http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/thed...hould-sign-oj-atogwe-and-4-why-they-shouldnt/ Ben Volin, the new PBP Dolphins Blogger for now, makes some good points, some I agree with, some I don't. I know Sparano has mentioned that they want a safety who has played in the 3-4 before.
Huh? Not only is Atogwe not an "average player overall," but what's this babble about suddenly needing a "big, physical safety?" What information does Volin base this supposed need on? I suspect very little. And the line about interceptions somehow being overvalued is just crazy. Generating turnovers is the single most important thing a defender can do. Atogwe generates a lot of them. That's worth paying for.
The "big physical safety" line seemed made up. If you look around the league the vast majority of the FSs with pro bowl on their resume are not above 210 lbs. And somebody who can generate TOs and stop the big play is all I want. If there was some way to guarantee that he would do those two things and just those two things (well I'd also include communicating the calls to the rest of the secondary), then I'd say pay him the $7 mill. The curse of Wilson was crap as well.He came in among very mixed reviews. And we don't have any info on what Ross wants to spend. The legit questions are if Atogwe has any elevated injury risk and whether he is worth the money. Without knowing how the bids are going, it's hard to say.
#2 does not make any sense. If Miami doesn't get Atogwe they are forced to start Clemons/Jones/Culver/Amaya
You give this D a ballhawk and we can make some noise. Thats something a lot of guys don't have, this guy does.
you've got to consider his shoulder problems ... and run the gamut on it, in the tackling business - not sure that won't be a recurring problem. the hernia, not worried about -- unless he's into fat chicks ... some humor for ya - HA!
I've been saying all along that, not only do I not think we'll get Atogwe, but that we don't need to go after him in the first place. It's just another example of fans falling in love with a name.
this time instead of going out and pissing away a bunch of cash on a guy who may not fit lets do it the right way and develop a guy and keep it in house. maybe OJ could be a nice player but there is too much risk imo. and like trowa said too many seem to fall in love with a name too often
This gentleman spoke about the fact that the Dolphins have a guy who had "all of 13 tackles" last year, a bunch of Rookies, and a "journeyman" in Tyrone Culver. He also brings up the specter of Yeremiah Bell being injured. Then he proceeds to say that we shouldn't sign Atogwe? If Atogwe works out for a full season and Bell is injured, Reshad Jones or Amaya can step into that SS role because they were good hitters in College. If Atogwe goes down, we'll still have the guys who he wants us to go with anyway. If Atogwe AND Bell go down, we'll have Clemons as a starter and Jones or Amaya probably at SS. I don't see where he's going with this. We also have to remember that the highest any of our DB's were drafted was the fifth round. They are far from guaranteed starters.
Well, don't overlook Jason Allen at Safety either. Sooner or later, the Rooks will have to play, I don't like the situation this season to toss them into the fire, but the NFL is just like that, so if Clemons and Allen start, or Culver and Jones, or whomever, it HAS to happen as the rebuilding continues. That is the price the Dolphins pay for missing on all of those draft picks for so many drafts, normally Jason Allen would be a starter, he had not developed, and that means young players get their shot. I've heard that they literally chart every play, even in OTA's, everything from Drops to mental errors are recorded for every player if anything that will provide a crystal clear picture of the players they have to choose from in September. They aren't flying blind at least.
So far, Dallas and SF have declared they have no interest in Atogwe. And I know some people have said the Bears are an option, but I'd remind that the Bears franchise is notoriously tight when it comes to Free Agents, they just gave Peppers a 60 million dollar deal, chances are good they won't spend even more money this offseason. Darlington also tweeted that his sources told him they like Atogwe, but feel good about Chris Clemons, which sounds like smokescreen material to me. A 2nd yr FS who could not beat out Wilson for playing time in 09 is the guy you pin your hopes on?
