The Lex Hilliard Conundrum

There has been a lot of chatter in the South Florida media and message boards about running back Lex Hilliard. He has shown very well in the first two preseason games and definitely looks like an NFL player. The problem is that he is caught in a numbers game. Only 53 players will make the active roster, and more importantly only three RB are assured to be a part of that 53. With Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams and Coach's favorite player Patrick Cobbs in front of Hilliard, it would seem he is an odd man out.

However, many have voiced the opinion that we should keep Hilliard and find a way to keep him on the roster. Some believe it's as simple as keeping the four backs. Some have raised the question of if the team should try to trade Ricky Williams or Patrick Cobbs to make room. Some have suggested just trading Hilliard. I thought it would be good idea to look at each scenario and voice my opinion.

Practice Squad: Like last year, he could be stashed on the practice squad. This is probably not a real option though because any team can swoop in and pick him up so long as they add him to their active roster. With Hilliard's display in the preseason (including two special teams tackles) there is not much doubt in my mind that a bad team void of much talent will grab him (Lions).

Trade: I don't foresee any type of trade with any of the backs for a variety of reasons. First of all, you don't see many RB traded because of the belief you can pick one up anywhere. A number of backs emerge each year and many come with little hype. A lot of low round picks and undrafted guys can get the job done. Because of this, all of our backs value to this team greatly exceeds their value in a trade.

Keep Four RB: It's going to happen. First Jim Mandich said on his radio show that he has shown well enough that the team will find a way, and they won't just let loose someone who they perceive as a great football player. This morning Ethan Skolnick wrote in his blog that he is close to a lock to make the team and offensive coordinator Dan Henning is trying to devise ways to use him.

For those of you that believe there is no way that a Bill Parcells team would waste roster spots on fourth running backs, I got news for you. He has done it, as recently as last year. We had a similar problem last year with Jalen Parmele. Eventually he did make the team and lasted three weeks. We then added tight end Joey Haynos and Parmele was waived. But that at least proves Lex has a good chance and the idea of keeping four backs isn't too foreign.

One reason I feel this would be good is because running back is one of the most often injured positions in the NFL. I'm not just talking season ending injuries, a lot times guys will get nicked up and have to sit out a week or two. Yes, we could bring in a back from anywhere, but they won't have the knowledge of the playbook and experience with the team that Hilliard offers. He also has shown enough that he at least raises the question about how bright a future he has. What could he do in a regular season game if he was given 10-15 carries? I'd rather find out with him wearing a Dolphins uniform and nothing else.

(image via daylife.com)

Roster Trimming

A bit unexpected today, there was a flurry of moves by the Dolphins. Even though the first mandated roster cut (from 80 to 75 players) isn't until next Monday, the team did their business today, and then some.

The first news to break was that Miami has released Ernest Wilford. The only surprising thing about this move was the timing. A while back, I didn't expect Wilford to make it to camp, but when he did, I figured he'd be one of the last guys cut. To be honest, he's showed some promise in his position switch to tight end. The problem his, he is battling for the third TE job, and to do that, you need to play some special teams. Ernest does not and therefore Joey Haynos and John Nalbone offer a bit more.

The major aftereffect of this move is the salary cap hit. Armando Salguero of the Herald reports that because of some rule changes because of a possible uncapped year in the NFL in 2010, the Dolphins must absorb the rest of his signing bonus (which amounts to about $4.5 million) this year. That sounds bad on the surface, but I don't think we are in cap trouble this year and maybe it's better to get that money out of the way and not have it linger. The main thing it does is perhaps protect guys like Jason Allen, who if cut would pose more cap trouble.

Later, word got out that also cut were Anthony Kimble, Orion Martin, Joe Cohen, Tearrius George, and Chris Williams. None of those are surprising as these guys were longshots and haven't done much of note. Williams was actually injured on that muffed punt off his face and he is now on the waived/injured list. Once he clears waivers, he will likely get a small injury settlement and get on his way.

