Five Reasons for Miami Dolphins’ fans to be optimistic following the draft
For far too long the most optimistic time for Miami Dolphins’ fans has been shortly after the NFL Draft, following the team’s addition of free agents and a fresh crop of draft prospects.
Well, here we go again as the Miami Dolphins are coming off another disappointing season in 2015 that saw the team finish last place in the AFC East with a 6-10 record. While next week I will play the role of depressor as I write about reasons for pessimism heading into the 2016 season, this week I will give Dolphins’ fans five reasons why they should be looking at the upcoming season with some hope and optimism.
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1. A starting offensive line that doesn’t feature Dallas Thomas
The sentence above alone is music to many Dolphins’ fans ears. The previous coaching staff’s loyalty to Thomas and the front office’s unwillingness to draft a replacement has been mind boggling to say the least.
With the addition of first-round draft pick, Laremy Tunsil, the Dolphins starting offensive line is expected to showcase either Tunsil or veteran offensive lineman Branden Albert at left guard.
It is also expected that third-year lineman Billy Turner or newly-acquired offensive lineman Jermon Bushrod will be penciled in at right guard next to returning center, Mike Pouncey. This upgraded offensive line should provide Ryan Tannehill a cleaner pocket than what he’s seemingly grown accustom to since joining the Miami Dolphins in 2012.
2. The receiver position can now be viewed as a position of strength
After seeing a limited role for a good portion of his rookie season, last year’s first-round draft pick, DeVante Parker, finished with a 22-catches for 445-yards and three touchdowns over his final six games.
Extrapolating this stat line out over the course of a 16-game regular season results in 57-catches for nearly 1,200 yards and eight touchdowns. An increased role is inevitable for the second-year receiver out of Louisville who will have a size advantage over nearly everyone he lines up against with his 6’3”, 218-pound frame.
Primarily working the slot position again in 2016 is fan-favorite, Jarvis Landry. Landry — who set the NFL record for most receptions in his first two years in the league (195) — will once again be a target monster for quarterback Ryan Tannehill.
Also, Landry is the first player in franchise history to record 100 or more receptions in a single season. Coupled with Landry’s ability to run after the catch meaning he is rarely brought to the ground by a single defender when the ball is in his hands.
Joining Miami’s young duo of receivers is rookie pass catcher, Leonte Carroo. A third-round pick out of Rutgers, Carroo was coveted by the Dolphins who sent a 2016 sixth-round pick along with next year’s third and fourth-round picks to Minnesota to move up and draft the 5’11”, 217-pound prospect. Even though he didn’t play a full season in 2015, Carroo caught 10 of Rutgers’ 19 receiving touchdowns despite being the number one target of the opposing team’s defense each week.
Rounding out Miami’s top four receivers is former New Orleans Saints receiver Kenny Stills. Stills — who had a rather forgettable 2015 season with the Dolphins — will look to establish himself as one of Tannehill’s offensive weapons under new head coach Adam Gase.
Earlier this offseason, Gase was very complimentary of Still’s skill set and was excited to, “get Stills rolling in this offense.” Stills will look to return to his 2014 form with the Saints when he recorded over 900 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
READ MORE: Jordan Cameron fighting for career in Miami
3. Year five of quarterback Ryan Tannehill
After showing steady improvement his first three years, Ryan Tannehill seemed to plateau in 2015 while leading Miami to just six wins despite pre-season playoff aspirations. With the addition of first-year head coach Adam Gase, several analysts and players who have been coached by Gase believe Tannehill can take the next step in becoming a quality NFL quarterback.
An athletic quarterback who has shown flashes of solid play throughout his career but has failed to show up in big games with playoff implications, there is hope that Tannehill will find similar success that other quarterbacks have had under the tutelage of Gase. With the offensive line and wide receivers that were previously mentioned, Tannehill should be well equipped for a productive 2016.
4. Addition of head coach Adam Gase
Several aspects from the point about Tannehill and Gase working together could be used for this analysis as well, but here are some additional reasons to be excited about Miami’s new head coach.
Adam Gase — and the new members in the front office — seem to take the opposite approach that Joe Philbin took in regards to personnel during his time in Miami. While Philbin struggled to manage and coach players with a dominating, alpha-male attitude, the new regime has clearly embraced this type of player as shown by a majority of its 2016 draft picks.
It’s very clear that these incoming players believe in themselves and they are not scared to talk about it. Look no further than sixth-round draft pick, Jakeem Grant, who’s post-selection quotes included, “you can’t hit what you can’t catch” and “if I had gotten into the combine I would have broken Chris Johnson’s record.”
It’s this kind of personality that will hopefully give Miami more fire and determination going into games compared to the last couple of years when the team was criticized by many for being “soft”.
5. Front four of the defensive line
I know, I know. Miami arguably got worse on the defensive line in 2016 compared to 2015. However, it’s my belief that there could be something special about a defensive line featuring Cameron Wake, Ndamukong Suh and Mario Williams.
While Wake is coming off a pretty serious achilles tendon injury, I’d put my money on Wake coming back with a vengeance and once again proving he’s one of the most dominating 4-3 defensive ends in the league. Wake was just finding his groove last year recording seven sacks in a three-game stretch before suffering the season-ending injury.
Suh is one of the elite defensive tackles in the entire NFL. Constantly eating up two blocks, Suh makes everyone around him better despite what the “box-score fans” may say. Finding another defensive tackle to pair with Suh has not yet been accomplished, but Miami is hoping for consistent production from Earl Mitchell and second-year defensive tackle Jordan Phillips will hopefully improve with a year of experience under his belt.
Several questioned Mario Williams’ effort last year with the Buffalo Bills. The hope is that both a change in scenery and scheme of defense will rejuvenate Williams and he can return how he performed his first three seasons in Buffalo in which he recorded 38 total sacks.
While the defensive line has father time working against it, I’d recommend keeping an eye on this unit and its pursuit of opposing team’s quarterbacks, especially if Miami can build some leads heading into the fourth quarter of games.
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