I really don't understand this whole developing Clemons, Jones, Culver, and Amaya theory. It is very hard to develop two 5th round picks, a 6th round pick, and an undrafted player. Sparano is making me a little bit unhappy right now for a few reasons. I loved the draft, don't get me wrong but there were available Free Safeties we could have pursued early, but chose not to instead and take Reshad Jones later (who many think will end up being a SS in the NFL). Yes, it was a steal, but it wasn't like we drafted an Eric Berry or Earl Thomas in the 5th round. The guy still has a lot of things to work on. So now we are stuck with our biggest need entering the off season still needed to be addressed, with the season coming in less than 3 months. I am telling you guys...Do NOT get high on Clemons, because he will disappoint you. I am praying, since more than likely now we won't go after Atogwe, that Culver is the starter because he has the most experience out of everyone, plus just doesn't look lost out there like some other guys we have. If we name Chris Clemons the starter because of effing mini camp, I will lose it. We had one of the worst secondaries in the NFL last year and did very little to improve it this off season, other than get rid of guys. But getting rid of guys and bringing next to nothing back in return isn't a valuable solution. Conclusion cliffs: -Looks like the Fins won't pursue Atogwe -Atogwe is 10x better than anything we have -I want Culver to start because he is solid with more experience than Clemons, Jones, and Amaya combined -I am hearing all this talk about how Clemons is just so much improved from last season (even though we are only in mini camp with out pads) -Im irate. Chris Clemons was god awful last season guys. Just terrible. Yes, he was a rookie, but you don't just turn into a solid starter from nothing in less than one off season. It just doesn't happen in the NFL.
We may not go after him but it's clear that he's an upgrade over what we have. If we get lucky with one of our young guys we may not need him, but until then the defense needs someone back there. And I doubt it's his name people are falling in love with since most haven't seen him play and he didn't get a ton of press.
Ok, 1) Is he worth the money...in a word, YES. A 5 yr starter that was good enough to be franchised last year. He represents an upgrade to Clemons, Culver, Jones and Amaya combined. He represents a talent that would immediately be the best guy in the secondary, Bell included. 2) Injury Risk - Well he was injured last year, in fact he has two injuries, a shoulder and hernia that required surgery. But he started 60 games in succession prior to undergoing the surgeries ?? There is no evidence that the injuries are career threatening or anything of that nature. He had a down year last year, but look at the team he was on....they all had down years... 3) Already spent a ton of money - Yes, but we've dumped a lot of salary as well with Wilson, Smiley, Torbor, Porter, etc.... It's not my money to spend, but being this close, in an uncapped year and having a talent like Atogwe fall into our laps...ya' gotta go for it... 4) Wilson effect - Ok, what does acquiring Atogwe have to do with Wilson ?? It might end up being a mistake, but I'm sure no one felt that getting Wilson was going to be as bad as it turned out. That is a chance you take with any FA, but remember that this year many of the FAs are not like they have been since this CBA started. With the uncapped year and new rules for RFAs, there has been some quality players available, not just older, big name vets who outlived a contract somewhere or young guys coming off their rookie contracts that may or may not be showing signs of becoming elite players...sure it's a crap shoot, but ask the 32 GMs and I'll bet they'd take Atogwe over any FA FS that has been acquirable this FA period... No doubt there's a chance that getting Atogwe could backfire on us, but there is also a chance that he makes up for the weakness we have at OLB and puts this D back on track... EDIT: #4) This is a guy that in most years would not have been available. In a capped environment, his situation would have gone down a lot different by the Rams...
A use of a colon is unnecessary unless it precedes a "list" (i.e. multiple entries.) If you would have said "you have to ask yourself these questions: ..." and followed it with multiple questions, you would have been correct. As it stands, a comma would have been correct.
OJ is one of the most overrated players the nfl has seen in some time and a big part of that is a his int's but the HUGE part in it is the madden game. He gives up big plays as well as makes them..........he's good he's better then what we have right now today but he has never been a great player. His madden rating was a 96 last year when the game came out,and in real life it's a 85/86.
The last Madden I played was Madden '07. Prior to that, I owned Madden '01. I want Atogwe having never even seen any Madden played after Madden '07. Also, how many people who play Madden play with The Rams anyway?
http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2010/06/02/...it/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter I guess it is down to the Fins and Rams right now, with the Rams being in 1st place. That makes me feel a whole lot better if it is between us two. I think we have a much better shot at winning Atogwe over the Rams right now. Let's hope no other team jumps in to the mix.
If the Dolphins can sign him at a bargain sure. I just don't think he's worth it for the high $$ he'll ask for. The Dolphins went from aging on defense to very very young. You can't replace everything in a year with quality starters. Some picks can start out immediately, some take time to develop, and others just never improve enough. Although it's a crapshoot, the Dolphins have a lot of young potential guys. We really don't know what we have yet with Jones, Clemons and Culver... I just don't think Atogwe is a "must-have" at this stage for the Dolphins, unless he comes at a bargain.