My opinion is that Matt Moore would have alot better chemistry with Mike Wallace. even though im in the minority I havent seen enough tangible progress from RT. Coaching is an issue but honestly there is key throws he is missing and to many plays left on the field I firmly believe Matt Moore gives us the best chance to win right now.

Nice Article from Rant Sports About Ryan Tannehill

http://www.rantsports.com/nfl/2013/06/03/ryan-tannehill-biggest-x-factor-for-miami-dolphins-heading-into-2013/

This article is stating hat Ryan Tannehill is the biggest x factor going in to this year and I tend to agree. We have added a lot of weapons such as Mike Wallace to take the top of opposing defenses, Dustin Keller to stretch the middle of the field so things Wallace isn't constantly double covered. In addition we added a premier right tackle in Tyson Clabo. As far as left tackle goes I think Jon Martin will be fine.

At any case all of this additions and positive energy are irrelevant if Ryan Tannehill doesn't take the next step forward. I believe he will for the following reasons. First he has the emotional make up I have honestly never seen him get rattled since last season, to this point in OTAs. He had an interview with the NFL Network the other day and I am very happy with the way he handled every question. Ryan really looks like he is coming out of his shell. Secondly he is very smart and his command of the offense is his strength. He has been in it since college. To top it of the physical tools have never been in question. I think this year the coaching staff will let him loose a bit more as far as letting him use his mobility and so forth.

All in all everything hinges on his shoulders. After all he was the 8th overall pick last year. He had a great year as he broke all the rookie records. I think this year is going to be special, I am confident with a year under his belt Ryan will be able to maximize not only his but all of his new weapons potentials. He will make everyone around him better. Isn't this what a franchise quarterback is supposed to do?

Heath Evans Critical or Bitter?

Heath Evans was invited on the Finsiders about a week ago to provide his analysis on the Miami Dolphins off season in general.  As you can imagine he was Heath Evans, opinionated, and not afraid to say what he feels. I have absolutely no issue with this. However I have an issue when objectivity is lost, and your arguments loose merit. This happened in several occasions during his interview.

To start lets point the elephant in the room. Yes Mike Wallace could be a lazy route runner sometimes and I am concerned that this could lead to one or two interceptions. That is one thing but to say that the Steelers didn’t want Wallace as a Pittsburgh Steeler is just inaccurate. The Steelers offered Wallace 75 million last year. Does this give the air of wanting to let go of someone? Another topic I had a problem with was him saying that we overpaid. Did we overpay? Maybe, but here is a reality check. Everyone has to overpay at some point in the NFL it’s the nature of the business. As a matter of fact the Dolphins have one of the healthiest cap rooms in the league right now even after investing over 100 million dollars. So if you want to say you don’t agree with some of the signings and their value fine. Here is the thing though using the terms monopoly money makes you sound ignorant, disrespectful, and bitter. Most importantly it got to the point where it sounded like he didn’t do his research. Specially if he thinks Dion Jordan would be a bust even if he had 18 sacks in a year.  Really? As far as replacing Dansby, and, Burnnet, Yes Dansby has a lot of experience I will give him that. He had a productive year last year as well. However in the business that is the NFL it is ideal to replace players before production declines. I also agree it was risky to bring in Ellerbee. Thing is sometimes risks need to be taken to be successful in this league, and there is no guarantees every time someone new comes in. Injuries, lack of scheme understanding, and inability to adapt to a new city are all factors to take in to account. That does not mean one has to wait until a certain player is ready to retire. Actually that would not be a recommended manner to handle an NFL roster.

The main thing to take away from this blog today is that I am all for expressing your thoughts and opinions. After all as Voltaire said I might not agree with what you have to say but ill defend to death your right to say it.  The catch here is that as an analyst you are asked to keep your objectivity during your analysis at all times. That right there is where Heath failed. He sounded like he had a grudge against Miami (who cut him) that he hasn’t been able to let go of. In his line of work that is the mother of all faults.

