Tag Archive for: Miami Dolphins

A Day of Hot Miami Dolphins Takes

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It was a sleepy Thursday morning, leading up to lunch as Chris Kouffman, Simon Clancy and myself debated the merits of drafting Jeffery Simmons (DT prospect from Mississippi State) at #13. Simmons, if not for some baggage, and a torn ACL (could miss the 2019 season) would be considered a top 3 prospect in this draft. The debate essentially centered around “If you don’t care about 2019, then why not Simmons?” Simon Clancy then said something in jest, and I found it interesting. I suggested he tweet it out. He did.

All hell broke loose.

Some of This:

 

A little of this:

 

Some more of this:

 

And a whole lot of this:

 

A few insults, Camby .gifs, (usually a Miami Heat Beat thing) and general disdain for the offending tweet ensued.

So, let’s dissect it shall we?

“If Miami end up winning 5/6 games this season then Chris Grier should be fired.”

WHOA. HAWT TAKE. OK, this is certifiably insane. Or is it? Chris Grier has been here for a while now, and has had control over the draft for the better part of the last 4 years, and if the “guts” of this roster coupled with at least 4 of his drafts can only muster 5 or 6 wins, his skill as a talent evaluator should be questioned. But let’s face it, there is a subtle, but definite “managed decline” of the talent of this roster from just a year ago.

But that’s not the reason why Simon says Grier should be fired for 5-6 wins. The main body of the tweet explains:

“There’s a pathway to long term playoff participation that’s readily available to Miami. One that rarely if ever comes around. Or there’s the continued 5-11 to 8-8 pathway we’ve swung on for years.”

Tua Tagovailoa. He is a “sure thing”. At least Simon seems to think so, and he considers any cosmetic augmentation of this roster with no real purpose to be a detriment to the ultimate goal. GETTING GOOD. Obviously, Simon thinks that draft position (namely drafting #1) is essential to ending our never ending local nightmare. If you are the worst, you will likely get a head start on being among the best. it’s the NFL way.

Let’s not get it twisted. it was an “indelicate” tweet. But he was not wrong. It’s just that the remedy/punishment for the GM was a bit draconian.

3 Reactions To Miami Dolphins Schedule

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Everything is an event in the NFL. Including the release of the schedule. We already knew the opponents, now we get them in order.

Controversial stance: The schedule release might be more important in the near term than the draft. Understanding it has a far greater impact on the franchise, you don’t really get to know how a team did in the draft for 2 years. We saw last year that if games had been scheduled at different times, Miami’s season would have gone differently.

Without further ado:

September 8: Home with Baltimore

September 15: Home with New England

September 22: at Dallas

September 29: Home with the LA Chargers

October 6: BYE

October 13: Home with Washington

October 20: at Buffalo

October 28: at Pittsburgh on Monday Night Football

November 3: New York Jets

November 10: at Indianapolis Colts

November 17: Buffalo Bills

November 24: at Cleveland

December 1: Home with Philadelphia

December 8: at New York Jets

December 15: at New York Giants

December 22: Home with Cincinnati

December 29: at New England

My three quick reactions

1. That opening stretch before the bye is absolutely brutal. The Super Bowl champions. Two teams that won a playoff game in 2018. And another that won 6 out of 7 to close last year and think they’ve found a quarterback.

It could be 0-4 having played 3 home games. I’d be stunned if they lost all 3 at home but those are 3 damn good teams, two of home will bring significant away support to Hard Rock Stadium

2. Fun times for New York based Dolphins fans! You get to act like they’re your hometown team for two weeks. The Dolphins will be at MetLife Stadium for consecutive weeks in December on the 8th and 15th. First, Adam Gase coaches against Miami for the first time at home since departing to the Jets. Second, the GMen host Miami. Which leads us to

3. The last 3 weeks could really play a role in draft status. The Giants are in a rebuild similar to the Dolphins and just parted with their best player. I’m not a fan of Cincinnati, especially given they lost 7 of their last 8.

And who knows with the Patriots in Week 17. They could’ve clinched home field throughout the AFC playoffs and might not be trying. If this season is about rebuilding and maybe even securing the number one pick for Miami, those last 3 games could play a pivotal role

Not sure about the emoji issue

Chris Grier isn't a perfect general manager, but he does not deserve to be fired.

