I agree with you Abbi. I'd guess Marion Barber is the most likely choice to bring into the mix at this point. Dallas-Miami pipeline and all.

 

I have to disagree. My concern with DT was that he'll be a grind it out workhorse back with no flash or big play in him. (IE: a younger ronnie) But now we went out and traded for a RB whose whole arsenal is nothing BUT flash and big play ability. Bush can't go between the tackles or move the ball on steadily up the middle, but he can be screen, toss, counter, recieving threat that defenses will hate having to deal with.

I say you stick with the rook and go for a cheap backup. Bush and DT are a great mix IMO.

 

I do not agree. The 3rd RB should play special teams.

 

Hilliard is somewhat of a utility player. He plays special teams and IMO is not a terrible back. I am just glad Cobbs wont be our scat back...

 

That's true, and if we signed Marion Barber, and he ends up the 3rd RB, then he could be our up back on the punt team, and we solve a major problem from last season because he is a fine blocker, and as the 3rd RB gives us decent depth that should be affordable. If we hitch our wagon to Bush and DT and DT gets hurt, we can't have Bush carry all the load. Pads would probably say Lex could, but I'd rather have Barber as our 3rd RB.

 

I agree with an earlier comment that Hilliard could get us through an injury to DT. Hes a special teamer and hes played well for us in the short time hes been given. All star? No. But he'll do fine as a 3rd back. I just don't think you can put too much effort into the RB position. Every year guys like DT step into the league an becom all stars.

 

I could see us resigning Ronnie for sure now.

 

You'd rather have Hilliard than Barber as the 3rd RB? Ok, we'll just agree to disagree on that one then. I'm guessing we keep 5 offensive backs. The 4th one will be a Bush type COP, likely either Grigsby or Sheets and the 5th will be the one FB type, probably Lou. I'm hoping we have more than Hilliard behind Thomas, as a between the tackles pounder. He is a rookie and therefore still somewhat of an unknown as for how good he can be how soon.

 

Good point. I think Bush will relieve Bess of his PR duties and he and Gates give us a couple alternatives to Carrol as a KR.

The biggest thing that Bush brings IMO is the 3rd down back/matchup nightmare role. With Marshall, Bess & Bush all on the field it's going to be difficult for defenses to focus on any one of them. All of them can defeat single coverage w/ relative ease and they can all make people miss after the catch. Bush can also help revive the screen game and serve as a check down threat that defenses actually have to account for. We can put him in the slot or line him up outside and move Marshall into the a lot to create matchups. He adds a ton of versatility and allows us to attack defenses in ways we couldn't dream of last year and I haven't even mentioned Gates or Clay. Last year I (and others) complained all season about our lack of speed & play making on offense and clearly Jeff Ireland has moved aggressively to change that. Kudos to him.

 

I think they could/should sign Ricky. A team like Miami without a Top 10 QB should aim to have a Top 5 Rushing Attack. Ricky would be a big help, I think Ronnie is going to want a longer deal and more $$ which he should. They'll probably go for Barber though, since they love Dallas players.

Thomas could be great, but he's also an unproven rookie and Bush can't carry 25 times a game. If Thomas struggles or Bush gets hurt, we could be screwed.

Would feel so much better with Ricky, Ronnie or Barber. Prefer Ricky.

 

I really disagree that our 3rd RB has to play special teams. We are a run-oriented offense. Our top priority is to make sure that we have 3 good RBs that can step in and carry the load. We already know that Bush can't carry the load, so our priority is to make sure our 3rd RB can. We can fill the special teams hole elsewhere.

 

Even something as basic as up back on the punt team? That was Cobbs last season and he was usually the 3rd RB active.

 

hey, i am not at all telling you your opinion is wrong. If the FO goes out an signs another name to our RB stable im not gonna cry about it. Im just not sure where i rank it on the list of priorities here.

 

Exactly, Miami just lost one of the best special teamer. Special teams does help win games.

 

I absolutely 100% agree with Abbi Normal. Every running attack in today's NFL should feature two guys shouldering the load. Reggie Bush is not fit to be one of those two because he's no good at running the ball, only good for catching it. That puts enormous pressure on a ROOKIE the NFL was perfectly willing to let slip into the 3rd round, Daniel Thomas.

This is not wise. The Dolphins should have another presence aside from those two who could be a ball carrier along with Daniel Thomas, while Reggie Bush serves his role as the most expensive 3rd down back in the NFL.

 

I could care less if our 3rd RB plays special teams. I do care that he makes our team better, and that does require a Ronnie, Ricky, Barber, or the like.

Our team is going to run the ball 450-500 times this year. If we're lucky, Bush will account for about 100 of those carries. Anyone want to count on Thomas to carry the ball 350+ times? Ain't gonna happen.

In the past we had R&R, Cobbs and Hilliard, in addition to Polite, who is at risk this year. Our 3rd RB will likely get 150 carries this season. How much sense does it make to require he also play special teams, when he is going to be a big part of our O? None whatsoever.

 

That is why I want him to play special teams.

 

We don't just need "a" running back. We need one that can conceivably be relied upon for well over 100 carries and possibly a lot more if Bush has his usual date with the injury list. If you want your 3rd RB to be a special teamer, you should have thought twice about trading for a pure 3rd down back with major durability concerns.

 

I like Ronnie as much as the next guy, but I certainly wouldn't add an injury prone RB to a rookie and Reggie Bush.

 

Is Mike Tolbert an unrestricted free agent or not? If he is then I think he'd be a great fit. Pure yard gaining pounder, physical presence, capable of breaking tackles and having a high average, and he's not yet worn down like Marion Barber is.

If not him, I'd look up Ronnie Brown. At some point he definitely becomes attractive again even if that does marry two injury prone guys with a rookie, as Vendigo says.

 

You mentioned Snelling a week or so ago. He'd be a good choice too for that kind of role.

 

Im not really concerned about Ronnie's injury history.....not with DT as the main RB. With Ronnie being the character player he is....I would love to see them sign him...and he play the FB position quite a bit. The way he catches out of the backfield...I think having Ronnie and Reggie in the backfield together could be amazing.

 

Mike Tolbert is restricted from what I've gathered.

 

Sproles will take that title as soon as he is signed. I go to 2009 for a fair comparison of the two. As a pass receiver at RB, PFF had Sproles at #3, and Bush at #4. Sproles had 395 snaps, and Bush 396, it is a very fair comparison.

Sproles caught 45 passes for 527 yards, 11 yard avg, and 4 TDs. Bush caught 57 for 430 yds, a 7.5 avg, and 4 TDs.

Sproles ran 96 times for 376 yds, a 3.9 avg, and 3 TDs. Bush ran 87 times for 513 yds, a 5.9 avg, and 6 TDs.

I use 2009 because Bush played 12 games, and I believe his stats are roughly what can be expected this year. He is a great receiving option at RB but, he can also run, although not as often as we would like.

 

I mentioned Snelling when Kirwan brought him up as a COP back. I would go for Ronnie here.

 

Funny that you mention him:

 

The kid in Detroit that wanted to come here? Yeah, him.

 

Was that before or after the trade? :) A lot of Saints fans are not happy.

 

After.

 

Kevin Smith

 

Tony Sparano wants to run the football and I cannot believe that I herd on NFL Network that Bush has been told he will be the feature back here. If Jeff Ireland is thinking this way, he better sign two more Rb's. Ronnie Brown and one other because Bush will not last 5-6 games.

I do know featuring Bush does not have to mean running him up the middle but he is more of a threat out of the backfield. Getting him past the LOS is where he does his damage...