Miami Dolphins Have No What Ifs on The Surface..

  On paper it looks great, it really does. We have had a stellar off season; we should all be very excited about the immediate future. This organization has spent over 100 million dollars of Stephen Ross' money in order to win this year. Last year at this time we had some glaring questions. We had a "full blown QB competition" (Which I think in the eyes of the coaching staff was over when Garrard went down to an injury during father time). Wide receiver was the elephant in the room of course after Brandon Marshall was shipped off to reunite with Jay Cutler, and the organization decided to go with what they had. The Cornerback position has been an issue for me for a few years now. However last year the issue was magnified with the Vontae Davis trade. More than anything because we lost some depth, I mean we all saw what happened when Marshall went down to injury. Having to depend on Sean Smith (who isn't here, that tells you everything you need to know) and Nolan Carroll isn't the situation you want to be in, in my humble opinion. We have some guys such as Jordan, and Vernon in his second year coming back who can help compliment Wake. However it is important to mix in a little composure with all the excitement.

  This year a lot of those holes were addressed, they were addressed with a lot of speed, talent, and most importantly a lot of promise. For instance Linebacker. We replaced two guys who had productive years like Danby and Burnett. Granted some believe that Dansby never materialized in to what everyone thought he should be. That is beyond the point though. They were replaced by two younger and faster guys with a lot of potential. Wheeler, and Ellerbee. Thing is Ellerbe only really did it for one year, and got paid a lot of money just on what he could turn out to be. At Corner we brought in someone like Grimes who I think will bring this secondary to the next level. That is if he can stay healthy (There is an article in my blog on the matter), same at Tight end Dustin Keller is that "seam threat" guy we need in order for Wallace to have more space to maneuver. Again Keller had an off year last year due to injury, and we will have to see if he can stay on the field. Left Tackle is also a question mark with Jon Martin, but I think he will be fine. At safety we want to see if Reshad Jones can be consistent and do it again in his contract year. At Wide Receiver Wallace wasn't the only addition. Fan favorite and very productive Devone Bess was replaced with Brandon Gibson. Gibson is viewed by the coaching staff as more of a versatile red zone threat due to his size and ability to man all 3 Wide Receiver positions. However we let go of a guy in Bess who can play at least one position very effectively, for one who we are expecting to be poly functional at a high level. As far as pass rusher goes I want to see Vernon improve, and not fade away mid season. Jordan might not have a huge impact this year, but his future is very bright. (one of my favorite players in the draft)

  There are a few what ifs in this article. However every team always has what ifs in May. After all games are played from September right? I'm not trying to knock Jeff Ireland here for taking risks I actually applaud him for it. You can’t have it both ways. You can’t hate the guy when he doesn't pull the trigger, and hate him when he does. That's just not fair. All I'm trying to say is that on paper its set up to be a great season. We should all have high expectations (Specially Ross after spending all that money) Lets just keep our heads and take it one game at a time please. It’s not a race, it’s a marathon.

Reshad Jones Set to Make a Wise Move by Showing up To Work

 Voluntary conditioning sessions began yesterday. Almost everyone showed up and took part in this part of the off season program. There was one player who was missing though. Safety Reshad Jones who let the team in interceptions last year, and isn't happy with his contract situation. (An unwise business decision IMHO) The good news is that according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald Jones had a change of heart  and will be present at OTAs. That change of heart is said to come from a promise that Dolphins management made to his agent Joe Segal.

  Jones holding out is actually surprising to me personally. He seems like a humble, hard working guy. Holding out feels out of character for Reshad. I believe he should come to work everyday, like he has been doing and the money will eventually come. Just ask Paul Soliai for example. Reshad is really good, but hasn't proven he is great just yet. If he sat out we would suffer a hit in the secondary, no doubt. On the other hand sitting out dosen't help his cause. From a business standpoint it will only make him look immature, and childish in the eyes of  other teams. In addition the NFL is a show me league where you need to prove you can be consistent and the tape doesn't lie. It could be said right now Reshad is a one year wonder playing for a contract. He is not only playing for the Miami Dolphins but all 32 teams. I'm sure if he would've sat out ( Unlikely) some team would still sign him to a long term contract next year. The difference is that by playing and proving to be consistent that contract can be worth up to twice as much. If he wants money he made a wise decision showing up.
A decision he made because of some assurances. Assurances that were made by GM Jeff Ireland.

