Post Draft Power Rankings/Dolphins Drop

As fans we have the luxury of looking 2-3 years ahead. As HC and GM, Philbin and Hickey have to produce this season. Future vs present, it's a fine line to walk and after last season I fully understand why they didn't want to dick around with the OL.

 

Two things I respected about Ireland is that he, well really one I guess, is that he didn't spend all that money last year trying to salvage his job. Had to be tempting to do, but he left us w/ a nice checkbook and he didn't blow a bunch of draft picks either.

 

Power rankings are meaningless but there is one delusional notion by some of our fans, they think we're the only team that has improved, every team in the NFL has made moves to improve. The division champs Patriots are a better team right now than they were last year, the Jets and the Bills are both better right now than last year.

Only way to shake this off is by taking a giant leap forward, and that starts and ends with Tannehill in 2014. Unfortunately, while we did fix the offensive line, we failed to provide him a seam threat. I guess Finley is still an option, Tannehill needs a big target in the red zone.

I'm interested to see how Moreno helps Tannehill and the run game, how much offense we get out of Moreno and how our offense evolves with him.

But too many question marks on this team and I'm not sure they're better than Buffalo nor New York.

 

Y'know... I've never seen a quarterback throw a pass while flat on his back. Our quarterback was sacked FIFTY EIGHT times last year. God alone know how many times he was rushed, hurried, hit, bumped, spat upon, or given the finger inside his face mask by defensive players.

Does a whole lot of good having world class wide receives running wind sprints down the field.

 

Thats a very good point. Ireland never went "all in" like his job was on the line. I know he's a hated man amongst most of us but IMO he was a good evaluator of talent who lost his job mainly bc he didn't vibe w the HC.

Having said that I'm glad he is gone so that we can collectively do away with attributing wins and losses to the GM. Hickey appears to be in tune with Philbin, hopefully they get a few years to show what they're capable of.

 

Do these "power rankings" determine Playoffs seeding for 2015?

 

I get that. I watched watched every sack last season. James was a nice SAFE pick. Cooks would've changed the franchise IMO.

 

Ok, I'll bite.

More impact rookie season.....James or Cooks?

I say Cooks all day. He's tough and electric. That translates to the next level quickly. James is going to take his lumps as a rookie RT. Probably get Tanny crushed a few times. Cooks will probably win a game or two with a big play.

 

I have no idea, let's wait and see. But I think it's a little off base to judge Cooks on his production in Nawlins, just like I think it's unfair to judge Watkins based on what he does in Buffalo. Scheme and surrounding talent play a major factor, what Cooks does w Brees is very different from what he would have done in Miami.

 

Are you really arguing against taking oline help over skill talent, by saying Cooks will have a more impactful season....on a team with a stellar oline?

 

Really, really difficult comparison. Not even apples to orange, more like apples to sticks. We know Clabo pretty much cost us two games right at the end of the game last year, so if James doesn't allow game ending sacks is that a wash w/ game winning catches?


P.S. Loved Cooks.

 

Yes. So you agree?

 

WADR, I don't think you understand what you're arguing then.

Try it from this way, how good of a season do you think Cooks would have if the Saints had a horrible oline?

 

And this is always the rub; what would Cook's be like if he played here vs w/ Brees? Can't compare.

 

You guys sure like comparing fruit to objects that are not foods. Moving on...

For argument sake I had to compare them. Its a fair question. We reached for RT because we needed one instead of taking a true gamebreaking player.

Which one has more impact on a team?
Which one is easier to replace?

It's really hard for me to believe that James was that impactful at his position that we had to take him #19. How many other guys could've produced similar results?

Once again here it is.....
2013 - 26th in scoring offense
2012 - 25th in scoring offense
2011 - 20th in scoring offense
2010 - 30th in scoring offense

Must be the offensive line.

 

Yes it is because of the offensive line. You can't score when your QB is getting sacked and you can't run when the line of scrimmage is a wall.

 

Saints are a great offense. Interesting that they had the vision to trade a 3rd to move up and grab Cooks. Instead of blaming Cook's future success on his team and system, you should ask yourself why do the Saints have a good system to begin with?

