http://www.miamiherald.com/616/story/327867.html Dolphins picks Booker, Moses have been patient It has been slow going, but running back and FSU alum Lorenzo Booker and defensive end Quentin Moses are finally starting to see some playing time. Posted on Sat, Dec. 01, 2007Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email BY DAVID J. NEAL dneal@MiamiHerald.com Third-round picks aren't first-round picks, but they are still in that thick slice of the draft known as ''first-day picks.'' People beyond draft geeks with Mel Kiper posters are still paying attention to who is going where. So imagine the surprise when you are a third-round pick who can't get on the field. That probably would be surpassed only by a third-round pick who got cut -- twice. There is one of each on the east end of the Dolphins' locker room, running back Lorenzo Booker and defensive end Quentin Moses, each getting more snaps in practice and games through attrition. The lack of playing time seen by Booker, a Florida State product the Dolphins took in the third round, has been chronicled in South Florida about as much as something that is close to nothing can be: two games, no runs, no official catches -- his only one was wiped out by a penalty. Booker might see more action this week, the rematch with the Jets he has anticipated because he will get some playing time against close friend and fellow Seminole Leon Washington.
The headline is a little misdleading in that we didn't pick Quentin Moses in the draft: we got him off waivers from Arizona, who claimed him from Oakland.
It's worth wondering if the sheer luck addition of Quentin Moses means that CamMul will put off addressing the DE spot for a round or two on draft day 2008. If Moses pans out, and if Abe Wright can play the Jack spot well, do we really need to go DE at all? Damn, predicting the 2008 draft is going to be even more maddening than the 2007 draft.
That's what I'm wondering too. I mean I hate it when you have a huge need and then pick up a guy mid season and go "well we don't need to draft it because we think this guy might be good" THAT guy usually turns out to be not so good or he wouldn't have been available in the first place and you talk yourself out of drafting the talent that you did indeed need. Moses is a little bit of a unique situation though in that he was projected very high in the draft before he lackluster final year.... And then he gets cut by mistake in Oakland, and again in Arizona because their QB's are dropping like flies. I'm just trying not get my hopes up about a guy who was a mid season pickup...... But I am caustiously optimistic. Man it would be nice to have some good luck for this franchise.
I've got kind of mixed emotions about Moses. If he was our rookie, and we drafted him in the 3rd round, I'd be pretty pleased and consider him a good canidate to replace Jason Taylor. However, I'm a little more cautious considering he's already been cut twice. If he doesnt end up panning out an Jason Taylor is out after this year, I think the best course of action would be to pick up a "true" linebacker(Not a converted DE) to play SAM and move Joey Porter back to Jack. Someone like Karlos Dansby or Shawn Crable. Speaking of Ends, I'm kind of curious to see what the Dolphins end up doing with Matt Roth. The experiment of bulking him up to around 300 pounds and playing him as a 2-gap end has not looked like that much of a winner. I think it's a strong possibility that Miami ends up having him lose some weight and play him in more of a Nickel/Dime pass rusher role than expect him to hold up vs. the run like he is.
I am still waiting for a solid reason that Lorenzo Booker has not been a bigger part of the team.... before it was a numbers game at RB. What's the excuse now since we have been decimated at that position by injuries. Was that a wasted draft pick?
I agree, but there seem to be mitigating non-football circumstances in both Oakland and Arizona that warranted his being cut from those teams. Arizona apparently needed roster room to add Tim Hasselbeck, and the story in Oakland depends on who you talk to--Al Davis didn't like him, clerical error, Lane Kiffin didn't like him, it goes on. I think if Moses shows development and consistency as the season winds down, DE becomes less of a priority than DT, CB, and MLB.
You have to remember he was very under used (we all thought) at Florida State..... Maybe there was a reason for. Like that he cant pass block at all (which would limit our ability to put him in games) and cant run between the tackles. IMO he is our worst pick from this draft. Its not that I'm giving up on him and he still may develop into a good player but clearly there were players still there in the third round that would have benefited us more than a RB who has barely played. That's hindsight though, at least it looks like we may have gotten our first 3 picks right. Which is a huge deal.
Strictly IMO, this smacks of something personal concerning LBook, he didn't even play in the preseason, we are down two Running Backs and have one with a bum ankle, and coming off a stinger, and LBook cannot even make it in a single third down? LBook cannot even be considered a "bust" as he hasn't played at all yet. If he played and missed block after block, and dropped pass after pass, I could see why he was sitting, but he hasn't even had the chance to do that yet. Players sometimes go into the doghouse for reasons that we fans never know like falling asleep during team meetings or film reviews, (John Roper comes to mind) but no one can say for certain with LBook. So far "Q" looks like a decent player, with some luck he can stick for depth and make a name for himself.
Its possible but I know around the time he was missing from pre season games was right after his wife had a baby and he had been missing practice because of that. Listening to Cam talk about trying to find a role for him and working him some in the slot it didn't sound personal, more like they were just having a hard time finding a spot to play him..... Which I assume means there are things he isn't doing well that limit there ability to just plug him in at RB like a normal guy.
