While I've been vocal (as have other fans and I think this is the majority opinion among fans) that the Dolphins need a better power reserve RB to Daniel Thomas, to go along with Drake - whom I see as more of a 3rd down specialist than an all-around reserve - I am very intrigued about the possibilities with Ajayi and Gase.
I think Ajayi, if he remains healthy, could become a Matt Forte type force. Several factors:
1. His production at the college level: He is the only player in FBS history with 1,800 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving in a single season. That's some great productivity in either category - but to have both really shows we have a very versatile RB.
2. His size/speed and athleticism. At the Combine in 2015, at 6'0, 221, he ran a 4.57, had a 39 inch vert (a sure sign of solid explosiveness), 121 inch broad - top 10 in both of those - and was also among the leaders in the shuttle runs.
3. Hands. He is clearly a decent receiver, but I do think hand size is valuable - Ajayi has 10 inch hands.
4. Gase's ingenuity. I have confidence Gase will utilize Ajayi effectively. In 2013, when he became Denver's OC, Knowshon Moreno had his best season rushing (his first and only 1000 yard season), and he had a great receiving year (best by far of his career) with 60 receptions. To say nothing of the instruction that Ajayi will get from the new coaching staff.
5. Experience and maturity - last year was a nice intro for him. He didn't start but had time to learn from others, including Miller, and then came on in the latter half of the season allowing him to get acclimated some for this year. That extra year of experience will also help him see the importance of other variables (like pass pro) as well as smaller nuances.
6. Commitment to be in better shape - as Ajayi himself noted, he felt he carried too much weight last year. He's back down under 220, and this should give him some extra quickness and explosiveness. I don't think he'll lose too much in power - maybe a tad. But that quickness through the hole will really benefit him.
-
Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member
dolfan7171, Finrunner, cuchulainn and 1 other person like this. -
It was nice to see him push the pile on some of his runs last year, which was a criticism of his coming out of college. Not that he didn't break tackles at Boise St., but that he had a penchant of stopping pretty dead at times and he was kept from getting some extra yards. I hope he's been working on his leg strength, though I don't think it will take much more to get him over the hump.
-
I know kicking the tires on an injury prone vet isn't normally a wise move, but I'd love to give Moreno a shot this offseason. Can't be any worse than Thomas and he thrived in Gase's system.
Agua likes this. -
Well, I for one want to see what this guy can do this year. He was highly productive in college as the op points out. I think given a chance to carry the load he will be fine.
Philbin really screwed him last year when he had him put on the pup list and kept off of the roster for 8 games.
Of course the big concern is his knee going to hold up or not. I still think we got a steal in the draft last year with this guy. -
He's up to 2,290 lbs now. Beast mode.
http://www.miamidolphins.com/team/player-roster.htmldolfan7171, Da 'Fins and Agua like this. -
-
I heard he was dropping passes like crazy in mini-camp. Maybe he was nervous. I don't think that would be an issue from here on out.
-
This is my biggest concern too. I have read a lot about the J-Train, and this keeps coming up. One of the things that killed me last year was the first/second down play calling. There were too many sacks/penalties that put us in 3rd and long/really long. If I were coaching the Phins, I would try and give him a checkdown option on these early downs and emphasize using it. Too often last year, I saw us in 2nd and 15ish. At that point, your offense becomes transparent, and it has to throw. Even if we get catches for 2 yards, it will be enough to keep defenses honest, but we have to make those catches. In a 2nd and 8 scenario, we can use our whole playbook, but on 2nd and 10, we are probably looking at a obvious pass play.
One thing I really, really want to see is 3rd and manageable situations (3rd and 6 or fewer yards to go). I feel confident that RT can convert these situation especially with our current roster. One thing I really like about this roster is that we have RAC guys that could even allow us to throw catches short of the sticks with the expectation that our guys could fight for and get a few extra yards. This would not only open up our playbook, but open up route trees within a play. The thing is, everything that I would love to see us doing on 3rd down is continent on what happens on 1st and 2nd down, and those little two yard catches could honestly shape the difference in our 3rd down play calling. -
it is the depth behind him I am worried about. I would like to sign Bell or Foster as insurance. The line is better and that takes a lot of pressure off
dolfan7171 likes this. -
Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member
Yep. I mentioned that.
They need to take a lesson from The Cardinals signing of Chris Johnson. He was a key vet pickup for them as Ellington went down right at the start of the season. Daniel Thomas is plain awful.
And it needs to be a vet who is an every down back. Like a Foster if he is healed. They really don't have an every down RB outside of Ajayi. Drake may get there but he is narrowly built, has injury history, and may take some time to develop. I like his prospects for the future but signing Foster would be significant, imo. -
Miami seems they want to see what they have in house first. That I am ok with. Also, there will be cuts and trades also.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk -
Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member
I don't think that it is wise to wait until after cuts. Nor do I think that signing a player before camp in any way hinders their evaluating Ajayi. If he's a stud, he's a stud, and will demonstrate no matter who else is picked up. And, in today's NFL, other than rare situations, you need multiple running backs. Not only because the risk of injury is high, but also simply for the sake of rest and flexibility. The RB position, even with great RBs, is still a position where you want to be able to have an alternate back come in every 3-4 series. If you don't have great roster depth you'll be in trouble.
Again, the Cardinals Amazon show really demonstrates this (their lack of depth in 2015 killed them and the GM saw himself as the one responsible for this and that he let the team down in 2015). Dolphins GM Chris Grier has to get great depth on the roster - and right now, Miami does not, imo. I think it's very risky if they think they can go into camp with what they have as back ups in a thin-hipped rookie Drake, a waste of a roster spot in Thomas, and a middling 3rd down type in Williams (though he still has more promise than Thomas).
Isaiah Pead - showed a lot of explosiveness in college then had a bad injury with the Rams. He has speed but he also is only 5'10, 204 and cannot handle an every down load. He will have to show a lot in camp if he is going to make the team. And, will have to stand out on special teams.
Given the WR position and the likelihood we'll keep 6 there, barring injury, of course, 3 RBs is likely what we'll keep, imo. -
Da 'Fins Season Ticket Holder Staff Member Club Member
Ajayi on Tannehill and the OL from NFL.Com:
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000673927/article/jay-ajayi-eager-to-see-ryan-tannehill-dominate -
Well, let's hope this is the case and by the end of the season the talk will be how Philbin and his coaching staff held back Thill's development over the 4 years he was here.
We'll see. -
Foster would be fine if we can guarantee he will be healthy.