Weapons.

To think that he wouldn't make a huge impact on our team is just crazy talk. Defenses would have to defend Wallace up top and Cooks everywhere. Would've been fun. James had better lock it down on the right side to justify that pick.

 

Its not interesting. They didn't need oline help so they didn't have to make the decision we did.

 

Oh sure.....They would have drafted a second round RT if they needed one instead of a game breaker.

 

Let me continue....Is this OL also?

2009 - 15th scoring offense
2008 - 21st
2007 - 29th
2006 - 26th
2005 - 16th
2004 - 28th
2003 - 17th

Even our best years were flat out average, and that was just 3 times over the past 11 seasons.

Yeah....I get it...58 sacks.....tell me more, tell me more. Our offense has been a problem for a while and not because of the OL. This offense has been hard to watch for many years. I have high hopes for Lazor but we needed to add that missing piece that we have been missing for so long.

 

Don't be one of those fans.

The simple fact is the Saints have an established offense and not many needs that they can get away with doing such. They are also an aging offense that are in win now mode.

Ireland left this team in such shambles, including the need for 4 new OL starters that has only happened ONE prior time in the history of the NFL (Bears last year who had to rely upon a 5th round pick to hold a spot). Philbin also wants smart, tough route running WR's who can run all WR positions which is what the 2 new guys are capable of. If you think Cooks changes all that...your in full blown denial.

If we were a consistent playoff team you can make a move like that. When your not.......well you got to take care of basics. Just don't listen to mediaheads and their stupid grades. They only take the most shallow of analysis when coming up with those grades (they do have 32 teams to figure out on the fly) and they look for hits/talking points. So to them sexy is WR's and QB's. Sexy is Manziel and Sam. OL is never sexy, but OL does make up 20% of your starters.

 

I have 2 issues, respectfully.

First is the idea that James was a 2nd round pick. I'm sorry but that's pure conjecture based on pre draft analysis. It's no more accurate than your branding of Cooks as a playmaker. When it comes to drafting even the "experts"are essentially guessing, it's simultaneously the reason fans like us are even more in the dark and also why fans often make no distinction between their personal opinions and those of the "experts".

2nd is that Nawlins is a completely different situation. They play at least 10 games a year either in a dome or in Carolina/Tampa. Ideal conditions for a fast paced attack, especially with Brees running the show. Meanwhile Miami has a developing QB, who rarely plays in a dome and frequently must go on the road into cold/bad weather venues late in the year.

Nawlins and Denver field two HOF Champion QBs who have laid waste to our beloved Marino's records yet they were both demolished by good defenses playing in bad/cold weather. Tannehill is no Manning or Brees, priority one is to get him a run game and good pass pro so that he can develop in a somewhat stable environment. That trumps everything, playmaking WRs included. Not to mention we have a HC who clearly values route running and football IQ over raw speed and playmaking ability.

 

Really bad quarterbacks had a lot to do with it.

 

I have no problem with building the line. We needed to. I have a problem with passing on a game changer to take a RT when we could have gotten a RT later. We actually did get one later.

I'm branding Cooks as a playmaker because he is. That's not an opinion. It's a cop out to say that he will be more productive in NO and thats the reason why he will be a good player. You don't think he would've been explosive for us?

 

That sure didn't help. But we didn't draft good skill players anyway, including QB. QB is the ultimate playmaker position.

 

I feel the opposite. I think many of you guys are in denial.

You are in denial that we could have indeed built our line without picking a RT at #19. That is my point.

We all could've been happy. Playmakers and OL for everyone!! If you don't believe that, just look at where the picks fell during the draft. Could we have gotten nice OL value later? The answer is yes......unless you are in denial.

 

Your coming off to me as one of those fans blinded by 'shiny' toys.

The answer is so yes according to you....but you can't name one. Who is this mystery without question day 1 starter? Mewhort? Doesn't fit the OL system. Unathletic mauler type. Overdrafted by Indy and moving inside. Justin Britt who again was overdrafted, probably moving inside as they have Bowie for RT. Moses. I like the guy but again there was talk of inconsistency and playing too high. Didn't lift due to a shoulder injury. Who knows. Might be the only guy I possibly agree with being a day one starter.

