team. This team showed a lot of fight coming back from big deficits against the Texans, Titans, and Steelers; they showed swagger playing the Colts and Saints whom are two of the NFL’s elite to the wire. Ronnie Brown was the teams best player and I think if he had not been injured we would be playing against the Patriots in a Wild-Card game next weekend. I’d be a fool not to admit this team has their fair share of issues because they do and I plan on addressing them later on but I think the Miami Dolphins are the up and coming team of the NFL.
So we have free agency and the draft to get even better and our off-season starts now so why don’t we take a look at this team from position to position. We can start with looking at our Quarterbacks. Chad Henne is this teams’ Quarterback and the truth is that Tyler Thigpen is our backup. Patrick White proved in Sundays’ loss to the Steelers that he hasn’t passed the learning curve yet but this guy can be a special formation play-maker for us in the future. He needs to come into camp for a full off-season and really start to grasp the pro game. Thigpen came in and made some plays even avoiding a James Harrison sack and throwing a long touchdown to Davone Bess. I can go on and on with praises for Chad Henne and I will end it on this note I have watched Joe Flacco and I have watched Matt Ryan and with far less weapons Chad Henne is the best Quarterback of the three. That’s how high I am on Mr. Henne;
With us being set at Quarterback let’s look at our Running Back situation. Ronnie Brown is starting to concern me big time as he seems to get bitten by the injury bug on a yearly basis. Luckily this current injury is no way related to the ACL tear he suffered two seasons ago. The truth is that losing Brown was an injury our young team couldn’t overcome. Brown was the catalyst of our “Wild-Cat” offense. You can label it a gimmick or whatever else you want but the fact is that it is effective for the Miami Dolphins when Ronnie Brown is taking the snaps. Brown had a Pro-Bowl season in 2008 and was well on his way before his injury and with all that said we need to lock him up for the long haul. He is a special back who runs with power and his vision is truly improving. Ricky Williams was actually pretty reliable for us rushing for over 1100 yards and accounting for over 10 touchdowns on offense. Ricky Williams is one of the leagues best #2 backs in the league and keeping him around for another year or two would be ideal for keeping Ronnie Brown healthy. Lex Hilliard has played pretty well in limited time and I think it’s safe to say that he has earned the 3rd back job over Patrick Cobbs. I feel like we are pretty set at the Running Back position unless CJ Spiller can fall into our laps come April. Spiller is simply an electric football player who has world-class speed who can get to the corner better than any back in the league right now. Note that Spiller is also a dangerous return man as well. Loushake Polite is the best blocking fullback in football and also excels in short yardage situations. Whether he was “snubbed” from the Pro-Bowl doesn’t really matter as Polite has found a home in Miami.
Previously I stated we have one of the best offensive lines in the game and I think we have our starters on all on roster. I don’t see us making any big moves here, maybe we sign some depth. Since blocking is very important in our offense lets look at our tight end position. Kory Sperry had one good game in Miami, Joey Haynos is average at best, and Anthony Fasano was a major let-down for us. Fasano was very productive in 2008 but took a step back this season in my opinion. I wouldn’t mind keeping him but it would be as the #2 tight end in our offense. We need to keep an eye on Jermaine Gresham of Oklahoma as a real possibility come April as he can stretch the field and is an above average blocker as well. Tight End is the first position I think is a major need for us going into the off-season.
Speaking of needs the biggest need for the Miami Dolphins is a legitimate #1 receiver. To think Vincent Jackson gets out of San Diego or Miles Austin gets out of Dallas is crazy but keep an eye on Brandon Marshall. Marshall is among the league’s top five Wide Receivers and if this guy some how gets available he is good enough and young enough at 25 years old that we should consider trading our 1st Round Pick for him. If we can’t get a big name in free agency we better put Dez Bryant on our Draft Board and circle his name with a big black sharpie marker. Dez Bryant is exactly what this team needs. I know one thing for sure and that is that Ted Ginn Jr. is not the answer. Brian Hartline and Davone Bess have proved that they are very capable supporting receivers in this league. I sang my praises on Hartline earlier so I’ll save it but to me Davone Bess is the best slot receiver in football not named Wes Welker. Greg Camarillo is a guy who will come out and give you 100% on every snap. Having Bess, Hartline, and Camarillo as you’re #3,4, and 5 receivers is a good situation. I will not write Ted Ginn Jr. off as we have seen glimpses of how special his speed can be but Ginn really has to dedicate himself to the game and play with a hunger ala Percy Harvin or DeSean Jackson. I don’t see the passion in Ginn and that concerns me.
