Offseason: Day 1

I had forgotten how disappointing it is to lose in the playoffs, no matter the circumstances are. The thing that you always forget, is the finality of it all. Of course you go into every game knowing that if you lose, then that's it, no more games and the season over, but once it happens, it is always a stunning realization. And just like that, we are into day one of the offseason. 2009 will feature another tough set of challenges for the Dolphins, much different than 2008, but still tough. Lofty expectations will return, along with a more difficult schedule, and the fact that Miami is now part of the hunted rather than being the hunter. Here are a few things I will being doing on this blog between now and the beginning of training camp.

• Write-ups About the Top Areas of Concern: Pretty soon, I will explain what I perceive to be the team's areas of most concern going into the offseason. This is not simply a listing of what we need in the draft or free agency, but rather a more in depth look at what the team needs to do to get even better next year.
• Full Coverage of the Free Agency Period: Last year Miami signed several guys on day one and made many moves throughout the offseason. I doubt we will make a similar amount of noise this year, but it will still be an important time to track incoming and outgoing players.*
• Draft Previews: This year will be much different, since we don't have the number one pick, but we still have three selections in the top sixty and nine total selections in the draft. We saw this year what an impact good draft picks can make in the first year and the draft is the most vital component of long term success in this league.
• Other NFL Thoughts: I will also throw in a few posts about general NFL questions and issues. Also stay tuned for playoff game previews and predictions surely to go wrong (even though I managed to go 2-2 this weekend).
  

*I suggest taking a look at a recent post from the Miami Dolphins Spotlight blog by Chris Nelson, who lists all of the Dolphins different types of free agents and briefly explain what each means. The key names to look at are the unrestricted free agents.