The last movement was a trade involving offensive linemen Andy Alleman and Ikechuku Ndukwe. They are headed to Kansas City and in return we get a 2010 draft pick (most likely a 5th or 6th round choice). This did surprise me a bit, since they both figured to be in the mix for the reserve offensive linemen spots. This makes me believe that the team is fully confident in Donald Thomas' health and abilities, and that Shawn Murphy is ready to fill in if needed.

Game Recap: Carolina Panthers, Sat Aug 22nd

As promised, here are my thoughts on the three main things I was watching, as described in my preview. I've also included a couple tweets from last night.

Quarterbacks: It was an above average night for the signal callers and the most important thing is that they didn't turn the ball over. They did chip in two nice touchdown passes though. Chad Pennington showed why he is most certainly the present as he methodically moved the ball and led the offense to 10 points in his three drives. Chad Henne also looked pretty good. He was at the helm for 17 2nd half points, although he didn't get the ball down the field as much. We didn't see much of Pat White, but in his one drive his passes could have been a bit more accurate and lead to larger gains. Again, he showed more promise running the ball, even though it wasn't from the wildcat formation.

Cornerbacks: It was a big night for Vontae Davis as he was trying to bounce back from a shaky opener. He played a lot of the game due to the absences of Sean Smith and Jason Allen and did very well. He showed his excellence in run support and stopping short pass plays. I didn't notice him much in coverage, which is usually a good thing. None of the three fringe players really stood out to me, in fact Joey Thomas made an impression on the wrong side as several passes were completed in his direction.

8:46 PM: I'm glad I wasn't buying the hype with Chris Wiliams, he makes a lot of mistakes.

Special Teams: A muffed punt for a second consecutive game and this one was costly, as it allowed Carolina to take the lead before the half. He also hasn't flashed as much brilliance as people seem to think. Simply put, he's probably already done enough in the wrong direction to seal his ticket out of here. If Ted Ginn had done what Williams has in the last two games, people would be calling him the worst player ever, but because he is an undrafted player, the fans will always love his potential. Neither kicker flinched in the kicking battle, although both players kickoffs could be better. Carpenter does have the slightly stronger leg, so I imagine he will retain his job.

8:42 PM: How are fumble recoveries not reviewable? That was CLEARY Dolphins football!

This was just strange, but if it was a real game it would have been infuriating. A Panthers punt returner fumbles the ball and a pile ensues. The player who comes out of the pile with the ball is a Dolphin. Ball awarded to Carolina. Okay, let's see a replay. Replay clearly shows the Dolphin player possess the ball on the ground and be touched down before the pile ensues. Okay, we will challenge and get the call right. What's that? You can't challenge fumble recoveries? The competition committee will have to look at that one, because it was pretty clear and obvious that the call was wrong and could have easily been fixed. That's why we have replay, right?

Preseason: Game Two

Tonight the Dolphins take on the Panthers here in rainy Miami for their second of four preseason games. Last game, I said I wouldn't update much via Twitter. Well, I ended up posting ten times (not including @ replies) and it was mostly failed humor attempts. But as @Tomas_Verde pointed out, the great thing about failed humor is that it's humorous in its failure. And he should know, as he is the author of 4th and Fail (surprisingly not a Dave Wannstedt blog). So tonight you can expect more awkward exclamations and bad humor attempts courtesy of @tedhill. If you don't want to leave this page, I placed a widget on the side of this page that should pick up all of my messages tonight.

But, I will at least try to expand upon it. Last game, partly because I was busy, but mainly because I was lazy, I didn't have any sort of game recap or thoughts. After this game, for the recap, I will revisit some of my posts and expand upon them. For now, here is a short little preview.

Three Main Things I Am Watching Tonight

First, the focus always seems to be on the quarterbacks in preseason games and though none of Miami's signal callers had bad performances on Monday, they didn't offer definitive answers to questions surrounding them. Fans want to know if Chad Pennington can duplicate his 2008 success and perhaps improve. Will Chad Henne stamp his name as the surefire 2010 starter? Can Pat White offer an immediate impact as spread/wildcat quarterback? Hopefully we will see more tonight from each of those three and make an already great QB situation even better.