We are set at Defensive End but Nose Tackle is a major need. Soliai is good for depth but need a starter. Signing Jason Ferguson for a one year deal wouldn’t hurt my feelings nor would chasing a free agent like Casey Hampton. I would love to see Vince Wilfork in Miami but that won’t happen.
Our secondary has some question but none of them are at Cornerback. Vontae Davis and Sean Smith are the starters going forward and we get Will Allen back from injury who will give as a very good Nickel-Back. We could look to add another corner with Nathan Jones looking at free agency and Jason Allen likely being a cap casualty due to his high salary and lack of production. Our secondary concerns are at safety. Gibril Wilson and Yeremiah Bell are both safeties that play well against the run but do not excel in coverage. We need to pick one of them to be our Strong Safety and the other we need to either release or trade. So we seem to be set at Cornerback and Strong Safety but we have a major question mark at Free Safety. Chris Clemons was selected from Clemson in Round 5 of the 2009 and played well in limited work. There is not enough tape on him to say he is our answer at Free Safety so getting a veteran to come in and compete with him would be ideal. Should by any strange reason Eric Berry of Tennessee fall into our laps we shouldn’t hesitate to make the pick.
So we have needs of Nose Tackle, Free Safety, #1 Wide Receiver, Tight End, and let’s not forget linebacker. Joey Porter likely is done in Miami, Jason Taylor is a free agent, and Reggie Torbor and Akin Ayodele play doesn’t equate to their salaries so replacing these guys are major priorities as well. Signing Jason Taylor to a one year extension would be ideal as he played a pretty high level this season. Not to mention that youngster Cameron Wake who is the teams’ best pass rusher and has the best bull-rush I have seen in the league could learn a lot from another season with Jason Taylor. Wake needs to improve against the run and in coverage but this guy is a pass rushing force. This years’ draft is loaded with Outside Linebackers such as Jerry Hughes of TCU, Von Miller of Texas A&M, Ricky Sapp of Clemson, Dexter Davis of Arizona State, Brandon Lang of Troy, Brandon Graham of Michigan, and many more but the guy I want is Shawn Merriman. Merriman is done in San Diego and we know Parcells was very high on him in 2005. He is exactly what we need in Miami and could come at the salary we were paying Joey Porter. Channing Crowder made his best season in Miami and would be very good as the #2 inside linebacker. The debate has already begun whether we take Brandon Spikes or Rolando McClain with our 1st Round pick. Either player, Spikes or McClain, would be an immediate upgrade and I feel like this is the way we go if Dez Bryant is off the board when we pick. I think the linebacker position will be the focus of our free agency spending and Demeco Ryans, D’Qwell Jackson, and Karlos Dansby are names worth watching as well for our Inside Linebacker position.
Another need not mentioned is for a return man. Ted Ginn Jr. is not decisive enough to return kicks and punts so this is an area worth focusing on as well. Besides that we are set on special teams as Dan Carpenter has been “money” and Brandon Fields has improved his consistency.
That’s my perspective on a team whose future is bright and is a few players away from being among the best teams in the league. Free agency is just around the corner and addressing some of our needs here is the first step and then comes the draft in Aprils where we hold the #12 pick in the 1st Round, #11 pick in Round 2, #10 pick in Round 3, # 12 pick in Round 4, 3 picks in Round 6, and 2 picks in Round 7. If the Dolphins can find a legitimate # 1 receiver, a Nose Tackle, and solve their linebacker woes than we won’t be playing sixteen game seasons anymore in Miami.
