Folks, I don't know about but I am so sick of watching this staff stick with under performing veterans. IMO the only way to figure out who is a player or not is to let them play. What is nuts is when your starter is playing terrible what do you have to lose??? Well, with that said here is a list of players who have either shown glimpses or periods of capability and ability: 1. Jelani Jenkins - Yes, he is a starter but I still want more on this kids plate in the future. Screw Misi, this guy should be calling the plays, why? Cause he is on the field unlike the other guy all 3 downs and week to week. He is 22 and growing. If we can complete our LB unit it will only improve his overall play. 2. Dion Sims - Another 2013 mid round pick who improved greatly in year 2. His blocking improved, his ability in the passing game as well. He is our tallest receiving threat and I'd like to see him utilized more in the red zone. For that to happen our OL pass blocking needs to improve so he doesn't have to help. With Clay's FA looming he could be our #1 guy in 2015 which wouldn't be great but isn't a nightmare. He needs more opportunities. 3. Billy Turner - he played Week 17 and didn't look nearly as lost as our guards did week 1-16. His injuries in the spring hurt his development but either way would've like to seen him get more glimpses in 2014 but he should be counted on in 2015 to contribute. You traded up to draft him in round 3 and we have liability at guard just play the kid. He has the size and strength to be an absolute monster in the middle. 4. Damien Williams - Daniel Thomas was nothing, is nothing, and will still be nothing. How can the staff not see that. Williams was a surprise in the passing game with his ability. Still can't get over that big drop against the Pats late in the year but he's a rookie so I'll be more open. For a guy who went undrafted and kicked out of OU he proved to be a quality pickup. Don't know if he is more than #2/#3 but we need depth behind Miller and should use him more in future. 5. Dion Jordan - He falls 5th on this list because he does get his opportunities but IMO in wrong position. He isn't a natural pass rusher with his hand in the ground. But, at SLB he can still blitz, cover, and most importantly be on the field more. His shift there fills a need, makes the unit younger and more diverse. All sounds like wins to me. 6. Chris McCain - McCain is similar in most aspects to Dion except he went undrafted not #3 overall. The guy had a monster Week 1 then was ghost the rest of the way. To me I believe McCain may be a better pure pass rusher than Dion. Either way both of these players need top be on the field maybe not as starters but more regularly. McCain's first step off the line is ridiculous as is his length. With a full year of weight training and focusing at DE he could be a very good surprise. 7. Anthony Johnson - Another UDFA who was a surprise to fall in the draft. An LSU standout who got some PT during the beginning of the year. With our veterans wearing down as season goes on I hope he can work into the rotation more come 2015. 8. Michael Thomas - An injury prevented him from impacting 2014. But, with Jimmy Wilson declining at Nickel CB and FS a need as well, Thomas needs to be resigned and if healthy given opportunity to compete for those jobs. Anybody I might be missing, or wrong about?
McCain only played 31 snaps after Week 1, but he was actually pretty productive in that time. In those 31 snaps he had 3 QB hurries, 3 tackles and 2 stops. The 3 hurries came in 15 pass rush attempts, which is a very good pressure percentage, and the 3 tackles came in 3 running plays and 13 coverage opportunities. I don't believe his man was targeted on any of those coverage plays.
Matthews forgotten again. His lack of salary keeps him on the team but at this point I don't expect him to get the playing time his talent deserves.
Chris McCain is the Dolphins' version of Hassan Whiteside, IMO. Well, maybe a poor man's version. He was PHENOMENAL during the preseason. Can't stress that enough. He played a true linebacker position, and he was absolutely stupendous. He took PFF's highest grade given to any linebacker during the preseason, and that includes 3-4 outside linebackers. Now, granted...PFF's ratings are cumulative in nature, which not a lot of people appreciate, and so a guy that tends to accumulate positive (or negative) grades, the more he plays the more of those positive grades he's going to accumulate in his ledger. But even accounting for that, the ONLY linebacker in the preseason who had 50+ snaps and had a higher PFF grad on a "per 1000 snaps" basis was Jayrone Elliott of the Green Bay Packers, who is a 3-4 outside linebacker and in my opinion another guy to watch. Chris McCain had 30 pass rush snaps as a 4-3 OLB. He had 2 sacks, 2 hits and 6 hurries on those snaps. His PRP figure (pass rush productivity) was the highest of anyone that has 20+ pass rush attempts. Bar none, be it 4-3 DEs, 3-4 DEs, DTs, ILBs, 4-3 OLBs, 3-4 OLBs, etc. He's begging for a smart defensive coordinator to figure out how to use his skills. But I'm concerned that he'll be pegged purely as just a guy that puts his hand on the ground from the outside on 3rd & Long. That might work out OK, but I'm not sure it's the most efficient use of his talents because I think he's a lot better blitzer than he is a pure put your hand in the dirt and rush the outside pass rusher. Unfortunately I have near zero faith in this coaching staff to A) recognize what he's best at, and B) enact a plan to help him leverage what he's good at while covering what he's not as good at.