Also, the cornerbacks should be an interesting watch tonight. Supposed starter Sean Smith and Jason Allen will absent due to illness. After the cutting of Eric Green, that only leaves five corners. Three of them figure to be battling for the last spot on our roster, so they should get a long look and will have a great opportunity to showcase themselves, good or bad.

Finally, I will pay a lot of attention to special teams, for several reasons. First, it was a sore spot for the team last year, and much improvement is needed on the coverage teams. Also, there has been a lot of hype about Chris Williams this week, and I think it is mainly unwarranted. Yes, he did have a couple nice returns, but he still committed three cardinal sins last week (muff, field one inside the 10-yard line, get tackled by a kicker). I have nothing against him, I would like to see him do well, but let's see how he does in game two. Lastly, there seems to still be a kicking battle between Dan Carpenter and Connor Barth. Apparently in practice neither has flinched and it has been neck and neck. Any miss in a game could prove very costly.

Training Camp: News & Notes Vol. 1

Three days and five practices in, there have been a number of newsworthy bits from the Dolphins training camp.

Matt Roth

Roth did not pass conditioning tests and told the team he was ill. His agent Drew Rosenhaus says he has a groin strain (again). All this has made for quite the frantic search for info between the media and the team. For now he has been sent for tests on the groin and has not participated in practice. Roth was a key last year at the OLB spot. Sure, he isn't the best at rushing the passer or dropping into coverage, but he did a great job against the run and was sound in the other areas, and contributed to a good linebacking corps. His absence might be okay for now though. It should create more opportunities to see Jason Taylor, Cameron Wake, and others though try to provide more clarity to how the OLB rotation should work. Hopefully Matt will be back soon though, we need him.

Twitter

There was a buzz day one when the team told the credentialed media and fans they were not allowed to post live updates via Twitter during the practices. There was a mini-outrage that played out on Twitter from fans and media about how bogus that is. I actually understand where the team is coming from though, and would tend to agree with their line of thinking. Hey, they don't really have to let anyone (including media) witness these practices. They can enact and enforce any rules they so choose. The real problem is there is not much they can do. It is impossible to enforce, especially amongst fans. They probably would have been better served just accepting the fact that tweets will be sent and asking the media and fans to be very discretionary about what they post.

Also, Ethan says the Dolphins have banned Twitter use by players. Since then though, @SeanSmith4 has still been active. My guess is that perhaps Ethan misunderstood, and the team has only banned Twitter use during any team activities. Either that or the rook will be getting a fine soon.

Big Crowd

The first day of camp saw a huge crowd in Davie. The bleachers that hold around 2,000 fans were completely filled and there was another 1,000 or so that showed up and lined the fences or the parking structure as you can see in the photo, courtesy of Sun Sentinel. The team likes the support and they've asked for another huge crowd for Saturday's 2:00pm scrimmage. I may go.

Training Camp: Welcome to 2009

Hey, Training Camp is here! It's been a long few months since the draft ended but now it is finally time to begin preparation for the new season. Now when it comes to training camp, I'd give you wall to wall coverage, but I can't. I don't go to practices or anything. I read the same reports from the real media that you do. Because of that, I'll just try to jump on every few days and give my take on any major developments.

As for recommended coverage, the Sun-Sentinel is the best, in my opinion. Follow their Dolphins blog. Follow reporters Omar Kelly, Mike Berardino, and Ethan Skolnick on Twitter¹ as well. Also, for up to the date roster moves and analysis, Chris Nelson's Phins Spotlight is great. Lastly, every Miami Dolphins fan MUST be reading Fins Nation, no explanation needed.

I also have a couple of non-training camp pieces I have been working on, such as deconstructing the arguments as to why the Dolphins will not match their success of 2008, and a large Season Preview series. Those shall be posted periodically throughout camp and preseason. As for in-season coverage, expect a lot more. I'll have better game previews and recaps along with more analysis on major Dolphins developments throughout the season, and of course in depth thoughts on the polarizing figure that is Ted Ginn.

¹In case you didn't know, you can follow me on Twitter as well. You'll see a lot of Florida Marlins thoughts in there because I also co-author a Marlins blog. But, once football season rolls around, expect that to be mainly mindless Dolphins ramblings.