Merged:Official: Starks Franchised

That would be who I assume we end up using the tag on.

They tag him but then could still work out a long term deal with him.

"MrClean wrote:

They tag him but then could still work out a long term deal with him.

I they have till July to work out a deal. Hope they get one done.

He's the only one that makes sense using the tag on.

Our DL rotation will be very nice again, with the always disruptive Wake and Starks...a lighter Odrick and a nice looking young player in Vernon. Adding another pass rushing DE would be nice, but it's down there on the priority list.

Id like to see him back, but the tag would eat up about 9 mil of our cap space. Working out a longer deal would probably save about half of that in the first year.

Adding another pass rushing DE would be nice, but it's down there on the priority list.

I think its the other way around to be honest. Indications are that adding a pass rusher is a priority, along with keeping the D-line intact in so much as not letting anyone we currently have go. I firmly believe we have every intention of adding to the talent up front.

I agree, I think we'd be adding someone else to complement Wake's pass rushing ability...I don't think they'd be sold on Vernon just yet...he just didn't show enough. Besides, can you ever have enough pass rushers ??

I can also see them changing tactics and tagging Starks so that they can better see if Odrick will/can fill his role before having to make a longer term commitment, at likely a higher price to Starks...

Re: Starks Franchised?

I don't see us drafting a DE in Rounds 1 or 2, or signing a big-time FA.

By asking Odrick to shed weight and Vernon an ascending player, Im not sure they make it a must do.

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"Fin-Omenal wrote:

I don't see us drafting a DE in Rounds 1 or 2, or signing a big-time FA.

By asking Odrick to shed weight and Vernon an ascending player, Im not sure they make it a must do.

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Well, I thought the idea of Odrick shedding some weight was a comment HE made, saying that he'd be willing to drop the weight and move to end ?? I don't know if it was an idea that the staff floated out there to him or not but that didn't come from a Fins source, it came from Odrick himself...

http://www.kffl.com/gnews.php?id=840725-dolphins-jared-odrick-will-lose-weight-if-he-stays-at-de

Re: Starks Franchised?

Not sure why he would make that up. Either way we will be a runstuffing unit. I know to beat a Tom Brady you need pressure and I hope we address the nickle DE spot. But our current unit isn't a bad unit at all, especially with a year under their belts.

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"Springveldt wrote:

I they have till July to work out a deal. Hope they get one done.

Given that they haven't franchised anyone yet I suspect they're working hard right now trying to re-sign Starks before the franchise deadline. I know there was a rumor that they wanted to re-sign him before the combine ended, but obviously they couldn't get that done.

I agree with Starks. I want him here long term too.

"Larryfinfan wrote:

Well, I thought the idea of Odrick shedding some weight was a comment HE made, saying that he'd be willing to drop the weight and move to end ?? I don't know if it was an idea that the staff floated out there to him or not but that didn't come from a Fins source, it came from Odrick himself...

http://www.kffl.com/gnews.php?id=840725-dolphins-jared-odrick-will-lose-weight-if-he-stays-at-de

I'm not sure Odrick would have said that without it having to have come from the coaching staff first, as they usually set their expectations for the player as they head into the off-season. Losing a few pounds would be one thing; losing twenty I doubt would occur without it being green-lighted first.

Not sure that tweeting about your negotiations is a smart thing to do.

Re: Starks Franchised?

"BlameItOnTheHenne wrote:

Not sure that tweeting about your negotiations is a smart thing to do.

His latest tweet.

"Discount yea clearance rack heck no!"

Doesn't sound like they're close.

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"Fin-Omenal wrote:

I don't see us drafting a DE in Rounds 1 or 2, or signing a big-time FA.

By asking Odrick to shed weight and Vernon an ascending player, Im not sure they make it a must do.

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The way the league is now, you never turn away pass rushers. You stockpile them. Coyle's defense like Zimmer needs more one or two. The Giants accumulated pass rushers and they are renowned for it. You just can't turn away from them. Not if you wish to compete in this division, especially with who plays QB in New England. And, if you plan on doing anything in the playoffs you'll need more than one or two guys to rush the passer.

You'll be facing better quarterbacks in the playoffs, which is where we want to go, and in order to not just compete but win, we need to be able to trot these guys out there. Given the rookie wage scale, addressing this via the draft is the cheapest and best long term use of assets on the position.