  According to Salguero late last night Ireland was on the phone working hard to reach a resolution. After all this organization is very self conscious of their image.HC Joe Philbin hates answering questions about holdouts. He would rather focus on the guys that are present. As it should be. Jeff Ireland seems to have made a guarantee that if Jones shows up to camp he would open contract talks rather soon. I think he handled the situation ideally as it gives the organization time and space to work. The closer the season is the less likely Reshad is to hold out. This also gives Miami the opportunity to reassure them selves their player can show consistency and keep performing at the highest level before paying him big money.Personally if we go by last season Jones is worth the money. However I'm not ready to commit just yet.Do it for a while longer and I would be more than happy to open Rosse's checkbook. This is the stance the Fins are taking, and it worked as their player is showing up to work..

OTAs To Start Monday a Few Things To Look Out For

  We are finally edging closer to that time of the year we have all been waiting for. September the time of the year when everything turns from speculation and over analyzing it actual tackling, and 4th quarter comebacks. However we aren't there just yet. The good news is that at least now we are going to have somewhat irrelevant material in the grand scheme of things to obsess about, and read too much in to. On Monday the Miami Dolphins will begin the final phase of their off season starting with OTAs followed by around 9 other organized team activities leading us through to July. At any case here are a few things I will be on the lookout for on offense, defense, and special teams (Punters are people to).

 

  Stating the obvious let’s begin with offense. I want to see Mike Wallace run around in Dolphins gear and continue to build that chemistry with Ryan Tannehill. Now that we got that out of the way there is a few other things to watch out for on this side of the football. For instance, how is Jon Martin looking at first glance? He has been working to get stronger heading in to his second year. As it stands right now he is protecting the future of this franchise. (This is still subject to change). If Martin can’t protect there won’t be much of a future. Tanny will be on his backside and Wallace will get tired of running 10 yards down the field repeatedly. Next up is Dustin Keller's health. He along with Brent Grimes are on one year prove it deals. Dustin is a bit different from Grimes in that he has managed to stay healthy longer in his Carrier. If last year is an anomaly rather than a trend he is going to be that "seam thread" TE that's going to open up things on the outside. Running back is a heated competition and I want to see who looks hungrier, and in better shape of the 4 backs competing. Yes 4 Miller, Thomas, Gillislee, and Jonas Gray, who is a dark horse in this competition for me.

 

  On defense I honestly don't expect to see much from the CB position at this particular point in time. One of the things I will be looking out for is health. Guys like Richard Marshall, (who I think could move to safety) and Brent Grimes are coming back from injuries. I would like to hear about how their recovery and rehabs are going. I would also like to see how rookies like Will Davies, Don Jones, (my sleeper on defense to surprise us all) and Jamar Taylor continue to assimilate an NFL atmosphere.

 

  Now on to Rich Eisen's favorite unit. Special teams. It would be fitting to start with the kicking game right? I want to see how Dan Carpenter and Sturgis approach the competition. I doubt we will get any real insight as to who might have the upper hand. Generally the cheaper one, who isn't carried over from a previous staff, and didn't cost us two game winning field goals, last year does. Finally I want to see how this rookies handle whatever duties coach Rizzi gives them today. We all know how "special" special teams are for those guys who are on the fringes of the 53.

 

  Honestly I doubt we will draw many conclusions from the following days but we will certainly enjoy them, and make more of them than what they really are. After all it is the closest we have been to any real football in months.

Miami Dolphins vs San Diego Chargers from 1995

 

I found this on youtube and thought I should post it for everyone to enjoy! Hope everyone has a nice weekend!