QB or not QB? For Chris Grier, that’s the question

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DAVIE – In his final media session prior to next week’s NFL Draft, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier was less than effusive Wednesday in rating the quarterbacks who will be available.
Although Kyler Murray is expected to be selected first overall by the Arizona Cardinals, this year’s quarterback class isn’t as rich as last year when Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen and Josh Rosen were taken in the first 10 picks.
“We thought a couple of those quarterbacks last year were really special,” Grier said. “I think this class is a good class of quarterbacks. I would say like all of them, this class probably has players that haven’t started as many games as you’d like to see, in terms of helping paint the picture for what they could be. So it’s a little more projection on a lot of them.”
For a rebuilding team that must secure a franchise quarterback before it can move into the category of ready to be a playoff contender, the odds appear against that being achieved in this draft.
It would be no surprise if the Dolphins select a defensive lineman or edge rusher with the 13th pick in the first round, or even an offensive lineman.
But mindful that team executives are always careful not to tip their hand prior to a draft, nothing can be ruled out based on Grier’s comments and inflections.
The Dolphins were to hold a private workout with Duke quarterback Daniel Jones this week, according to an NFL Network report, and it’s not their first contact with him. Jones, at 6 feet 5, 221 pounds, has size, arm strength and is relatively mobile.
Last season he threw for 2,674 yards, 22 touchdowns, and nine interceptions with a 60.5 completion percentage. He also ran for 319 yards and three touchdowns.
Jones also was a three-year starter in college, which checks one of the boxes Grier indicated that others are lacking.
Whether or not Grier and his scouts consider Jones as elite or a potential franchise quarterback is not known.
Regarding whether he sees any quarterbacks fitting that description in this draft, Grier said, “There could be. Quarterbacks have been so hit and miss. You go study them, it’s 50 percent or less end up becoming even good starting quarterbacks. But every class has one or two quarterbacks that can become a good player in the league.”
In the early stages of a major rebuild, the Dolphins have numerous holes to fill. The chances of hitting on a key contributor at No. 13 may be higher at other positions.
This draft is considered particularly rich in defensive line prospects, which Grier confirmed:
“I’d say there’s five really good players that you’d feel really good about — elite. But then there’s a lot of good players too.”
Here is how he rated the depth of talent at other areas that could benefit the Dolphins.
“I would say the receiver class is probably deeper than people would think. … You can get good value picks for the first three rounds,” he said. “I would say it’s a good offensive line [class] as well; a lot of potential of guys to be really good.”
In just over a week the Dolphins will be on the clock and the pressure will be on Grier to select multiple players to help get the wayward franchise back on track.
Although this is his first year heading the front office, Grier acknowledged Wednesday that he had final say in each of the past three drafts since becoming general manager. There have been some notable hits (Minkah Fitzpatrick, Laremy Tunsil, Xavien Howard) and the inevitable misses as well.
Is the pressure greater this time?
“I want every draft to be great,” he said. “You’re going to miss on guys and get criticized. But at the end of the day, when you build through the draft, it’s important. The most important thing is making sure that coaches and scouts are all on the same page of what we’re looking for so that we can try and eliminate the mistakes.”
It remains to be seen whether the consensus in the Dolphins’ draft room is pointing toward rolling the dice on a quarterback at No. 13.
High on Reshad Jones
Grier downplayed the absence of veteran safety Reshad Jones from this week’s voluntary minicamp. He said Jones has not asked to be traded.
“He doesn’t want a trade. At least he has not informed me. Reshad is going to be here,” Grier said. “This is a voluntary camp and he chose not to be here. We’d love to have him here, but he’s earned the right – and he’s not the only guy in the league doing it. It’s voluntary. We have not given him permission [to seek a trade] and he has not asked.”
Craig Davis has covered South Florida sports and teams, including the Dolphins, for four decades. Follow him on Twitter @CraigDavisRuns
More from Dolphin Maven

So what’s with Reshad Jones?

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The Dolphins don’t have that many proven players left on the roster.

And those who are?

Well, they are hardly guarantees going forward.

Xavien Howard and Laremy Tunsil are due extensions, and it’s not clear if the Dolphins are committed to them. Albert Wilson and Jakeem Grant are coming back from major surgery.

Reshad Jones?

Well, it’s not clear if he’s in or not.

Jones, one of the Dolphins’ few players with Pro Bowl pedigree, had a frustrating season, seeming to clash with now-ousted defensive coordinator Matt Burke about his role and even asking out of a game.

Tuesday, with a new coach (Brian Flores) on board, Jones was the most notable no-show for a “voluntary” veteran minicamp.

