Memo to Management: Trade for Vilma

This is simple, trade Jason Taylor for Jonathan Vilma, straight up. We are most likely going to trade JT anyway, so why not acquire an established player, rather than a draft pick who we may or may not hit on. Jonathan Vilma was the defensive rookie of the year in 2004 and a pro bowler in 2005. He had a productive 2006 and was on his way to a nice 2007 before a season ending knee injury. He would fill in nicely and make up for the loss of Zach Thomas. He is better than any of our current options at middle linebacker. I can already hear people arguing that Channing Crowder is. Well, I don't think so. I like Crowder on the outside. And if we run a 3-4, we can play him and Vilma in the middle. Also Vilma grew up in Miami and went to the University of Miami, so there is no question that he would want to play here. Also, a lot of the Dolphins supporters who are also 'Canes fans would love to finally have a great player from The 'U' on our team. He would be a fan favorite. This is a no brainer, make it happen.

Chris Long Owns The Combine

The title says it all. Chris Long had a great morning in Indianapolis. I could list all his numbers from the different drills and while they are very impressive, they don't do justice to how good he looked. He looked like a super athletic, highly motivated, smooth football player. He had great speed in the 40 yard dash, but to be honest, when is he ever going to run 40 yards in a straight line. What I liked was his change of direction in the position specific drills. It was smooth and effortless while still being extremely quick and agile. Simply put, you can tell he has the genes of a football player. I think today's performance solidifies him as a top five pick and will make it even more likely that Miami would select him number one overall. Still, the best case scenario for the Dolphins is to trade an acquire at least another pick, but with the likelihood of trading seemingly becoming less and less, I would be 100% happy with Chris Long in a Dolphins uniform rushing the passer (perhaps along side Jason Taylor, how sick would that be?) Below are some NFL.com video links.

Chris Long: NFL Scouting Combine Highlights

Chris Long: Game Film and Analysis by Mike Mayock

Update: Yet Again, I Was MIA

Well I'll be honest, I have been way too busy to be updating here. What I will try to do for the next several weeks is to do one mega post one the weekend which will include all the news from the previous week, and a few things to look for in the upcoming week. For now, let me recap things that have happened since my last post.

Dolphins Make Roster Cuts

On February 11th, Miami cut several players including regular starters Trent Green, Marty Booker, LJ Shelton, and Keith Traylor. Green and Traylor were no surprise as their age and injury concerns obviously don't belong in this rebuilding process. Booker hasn't been terrible but also has never really elevated his game and he drops a lot of balls. Shelton was a Nick Saban guy who just never really took off either. Bottom line is, when the team goes 1-15, no one can make a real argument for why they should still have a roster spot.

Another Cut, Zach Thomas

On February 14th the 'Phins cut Zach Thomas. As a fan, it was obviously a sad day. Zach was the face of the defense for his twelve years and the face of the team since Marino retired. Even though we all knew this was coming, when it actually happened it was still upsetting. Unfortunately, from a business perspective, his age, condition, and output, just don't match the type of money he was due to make. By cutting him, we also give him an opportunity to go to any team that wants him so he can try to make the playoffs and perhaps win a ring as the final chapter of his NFL career. I wish him the best of luck, as long as he isn't wearing a Patriots uniform.

Michael Lehan Resigned

This was a little surprising to me. For our CB situation for next year, I was thinking we would use an early (probably second) round draft pick on one. This years pool of corners are very deep and we can get great value with either our 32nd, 57th, or even 64th overall pick. Then we would probably play Will Allen with the draft pick as our starters with Lehan or somebody else playing as the backup and nickel corner. The money Lehan will make however, is significant and it looks like he will be a starter. I still believe it is a need though, and we should grab one of the young studs to either split time, or be a backup for the first year.

Huizenga Sells 50% of Team

This news came out yesterday. Miami Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga has sold half of the team and the stadium to New York real estate big shot Stephen Ross. The idea was not surprising but the timing is. Huizenga had hinted about a possible sale but it seemed like it was a ways away. The right offer came though and now Ross owns half the team. Huizenga will still be the primary owner and the managing general partner who will have the final say in everything. This is more like owner in training for the time being. Things really shouldn't be much different.

Draft News

There are so many rumors and little nuggets of information flying around these days it make my head spin. Something that is of a little importance to Miami was the coin flip for picks 3-5 yesterday. Atlanta won and will select third. I'm not quite sure if that hurts or helps in our effort to trade the #1 pick. They are closer to us and it will cost them less to trade up, but now it's really only between us and them. If they don't believe we will take Matt Ryan, then there is no reason to trade.

Rumor has it that Miami is in love with Chris Long, and why not? He might as well walk around with a shirt that declares him a "Bill Parcells Football Player." I believe he is the number one sought after target of Miami and if no trade happens, he could be the #1 pick.