Of the guys you named I would really isolate Billy Turner and Chris McCain. Dion Jordan needs to be explored as well, particularly his COVERAGE potential...whereas Chris McCain needs to be exploited for his BLITZ potential. Toss Jamar Taylor in there too, although I'm not as sure about the results as a lot of others seem to be. Those are the young guys I'd really peg for next year to try and find out a lot more about them.
Ahh, great call Dupree. How can I miss that big man. Yes, certainly put him on this list. My question is what is his natural position DE or DT. Part of me thinks with his size he could shift inside and be effective. God knows our interior needs all the help it can get. His arm length is impressive and if he can at least develop into a steady rotation from 7th rounder can't ask for much more.
Hate to say it as I have a real issue with the way Philbin deals with players most of the time. To me last year Rishard just seemed uninterested. I liked what I saw in year one but the fact he couldn't find the field and he was in doghouse at the end of the year makes me think it may be a him problem. I still think cause of his cap number that he should be in competition come training camp. Maybe he can turn it around?
Hhaha, CK I love it cause Whiteside is a beast what a find. It's amazing our lack of success rounds 1-7 despite the GM but we kill it in UDFA lol. I agree with this whole arguement.
IMO he could be a standard DE in base and move inside for passing downs. His problem is learning how to play. He played football with people so less talented than him he was able to do anything and it would work. Hopefully he is smart enough to work on letting go of his bad habits and reinforcing the good ones he learned during the season.
What is your preference on position for McCain and Jordan? Mine would be just get the playmakers on the field IDC how you do it. Sad part is our lack of ingenuity by our DC really hampers us from being multidimensional. I would be find with McCain at SLB and leaving Jordan at DE or vice verse. Agree you don't want to pigeonhole them to one thing but they need to get them on the field. Turner developing is a must have in 2015 for our offensive line. I think he can develop into a pretty special guard with his strength and size. Jordan in coverage against a Gronk in our division seems like a best case scenario. Have him shed 10lbs in the off season and get some of his explosiveness back. I hope for Taylor and like what I've seen. My expectation is he will have a lot on his plate no matter what. Just need him to stay healthy and if he can take over #2 spot would help our needs list for sure.
this statement is really quite undebatable when I can just insert a picture of 290 lb def end named dion jordan..so wrong, on so many levels.
I think they're both going to be competing for roles as a Sam linebacker. I think you could rotate them and call plays that utilize their strengths, between McCain's blitzing and pass rushing ability and Jordan's potentially being a good cover guy a la Jamie Collins of New England. My expectations aren't that high for Taylor but we'll see. My expectations weren't that high for Jelani Jenkins either, but he was great in the first half of the season.
Jenkins aside, because he was a starter, Damian Williams was by far the biggest playmaker of this group in 2014.
I agree, I thought he caught the ball beautifully, thought he played with an attitude that I liked, which was a realization that he belonged..he's dangerous out of the backfield, great scouting job to find a player like that as an underrated free agent.
Great list! Love it. And, agree. I particularly like the players I highlighted. I think they can really be a very good young D if these guys work on their bodies and get smarter and are given PT. We need a new, young, aggressive DC, imo, who will bring these Defensive players confidence and the ability to play with reckless abandonment (in the way Carroll and Quinn did with Seattle). I think McCain and Jenkins should be starters (actually I'd like to see: McCain / Jenkins / Jordan as our starting LBs next year). And, I think that Thomas is the 2nd best CB on the team right now.
This team is loaded with talent that under 25 years old and is saddled with a HC who prefers to play experienced veterans. It makes me so frustrated because I really belive that we are close to something special but I am very afraid that this staff will blow it all away.
I'm generally a positive person. I don't tie my happiness or otherwise to the success of a sports team. I sometimes struggle to recognise the negativity that surrounds this forum. So many people down on so many things. I'm genuinely positive about the draft and next season. I think we've got some future ahead of us. For all the negativity that surrounds Philbin the one thing we can say is that year 2 players definitely grow. Philbin himself has spent 3 years growing and developing as a coach. I'd hope we see something stronger and more positive out of him. Yeah. I feel quite good about the future. Good thread.
DeAndre Coleman has all the makings of a an elite run stuffer on the order of a Kendall Langford. He has flashed on and off again his whole football life. A four star recruit that was expected to be drafted high that just never fulfilled expectations. His only problem seems to heart. No fire. No motor. If he could be somehow truly motivated, he is a smart guy with all the physical tools and size. http://www.nfl.com/draft/2014/profiles/deandre-coleman?id=2543701
I like CB Sammy Seamster to develop at the very bottom of this roster for a couple more years. Being inactive or active once in a while to play ST's next year and then start getting some snaps at dime in 2016. Seamster just hit puberty a few years ago, so to say he is raw, just doesn't cut it, but he is loaded with all the stuff. Athleticism,length,33 inch arms,character,sub 4.4 forty,6'1" 203, could project at FS as well. Probably has just a little too much upside to be safe on the practice squad.