Then the explanations came, sort of.

And here was one of our affiliate podcast’s interpretation….

Whatever the reason, it’s becoming clearer that this will be close to a complete housecleaning.

Might want to try to get something for your old jerseys soon.

New episode of Three Yards Per Carry will be up overnight.

 

Photo by Tony Capobianco…..

Jeffrey Loria: Your worst person in Miami sports history

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We probably didn’t need to do this.

It was kind of a foregone conclusion, when we selected 52 of the least popular sports figures in South Florida history — split into Sports Figures and Athletes brackets — that the frugal, former owner of the Miami Marlins would eventually tear down the nets like he tore down baseball in this market.

Still, we went through it anyway, and Jeffrey Loria was the big winner… or loser.

(We won’t show his face because, well, why?)

He was never really challenged, not against another former Marlins owner (John Henry), not against former Dolphins GM Mike Tannenbaum, not against the destroyer of the University of Miami football program Nevin Shapiro, not in the Futile Four against former Dolphins coach Nick Saban — who upset Loria’s son-in-law David Samson in the Awful Eight — and certainly not in the Final against the person you oddly deemed the worst athlete (former Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin).

This was a rout.

And why not?

Loria did win a World Series as owner, but he also made decision after decision to destroy the Marlins franchise. (Oh, and he called me a “piece of crap columnist” once, so I’ll acknowledge some bias.

He’ll probably take this condemnation as a compliment.

What was strange was the other side of the bracket, where four former Dolphins (Martin, Dion Jordan, Mike Wallace, Jay Cutler) were the last four left, not exactly the quartet we expected. In fact, Dolphins kept beating Heat, Marlins, Panthers and Hurricanes players in terms of how much you disliked them.

But no one beats Loria, not at this game.

The Glorious Birth of a Ryan Fitzpatrick Meme

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Nowadays, the internet will take a picture of anything and turn it into the next great “meme”.

So when the Dolphins released a video of their off-season workouts–which looked very similar to my high school gym class–I had to watch.  After all, this is year one of the Brian Flores Era and I’m anxious to see what the next regime has to offer.  And so you watch intently, as the players run from one end of the indoor practice facility to the other.  The montage is giving me goosebumps. And then I see the man, the myth, and the legend.  The Dolphins 2019 starting quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick.

See, I like Ryan Fitzpatrick.  In fact, I spent way too much of my life writing an article about it last week.   He’s going to bring the good and definitely the bad.  There will be some 400-yard games and then some stinkers. That is who he is.  But today, I saw a guy that like me, has enjoyed one too many IPAs in his lifetime. No one expects these guys to look as chiseled as Cameron Wake, but have a little respect for yourself. *As I stare blankly into the mirror*

And so I snapped a picture with my phone, of the Dolphins’ 36-year old quarterback along with the clever words.

Twitter did exactly what you would expect and responded perfectly.  Here are some of the best tweets and memes from today’s events.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Josh Houtz (@Houtz) cooks in his spare time, when he’s not working on 65 things for Five Reasons Sports Network and Dolphin Maven.

Tom Brady annoys people again

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It’s April’s Fools Day, if you weren’t aware, people play practical jokes on this day.

And no one is a bigger joker than Tom Brady.

So today, the typically reclusive New England Patriots quarterback — and Miami Dolphins tormentor, except in Miami Gardens — sent out his first tweet.

And it was a super funny one.

This thing had nearly 100,000 likes as of this post.

Apparently, some didn’t find it that amusing, even those very calm people in the Boston area.

No, the Tuck Rule call was a bad joke.

So, sorry, Dolphins fans.

You’re getting more Brady this season, with all his hilarity.

(Photo by our Tony Capobianco)

Las Vegas not so hot on Dolphins

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Are the Dolphins tanking, resetting or rebuilding?

Whatever, they’re not impressing.

The Las Vegas sportsbooks are starting to set their win futures, and at least one has Miami losing more than 2/3 of its games. Our Chris Kouffman of 3YardsPerCarry had a related nugget.

Incidentally, as disappointing as the Dolphins have been for a couple of decades, they’ve only lost as many as 11 games twice — in 2004 and 2007, seasons that got their coach fired, first Dave Wannstedt and then Cam Cameron.

Brian Flores, at least, would seem to be safe, since losing appears part of the plan.

So, over, or under?

(Photo by Tony Capobianco).