Site Plugs

You may have seen some of the links on the right to other Dolphins sites. I recommend going to the following ones during the week to get Dolphins news and opinions

Phin Phanatic - The lead blogger Brian Miller knows his stuff and is always on top of the latest news and rumors.

Miami Dolphins Spotlight - Chris Nelson covers all roster moves and transaction and does very informative videos to go along with his posts.

The Baltimore Ravens Season In Under 200 Words

Preseason Thoughts

I thought they would earn a wild card spot or fall just short. Boy, was I wrong! Dead wrong.

Season Recap

• Promising 4-2 start
• Turns out they beat bad teams and gave fans false hope
• Bad luck and poor coaching leads to a nine game losing streak, including the most embarrassing loss of the year to 1-15 Miami
  
• Salvaged pride (or hurt draft position) with week 17 win over Pittsburgh

Grade

D- : They took a major step back this season and added their name to the list of "Those Teams That Lost to a 1-15 Team." It really could be an "F" but they did win five and should've beaten the Patriots.

Needs to Improve

Divisional Play: They went 1-5, with the one being the aforementioned week 17 game
Finishing Games: They should've beaten the Browns, Pats & 'Phins
Not Neglect an Aging Defense: They are getting old. Don't let them fall off the deep end like Miami did.

The Cincinnati Bengals Season in Under 200 Words

Preseason Expectation

I thought they would win eight or nine games and may sneak into the playoffs.

Season Recap

• Started out a terrible 1-4
• Had a chance to make up some ground but instead fell to 3-7
• Finished strong winning four out of six
• Had a big win against Cleveland, which basically knocked them out of the playoffs
  
• The defense was bad, terrible actually
• Carson Palmer continued to be an elite quarterback
• Some guy wearing #85 had a below average season, is disgruntled, and wants to be traded

Grade

C- : This was going to be a much worse grade until that late season surge. For the first half of the season they were the surprise disappointment. We keep waiting for that defense to get good and it hasn't.

Needs to Improve

Uh, The Defense: This one is pretty obvious
Running Game: They were near the bottom in yards per game and yards per carry
Playing Better Against Good Teams: They played five games against playoff teams and only won once

Upcoming Schedule For TG&T

Well, it's the offseason, and even though the NFL Draft and its unmatched hype is approaching, it is still two and a half months away. To fill the the time I will present a series titled "The (insert team name here) Season, In Under 200 Words." For each team, I will review my preseason expectation, recap their season, give them a grade, and mention the major areas needed for improvement. I'll do all the teams from a given division in a day in a random order I drew out of a hat (I made it so I alternated NFC and AFC days however).

Monday 2/11: AFC North
Tuesday 2/12: NFC South
Wednesday 2/13: AFC West
Thursday 2/14: NFC West
Friday 2/15: AFC East
Monday 2/18: NFC North
Tuesday 2/19: AFC South
Wednesday 2/20: NFC East

Thursday 2/21: Recap of both conferences and my first ever divisional power rankings

Friday 2/22: The final 2007 power rankings

18-1

They did it. The Giants won. The Patriots perfect 19-0 season was not realized. They finally lost one. Not only that, they lost the wrong one. An 18-0 team, which could have wound up being the best professional sports team I've ever seen, was just a couple minutes away, and failed. We know how Miami fans everywhere feel so there is no need to discuss the happiness, relief, pride, you name it feeling that we all feel. We all owe a lot of thanks to the New York Giants. The Dolphins surely weren't in a position this year to protect that record for themselves. We had to hope that in the other seventeen games against fourteen different opponents that somehow they would wind up on the wrong end of the scoreboard after sixty minutes. The Giants, in their second try, did it. It wasn't a fluke, or lucky. They beat the Patriots. Thank you Giants.

MVP

• Eli Manning won the official MVP and I'm not suggesting he shouldn't have, but mine goes to the Giants front four. They beat up the Patriots offensive line. Sure there were some schemes and blitzes, but for the most part it was several one on one fights that the Giants dominated.

Unsung Heroes

• The Giants secondary did an outstanding job. Sure you can get pressure on the quarterback, but you still have cover real well and make plays when the ball is in the air. The Patriots weren't able to throw the ball down the field like they were so comfortable doing the rest of the season.
• Jeff Feagles had a great game punting the football. He had a big 55 yard bomb in the first half and the other three resulted in Patriots drives starting at the 10, 11 and 20 yard lines.

Goat of the Game

• The decision not to kick a field goal. In the third quarter the Patriots went for a 4th and 13, rather than attempt a 49 yard field goal. I thought it was a bad decision at the time and it becomes more stupid the longer you think about it. They lost the game by three. They never really moved the ball effectively. The kick was not 50+ yards. It was in a dome. It wasn't 4th and short, it was 4th and long. You need to kick that field goal.