Those were the guys available in the 2nd. Not nearly as cut and dry as you make it by far.

 

Heard some of the guys on Sirius NFL talking about Miami's draft. The only knock they had on it was that they said it really has to be frustrating as a Dolphins fan to see so much of what Ireland had done had to be re-done. It's why the mistake of allowing Ireland to rebuild the own mess he created back in 2011 continues to cast a looooooooooooooooong shadow over this team. Hickey's got a big mess to dig out of.

 

Tannehill WILL win a lot more than a game or two standing upright. Just saying.

 

I had Ja'Wuan rated in thr first tier of tackles. I feel like there is a huge drop off from Ja'Wuan to Moses. That aside, you're asking our GM to look where the picks fell using hindsight.

 

I still wonder if Lazor was not high on Moses for some reason. Time will tell.

I do think Ja'Wuan has an amazing build. For a guy his size he looked good in a suit. Actually seemed to have a waist.

 

We got Turner in round 3.

Shiny toys win games.
Shiny toys sell tickets.
Shiny toys get you more national tv exposure.
The league is all about shiny toys.

How have the Dolphins been looking in the shiny toy category over the last 20 years? Does that translate to success because we have had very little of it. Finishing the season ranked in the 20's in scoring offense over the past 11 years is not a good thing. We have a long trail of missed playoff seasons to back that up.

Of all of the teams that have been successful over that period of time, how many of them had shiny toys?

All of them.

What have the Dolphins been missing for 20 years?

Shiny toys.

So yes......I do like shiny toys. I like them because we seem to always lack them and it stinks to see so many of them on other teams. You know.....those teams in the PLAYOFFS!!!!!!!!!!

 

Those teams also had better o-lines than us. You know, the thing that allows those shiny toys to be used.

 

Fixed.

 

Put Brees on the Dolphins without Colston, Jimmy Graham, Stills, and Darren Sproles and he's a different guy.

Brees has always had a variety of different weapons at his disposal.

 

We have explosive players. They couldn't do their job as well because they either had no holes to run or time to throw/catch the ball. How do you put the ball in Cooks hands if the QB is sacked?

The other top 2 tackles available (Moses & Kounhoweveryouspellit) when we picked both had injury issues. We were in a bad spot in draft order. Thems the breaks.

The weapons we have will be able to be utilized better and be more explosive with a better line.

 

I agree with that.

I do think Sherman's offense was a huge problem for us. He didn't have anything up his sleeve for quick plays that would have helped our OL out a bit. A short area quickness player is an OL best friend. Not getting getting a Cooks, Ellington, or Archer type player left a void.

 

It's not all that farfetched, especially for Phins fans. Our two biggest needs last offseason were WR and CB. "We lost Marshall and Vontae and didn't replace them." was the chorus. "We won 7 games with no targets for Tannehill; give him a few weapons and we're a playoff team."

Well we added the most expensive WR out there, added a reliable slot piece, added a proven TE, signed a good corner, drafted two more in the 2nd and third rounds. We used our extra draft picks to add a freak athlete to our front 7, and we even got the biggest FA linebacker too.

Aaaand...we improved one game to 8-8. The NFL is very hard to predict unless you have a great QB.

 

We also gained Earl Mitchell, Louis Delmas and Courtland Finnegan for our defense. Resigned Starks. Resigned Grimes. We lost Nolan friggin Carol and oft injured Dimitri Patterson....we didnt downgrade our defense. IMO we made it better.

 

Except players like Clay, Miller & Moreno can be those safety valves now. Tannehill had less time to throw then just about anyone in the league. That means even little dump offs were a challenge. Clay, Miller & even Wallace can house it from the flats, problem is Clay & Miller usually had to block longer before releasing because the oline was so bad and Wallace was used to clear out. Think about it, any receiver, RB or TE can catch the ball in the flat. Sure turning that into a big gain is where the talent comes in, but just catching it there and getting tackled immediately is a gain of 3-5 yards. We barely even had that. why? Not enough time due to poor blocking and players that should be the safety valve were busy blocking.

Also, yes, Sherman blew donkey *****.