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| Empty Dolphins Stadium "Retrieved from The Phinsider" |
With the NBA season halted by the new "king of the
viruses", many sports fans are eyeing the NFL draft and the 2020 season.
There is no timetable on how long the "social distancing"
restrictions will last, but the NFL seems hopeful with moving forward with its
plans.
Saying this, my eyes are focused on the Miami Dolphins(my life
long team) and their efforts to build a team that I personally believe, will
make the 2020 NFL season, our year! You can quote me on saying it and I won’t
retract it, I am laying all my chips on the Dolphins making the Super Bowl and
if not, we will come damn close to it.
Free agency has come and gone and Tom Brady still is the talk of
the town with Florida being his new home(makes you think how close the Dolphins
could've been to reeling him to Miami). But Brian Flores and the front office
are keeping Miami relevant. After years of non-productive drafts, wasteful
spending, and consistent disappointment, Dolphins fans have lots to be hopeful
for, pending the recovery from the global pandemic.
Let’s take a look at some of Miami’s biggest moves in free agency
Miami Dolphins off-season moves
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| Byron Jones "Retrieved from Fansided.com" |
1. Byron Jones
Byron Jones is a 27 year old, 6'1, 200 lb cornerback who is viewed
as one of the best in the league. Jones played his first four years for the
Dallas Cowboys before migrating to the city of sunny beaches and palm trees and
he brings with him a solution to future of the Dolphins defense.
The Dolphins defense,
known in the past for being the backbone of the franchise, ranked 30th
in the league last year that included 13 interceptions. Out of those 13 int’s, seven
came from the cornerback position, Xavien Howard only contributed with one.
Xavien Howard has not been playing bad but QB’s tend not to
throw his way as he was targeted only 24 times in 2019. That is not bad
considering one of his lesser known counterparts, Jomal Wiltz, was targeted 62
times.
Jones will upgrade the twin positions, opposite of Howard, and look to
replicate the success of former Dolphin standouts, Sam Madison and Patrick
Surtain. I really miss the days when these two shined along with Hall-of-Famers, Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor. Just like Howard, teams tend not to throw Jones’
way so it will be interesting to see how both sides will be tested in the 2020
season and how new DC, Josh Boyer, will utilize Howard and Jones in defensive
schemes.
My opinion:
I think this will be a good fit for the Miami Dolphins defense seeing
as our corner-back position has not been consistent. Miami has had trouble over
the years finding a dominant lock down CB before Xavien Howard. Now with Jones,
the Miami defense should see an increase in pressures and sacks, granted the
front line and linebackers come to work with the “lunch boxes”.
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| Kyle Van Noy "Retrieved from The Palm Beach Post" |
2. Kyle Van Noy
The
Dolphins stole many of the New England Patriots players from last year and one,
if not the most solid of the player's came in Kyle Van Noy. Van Noy cost
the Dolphins a reportedly $51 million over 4 years with $30 million guaranteed.
That's still not a bad offer for a guy who won 2 Super Bowls and was an AFC
Defensive player of the year for the New England Patriots.
What
I like about this move is that Kyle Van Noy brings a boat load of experience to
a broken defense looking to forge a strong front that compliments the defensive
backs and linebackers. Speaking of linebacker, Van Noy can also play standing
up and create great defensive mismatches against opposing offenses.
My take:
Dolphin
fans should appreciate a pick-up of this caliber. Van Noy is 29 and in the peak
of his career. He is a high motor guy who plays "whistle to whistle"
and rarely gives up on a play. Just as any player coming into a new team or
adjusting to a new coach, Van Noy will have to show up for the Dolphins in 2020
and prove worthy of at least $30 million guaranteed.
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| "Jordan Howard Retrieved from |
3. Jordan Howard
The
Miami Dolphins is taking a chance with picking up Jordan Howard. Not saying the
risk is behavioral, but Howard is 4 years in the league and had his best
statistical seasons his freshman and sophomore year with the Bears.
