Supposedly Philbin was very cagey when asked whether Moore would definitely be the backup this year. My guess is they're weighing cutting him (which would save over $4 million against the cap) and signing one of these other guys. $5.5 million is a bit exorbitant for Moore at this point.
I could think of two reasons: 1. Remember when Moore and Devlin were banged up and Omar kept talking about how Tannehill was throwing a lot more at practice as a result? Seth Lobato threw a ton more as well and Omar kept saying his arm looked dead heading into the preseason game. You've got some injuries you're dealing with at the position, and you don't want to burn out the healthy arms you do have...ESPECIALLY Tannehill's. 2. On the other hand, you need someone capable of throwing accurate passes and executing the plays as they're drawn up because these young players need the practice. Right now with a sh-tty quarterback at the helm like Seth Lobato or (apparently) Brock Jensen, they can't even execute the plays so the young players aren't getting valid work in. It's like installing a new suspension on your car and not being able to test it out because the engine keeps cutting out before you even get to a turn. This is true in practice and it was definitely true during the preseason game. There were players missing out on chances to show what they have to offer the team and missing out on chances to get better because Seth Lobato really isn't very good.
Yeah that's a lot for a backup. I appreciate Moores time, but I wouldnt mind if he was cut or traded. If Tannehill goes down we're toast anyways.
This talk of cutting or trading Moore is way off the mark, IMO. I doubt they're even considering it, at this point.
i think this is just insurance just in case Moore can´t go on saturday, a little strange to think a new guy could operate the offense better than lobato who is here for like 3 weeks, but this tells you all what they think about him as a player, imo
I didn't think Michael Thomas looked very good in the preseason game. Just my opinion but I saw a lot of mistakes and inability to keep coverage from the slot. The reality is this guy may have just been a one hit wonder for us...there at the right place, the right time, to make a play in an important game...and that's it. This nickel position is becoming a little problematic in that it seems Coyle prefers a safety-like skill set at the position. That's why Jimmy Wilson continues to man the position while being the backup safety instead of a corner. And it's why Michael Thomas is sliding into the role of being the backup nickel behind Jimmy Wilson. They tried to play Jamar Taylor at the spot during the game and he was really terrible there. I have in my notes a bunch of times for poor coverage from that spot. The only other guy on this roster that you know can play there aside from Jimmy Wilson is Cortland Finnegan, and he was definitely flagging in that role with the St. Louis Rams. If they really are accomplishing a renaissance with Finnegan (as they did previously with Dimitri Patterson) it probably has to do with the style of play they have their guys playing on the outsides. If you have to shift Cortland back to the inside it may disrupt that. Just a theory. But it might be worth it because Will Davis was very impressive on the outside. Probably the most impressive play I saw out of him was when he managed to stay in the hip pocket while the receiver and quarterback tried to execute a back shoulder throw. Davis had his hips turned and was running downfield with the player but he just saw the play happening that resolutely that he was able to slow up and stay with the guy. And of course with the way he reads plays if he's playing off and they try and throw the ball short, he's a pick-6 threat waiting to happen.
I don't understand the Sims hype. For all he was being hyped before the preseason game he was OK as a blocker (no more, no less) and a complete non-factor in the passing game. And this was with Charles Clay and Michael Egnew both sitting out, in an offense that allowed tight end Brett Brackett to become the team's leading receiver. How much of this Dion Sims hype is being driven by a single-voice narrative?
maybe he was also handicapped by lobato, he clearly has to show something the next few games, especially with the news of Clay wearing a brace and still limping, i would shut him down completely until its 100 % and let Sims ball
He was the starter. Most of his snaps were with Tannehill at quarterback. I think Charles Clay needs ot get back quickly and get to practicing because he wasn't anything close to a known quantity and he is PARTICULARLY prone to costly screwups that minimize the total value he's presenting on the field during games. For half the season Clay had a screwup for every good play, maybe more than one. Then he went on a nice run the final 7 games of the year or thereabouts. At this point it's anything but a known thing whether that stretch of games was a sign of things to come or a fluke, and even if it was a sign of things to come you have to know his background and his penchant for screwing up at the same time that he's making plays. If you want to eliminate the screwups he's got to practice, especially in a brand new offense.