Plus, when was the last time Wake got injured? If he does we have what exactly behind him? Misi and Vernon? Not enough to be honest. Vernon I like and think he'll be better than many do, but regardless give me 3-4 guys that I can rotate in and give pressure. It allows us to be even more diverse in our fronts, blitz packages etc. Coyle likes to be creative in his fronts, why stymie that? Lets give the man some toys and enjoy the havoc we create.

Plus Wake is no spring chicken, how many more productive years does he have left given the style of his game? He's not finesse, so if of the athletic prowess goes, his production will drop off. Why wait? Get more in here to simply make life miserable for whoever we face.

Plus, the more pressure we apply, the less teams will be willing to send out more receivers. They'll want to protect that expensive quarterback and that plays into what we want to do:

Dominate.

The Giants are an example of a team with a franchise QB and 2 upper teir WRs though. I agree with your premise and also would like to add more pass rushers. But I also think its time to get some playmakers in Miami first thing.

"PhinGeneral wrote:

I'm not sure Odrick would have said that without it having to have come from the coaching staff first, as they usually set their expectations for the player as they head into the off-season. Losing a few pounds would be one thing; losing twenty I doubt would occur without it being green-lighted first.

The way I read the articles when this came out, was that Odrick was on-board to losing the 20 lbs IF they wanted him to...We've not really heard anything from the staff about this...

Playmakers are nice, but remember as well, playmakers and in particular receivers take more than one year to provide impact outside of anomalies in lower rounds and either supreme talents like Johnson, Julio Jones and such.

You can't continuously accumulate players at that position at the same rate you can a DE, LB or RB because in many cases their learning curve is usually shorter allowing the decision makers an easier evaluation. Receivers typically take 2 years or so in most cases before they are truly productive. You need to continue to accumulate talent regardless, but if you take defensive pressure players you take pressure off of your QB and WR's to win everything until they are ready. The defense can help keep the score low and produce easier scores.

One must also figure the growth timeline for each position as well and factor that in for the accumulation of talent especially at WR. Matthews flashed last year and he likely will improve more this year, but can we rely on him completely? But, at the same time can we draft 2 WR and bring them into the fold without stunting his growth? We'd have to give them some playing time as well to see what they've got. The offense is not the easiest to acquire, especially for rookies.

We can probably bring in one draft pick and maybe one FA acquisition to bolster the unit, but we will still have a wait and see attitude for the limited future. Meanwhile, we can continue to accumulate defensive pressure players who can contribute, even when raw - see Vernon. As it less cerebral and more physical. Defense is about energy, athleticism and hustle more so than exacting precision like an offense.

Do you think a rookie as raw as Vernon would even see the field in this offense? Look at Charles Clay, raw but talented player with a year under his belt who regressed in a more complicated offense. Lamar Miller has all the talent in the world, but struggled with the mental aspect.

At some point on defense it becomes 'just go get the ball'. It is easier, for some positions obviously. Corner is a position on defense that requires a more cerebral approach and its why rookies can struggle. Physically they can compete, mentally they lag behind and pay the price. Same with a defensive tackle, the nuances are important, more so than an end in many ways. At least thats my opinion, I could very well be wrong.

"Fin-Omenal wrote:

I don't see us drafting a DE in Rounds 1 or 2, or signing a big-time FA.

By asking Odrick to shed weight and Vernon an ascending player, Im not sure they make it a must do.

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A 4-3 DE is probably the most important position on the defensive side of the ball in this era of the NFL.

IMO, it's a position that can never be too deep. And using one our 2nd rounders here wouldn't surprise me in the least. In fact I think there's a good shot we use 1 of our first 3 picks here.

Vernon showed promise, but not enough IMO to be confident enough to overlook the position. And Odrick, IMO, is still best suited rushing from the DT position along with Starks on passing downs.

"Springveldt wrote:

I they have till July to work out a deal. Hope they get one done.

I actually thought the other canidate to be tagged would be Jake Long but that was a foolish notion.

Springveldt I like your avatar . isnt that the game vs the saints that Randy made that super dive into the endzone ?

Randy Starks ‏@starks94
I want to be here and finish here!

just tweeted that. He wants a long term deal now... maybe he'll get that. The fact that we haven't tagged him already and are waiting until the last second leads me to believe there are some serious negotiations going on, not just with Starks either.

I'm all for keeping our current line intact and adding another pure pass rusher to compliment Wake. Starks is an important piece and is pretty young still.

I guess the wait till the last minute to announce the Franchise player is the hope of signing Starks, and using the tag on someone else.