Last
season, Howard spent his first and last year with the Philadelphia Eagles. He
finished the season rushing for 525 yards 6 touchdowns. I won't be critical of
the signing as Howard still has the potential to be the number one first down
back for Miami. Watching film of Howard, he has good inside running ability,
finding his way between the tackles, while also being able to break outside.
My take:
Howard
had less than 600 yards last year and if given the number one spot, he will
have to take notes from his first two seasons in Chicago and fill in the RB gap
that has been inconsistent since the trading of Jay Ajayi in 2017.
He
is big back and has good speed to go with it but not the home run speed needed
to take a run 60 plus yards to finish in the endzone. He reminds me a little
bit of Ricky Williams with his running style. Howard's success will come at the
expense of the offensive line and his determination to be a star in Miami.
4. Shaq Lawson
Shaq
Lawson! This is a signing that I am truly excited about. Along with Kyle Van
Noy and Chris Wilkins, Lawson will put together that strong front that the
Dolphins have been longing for since the departures of veterans Ndamukong Suh
and Cameron Wake. Also, Lawson, like Van Noy and Wilkins, can play either
inside or outside and possess a high motor of play. Imagine the pressure that
these three can create for opposing QB's.
Shaq
Lawson has developed into a dominant player but whether he will be a good fit
in Miami will be dependent on how well Josh Boyer can put Lawson in positions
to be successful. If teams choose to run away or double Lawson, other 1-on-1
rushes and blitz packages have to hit home. Regardless, Lawson should make a
strong presence felt in Miami when September rolls around.
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| "Ereck Flowers Retrieved from Riggo'sRag.com" |
5. Ereck Flowers
Ereck
Flowers is a 6'6, 330 lineman with fair enough experience to earn a starting
job on the under performing Dolphins o-line. Flowers is a native of Miami, hailing from my Alma mater, Miami Norland High. He also played collegiate ball for the University of Miami so he is returning to a familiar environment this fall.
The
downside to Flowers is that his reputation proceeds him as he was criticized
for his lack of improvement through his start with the Giants. Flowers started
at the left tackle position before the Redskins made the decision to move him
too guard. The move was seemed to have helped the young lineman grow into a
comfortable fit.
My take:
I
don't think that the Dolphins can do any worse than they have been at
maintaining a solid offensive line. Remember Jake Long was drafted in the first
round and ended up being traded away and the ball kept rolling downhill.
Flowers has shown a lot of vulnerabilities in regard to pass setting and using
his hands. I watched video of him in New York and he was man-handled by
big defensive ends. Hopefully, being back home and his new start with the Dolphins, proves to be what the
young guard needs to propel his career.
6. Ted Karras
Another
'steal" was Ted Karras, yet another New England Patriot, that the Dolphins
swayed to warmer winters in Miami. Karras is another young player, 27, with
much potential.
A
couple factors to note is that Karras does not have much experience as a
starter but when he was, he blocked for a Tom Brady that led the Patriots to
two Super Bowls.
Karras
does need to work on his footwork in pass setting and gain more lower body
strength as he tends to get pushed back. He does well at finding a man upfield
to block in screen plays and is aggressive at the point of attack. He may he
use to pass setting seeing as Tom Brady was an air attack QB with over 4,000
yards and 20+ TD's but Karras was a part of an O-line that saw its RB's
collectively gain over 1,200 yards and 14 TD's. He will be welcomed with open
arms in Miami.
In closing:
The
Dolphins saved money and even was said to have deliberately set themselves up
to be able to spend big money this year. Really the Dolphins have been setting
these types of moves up for years to finally rebuild Miami in all its glory.
Now
with the draft hopefully still happening in April, Miami has a chance to fill
in the rest of the puzzle with the 2020 draft class and the team’s onslaught of
draft picks.
Other notable free agent signings:
-Emmanuel Ogbah; DE
-Clayton Fejedelem; S
-Kamu Grugier-Hill-LB
-Elandon Roberts-LB
-Adrian Colbert-S
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