You may recall me a year ago being all gooey over totally unknown backup OL and rookie UDFA Matt Tobin of the Eagles. The Eagles moved him back to left guard (where he played in college) and he's for the moment the top rated left guard in all NFL preseason on PFF.
i saw that too, i´m still looking on a philly board from time to time to see how he is doing, but i think the days of hoping him getting cut are G O N E , good call on him Chris
Was just gonna say this. Apparently the Eagles never really considered him as a cut casualty, considering the talent. I don't really know what they would want in a trade situation outside of Dion Jordan.
Random concern: Atlanta was something like 9 for 17 on 3rd down (pulling from hazy memory, it might be different), a problem the defense had last year in the actual regular season. I don't really know if it's the players or Coyle's play calling philosophy on that down but something needs to change or improve fast in that regard.
At the time, pretty much every Eagles status report I read had the Eagles cutting him at the end of preseason. Every single one, from a number of writers. I'm not doubting you at all. I think the Eagles were not close to cutting him because they probably recognized the talent. But it's just amazing to me things that could stand out to me on film so much and an entire media following missed out on it completely.
He was making plays in the practices I attended CK. In the scrimmage, Tanny went to him on a 4th down around mid-field, a TD on either 3rd or 4th down in the redzone, and for a 2pt conversion. Tanny looked for him in big spots in that scrimmage, and Dion came through for him. Admittedly, 2 practices is a small sample size... so maybe I just saw him on a couple of good days. But then again, if the majority of Sims' reps came with Tanny at QB, that also is a pretty small sample size (1 drive). So... I think the answer is that we need to see more, lol. And with all that... as I stated in my scrimmage report... he's not replacing Clay any time soon, lol. He's a #2 TE...
Also keep in mind that the position is so important in this offense it could very well be that whoever you sub into that spot has a good chance to end up with production. We were hearing about Michael Egnew touchdowns before he got hurt. Charles Clay is still hurt. Isn't Arthur Lynch hurt? Seems like Dion Sims is the only one left healthy. Because of all the injuries and Dion Sims' status as (now) a 1st stringer due to those injuries, Brett Brackett got a big workload in the first preseason game. This dude had literally been cut by the Dolphins like a week before, then all the sudden he's their leading receiver in the preseason game. We need to see WAY more, IMO.
I think Sims maturing into basically an Anthony Fasano type player is a pretty reasonable and palatable outcome, and it seems like he's moving in that direction. It was limited work, but I was pretty happy with his run blocking in the Falcons game. He had a nice showing on a play pulling(?) across the formation I think.
He got to the 2nd level quickly and sustained some blocks.. In terms of pass catching, If sims wasn't the first read then he wasn't gonna get any action whatsoever, Demi labato wasn't going anywhere but his first read. Sims body looks right and he was getting off the Los with more quickness so that's all I know at this point.. I saw a practice clip of a TD by him though that was very impressive, seam pass off of a read option fake, ball was high, came down with it with one hand for 6 in stride.
Said Wheeler is not an NFL starter but it is organizationally hard to bench a guy making 7M. Said Misi is not football smart and/or lacks instincts to play in the middle.
I think Channing Crowder still remembers Koa Misi as the same player he played with. It's a trap that any of us could easily fall into. When Channing played with him, he was a young, dumb defensive end convert just full of energy attacking everything in sight and doing whatever Channing told him to do. I don't think it's easy for Channing to see him as anything but that especially in the style of defense that Kevin Coyle has set up where he wants the middle linebacker to play exactly that way. Coyle asks him to play full of energy, erring on the side of TOO aggressive, and Channing watches it and naturally is just going to see the same guy. I don't know why Crowder is going easy on Ellerbe but I can tell you he doesn't deserve the break. He was bad out there Friday night. And he was bad in 2013.
Just watched the first quarter and half of the second quarter and Sims looked pretty good. He was able to block everyone he was asked to, other than him at fullback and his routes looked fine. A few times a pass could have gotten to him, but the quarterback decided differently. Brett Brackett got lucky by playing against a bunch of not ready for prime time players and people just forgot to cover him. Heck if Seth would have thrown a dump off pass to Kyle Miller instead of Williams, we would be saying Miller was the teams leading receiver as there didn't seem to be anyone on the right side. At least from the broadcast view.
Terrence Fede at the Finsiders Studio http://www.miamidolphins.com/multim...nce_Fede/6d1ef689-9402-4905-89a5-381b0efacc5a