It will be a long offseason for New England.

The Official Super Bowl XLII Prediction

I am going to be honest. I can't bring myself to pick the Patriots. It is probably the most illogical pick I have ever made but I am taking the Giants to win outright. I can't support this belief with many facts but I am just praying that the Giants can somehow get it done. Best of luck to them.

Giants 31, Patriots 28

Possible First Overall Pick - The Sleepers

As Bill Parcells said in his opening press conference, they will not pay attention to mock drafts or listen to any supposed experts in trying to determine who to select number one. This opens the possibility of a surprise player that most people would believe would be picked later. Here are a few who could fit that bill.

Darren McFadden (RB, Arkansas)

At the end of they day, McFadden is the best player in the draft. You can also argue that he plays the 2nd most important position on offense, perhaps even the entire team. Running Backs handle the ball a lot and even though you can find them seemingly everywhere, they are very valuable, especially if you have one with the god given extraordinary talent that Darren has. The affect that Adrian Peterson had on the Vikings offense is fresh in the minds of everyone, and this is a copycat league. Whenever a player breaks out as a superstar, teams look for the next "that guy." Keep in mind that many people have said and continue to say that McFadden is better that Peterson. We can talk all day about Miami's RB's and how it's not really a need, but so many times the top few picks are based on best player available, not need. There is also a possibility that the 'Phins could "hijack" McFadden by taking him and trying to trade him. Obviously Dallas is interested, but keep an eye on Atlanta. If they are picking and Matt Ryan and Darren McFadden are off the board, they are in big trouble. They could panic and offer a good trade.

Vernon Gholston (DE/OLB, Ohio St.)

He is an interesting prospect. He played DE in the 4-3 at Ohio St. He is projected as one of those DE/OLB hybrids that depending on the system could play either position. To be honest, in the 3-4 the Dolphins are likely to run, he seems like a great option at OLB. He has the big size and good speed that Parcells likes, plus hes from a big time college program. He is a great pass rusher which is important with the possibility of not having Jason Taylor. In fact, if he is selected then Jason Taylor would probably be traded later in the draft if he hasn't been already.

Sedrick Ellis (DT, USC)

In case you didn't notice, I wrote an extended post about Ellis over at Phin Phanatic. You chould check it out here. To be short, he had a great Senior Bowl and is shooting up the draft boards. He seems more ready to play NT than Glenn Dorsey, which makes him a likely pick if we are going for an interior lineman. The closer we get, the more I like Sedrick Ellis and wouldn't be surprised if we pick him.

Possible First Overall Pick - Chris Long (DE, Virginia)

This piece is about Chris Long, who I believe is the most likely player to be selected by the Miami Dolphins with the first pick of the 2008 NFL Draft.

(image courtesy of virginiasports.com)

Why He Might Be Chosen

Chris Long is an outstanding player on the defensive line. Another main reason why I think he is more likely to be selected than Glenn Dorsey is that he played in a 3-4 in college and won't require any transition to a slightly different position. He was a dominate pass rusher which is something you see more from ends in the 4-3. He was also great at penetrating into the backfield and stopping rushes for losses. He makes a lot of negative yardage big plays, something the Dolphins defense didn't do much this year. We know how bad Miami's run defense was last year, and Long is a player who will make an immediate impact. Also, like Dorsey, he can stay on the field in passing situations because he is a great pass rusher too.

There are two other things that Chris Long has going for him. First, he is Howie Long's son. Parcells and Ireland have stated several times that they want highly competitive and passionate players. Chris Long is and so was his dad. The name recognition was a big help getting him noticed. Also, his college coach, Al Groh, is a Bill Parcells guy. We've seen how the coaching staff has been assembled with people Parcells is familiar with and this top pick could be no exception.

Why He Might Not Be Chosen

As great as he is, Glenn Dorsey is still slightly better. Plus, in the 3-4 defense, nose tackle is slighty more important than the defensive ends. Chris Long strikes me as a player who if addded to an already good team could be the final piece of the puzzle to put them over the top. I just don't know if he is the kind of foundation for a young team starting an entire rebuilding process. That role is better suited for Dorsey.

The offense may be viewed as more of a need. Early in the season I thought for sure the Dolphins were going to be drafting a lot of defensive players. Our offense was showing progress but the defense fell off the deep end. As the year went on the defense showed some improvement but the offense kept getting worse.

Overall Thoughts

I expect this to happen. Parcells will want to build the defense and Chris Long seems like a perfect option to fit right in to his plans. It wouldn't be my first choice but I'd be happy with it. He would instantly inject life into our front seven, who had very little of it for the majority of the season. He is a high motor guy and hopefully his energy would invigorate some of the other players.