They'll keep 4 but Thigpen will be the 4th. Last year we kept 6 WRs out of a much less talented pool of players. I think 6 is possible this year too. One way it fit was we carried only 8 DBs and usually, teams carry 9, from what i have seen.
Good point on Thigpen, for some reason I decided to only count him as a returner. One of the other 4 are getting cut though I think. Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
I think the defense will be 8 DL, 8 LB, and 8 DB, though the last two could be 7 and 9 respectively. That would equal 50 with the 26 offensive players, leaving 3 for STs.
I guess we'll see what shakes out. There's a good chance that when it gets to the last few spots at the bottom of the roster they might be more inclined to just keep the players they feel are better prospects rather than getting hung up on counts at specific positions (within reason of course). Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
I really don't know anything about him. Is he a traditional fullback type or more of an H-back / hybrid type, like Clay? Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
Not a traditional fullback, he played TE for temple (not sure if it was more of an H-back there or not, but I don't think so).
Sherman's statements might have offer a preview of the roster. He seems to have indicated the maximum number of WRs in a formation and the role of TEs/backs in the passing game. With Clay now listed as starting FB, I think we'll see 2WR - 1TE - 2Backs formation to start a drive with a running play; quickly evolving into Clay and Miller lining up in receiver spots with hurry-up offense tempo. Our old coordinator, Dan Henning, had some success by frequently lining up Curtis Martin and Richie Anderson as receivers -- without explosive WRs and a hurry-up offense to gas the defense. Success was due to defenses playing soft, which makes it a good ball-control strategy. Interestingly, Clay and Miller are speedier and may pose a threat on intermediate-long routes. If it works, it seems that Dolphins can be unpredictable with their run or pass play-calling; which skilled player is joining the pass protection; and disguising their desired one-on-one match-up. Another factor is that team has collected many RBs, FBs, and TEs that are good pass catchers. This limits opportunities for RS and route-limited WRs to participate in the offense. Moreover, with Keller expected to be a very productive player who leverages his success in next year's free agency, the Egnew's, Kyle Miller's, and eRod's offer a low cost (in terms of salary and next year's draft) method to replace Keller's production. Finally, the make-up of special teams may be changing as the league moves to reduce kick-offs (Pro Bowl rule) while coaches subtlety evolved by finding more touchback kickers. Therefore, the ability of borderline players on field goal and punt units, which favor bigger, wider players; could be a more determining factor then previous years. Moreover, it would be interesting if the league copies the success found by necessity that Jets had a couple of seasons ago, when Cromartie and Holmes contributed a number of 4th quarter returns to set up scoring drives. Cromartie was used when a return was set-up, where he would use his size and speed, while Holmes fielded short punts and used his shiftiness with quick bursts to avoid the scrum of tacklers.
Cool, nice to have two guys with some position flexibility in the mix Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 4 Beta