http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000...ins?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed Not exactly surprising, BUT there may be other reasons why Garrard is taking the first team reps. Such as they need a final look at the Wr's before making a decision on Ocho and Garrard has a better grasp of the offense then THill, and Moore's poor practice throws mean they cannot evaluate the Wr group properly if he were taking the first team reps.
I kind of expected this. As much as I like Moore and what he did for us, I just see Garrard being the preferred and all around better QB for us this year.
MMoore can hit stuff deep down the field consistently, and he has courage, but the WCO variant we will run requires more accurate ball placement consistently then MMoore offers. He'd fit great in a SD style offense.
Artis Hicks also getting time RG with the first unit, obviously CK liked him a lot more at guard than tackle so this may be good news. Not such great news for John Jerry of course.
John Jerry will not make it under the new regime. Even if he makes the final roster he's probably not destined to stay for long. Even Jeff Ireland's whipping boy Ray Feinga has gotten with the program and lost a ton of weight, but Jerry hasn't. Feinga is still listed as the heaviest OL on the roster but Omar says it's obviously Jerry in reality, considering the weight Feinga has lost that Jerry did not. Artis Hicks working at Right Guard is a good development. The possibility of him playing Right Tackle realistically went out the window when the Dolphins drafted Jonathan Martin, though. At that point the competition at Right Tackle was set to be Lydon Murtha versus Jonathan Martin. That's one reason the Martin pick is one I appreciate, it saved them from themselves. A competition between Murtha and Hicks at Right Tackle could have had some pretty bad consequences. What we actually need is a competition between Lydon Murtha and Artis Hicks for the starting Right Guard job. To me, an offensive line that has Jake Long, Richie Incognito, Mike Pouncey, Hicks or Murtha, and Jonathan Martin...would actually have a chance at gelling quickly in the new zone scheme. The keys to a quick maturation of the OL in the new zone blocking scheme are aggressive personnel approach, and a little bit of luck. 1. I say aggressive personnel approach because the Dolphins quickly served 40% of their starting line their walking papers. Some teams that try and make this switch don't aggressively turnover their line personnel. They try and fit square pegs in round holes. I wouldn't say that 40% starter turnover is 'very' aggressive but it's certainly more aggressive than it could be. They drafted Jonathan Martin and signed Artis Hicks. Those very well could be the replacements for starters Vernon Carey and Marc Colombo. 2. I say a little bit of luck largely because of the presence of Mike Pouncey. In the Dolphins' old power-based scheme under Brian Daboll, getting a guy with Pouncey's athleticism and high cost did not make a ton of sense to be honest. Power schemes really only need powerful and smart centers, which you can usually find in the late rounds. Zone blocking schemes are generally the schemes were you want to make sure you get some athleticism at that spot. But it just so happens the Dolphins made that investment already, before they tried installing the zone scheme. Additionally, guys like Richie Incognito (let's recall that he ran a 4.84 coming out of college at 6'3" and 305 lbs) and Lydon Murtha were also already present. Incognito had a reputation for being better in a power than zone scheme. I'd like to see that for myself. He hasn't been in this kind of scheme since college when Bill Callahan wanted to feature him as his Center. Given that and his athleticism, I suspect it could actually be the other way around.
I believe Incognito played in a zone scheme for the Rams back around 2006 when Paul Boudreau was their line coach and he did very well.
I think Garrard is the guy from day one. Matt played at the top of his ability level last year. He is a back up in this league. If the record is poor around games 8-10 we'll see tannehill getting some snaps.
It's more likely they are giving Jerry the same kind of tough love they gave Paul Soliai, because they like Jerry. His size doesn't disqualify him from being a fit within the scheme. His ability to move well at that size is what makes him intriguing. The guy absolutely has the movement skill to do well within a zone run-blocking scheme. I don't think there is any question that Philbin and Co. at least are intrigued by Jerry. They wouldn't have talked about him to this degree(even negatively), put him in the starting line-up, etc. Odds are, the "hidden talent" on the OL comment was talking about him in retrospect. Him showing up out of shape is not a tenure death knell here. It happens pretty frequently, and I'm pretty doubtful even out of shape he's much bigger than Artis Hicks. If he continues to disappoint, yes, absolutely, but the Dolphins are operating like they think Jerry can become something worthwhile and are trying to push him in that direction.
I would be all for Moore if Daboll was still here. I thought Daboll did a good job playing to Moore's strengths. It seems like the new offense is going to be quite a bit different and I am thinking Garrard is the day 1 starter.
I don't agree. When he first came in he was a clear down grade. It wasn't until a few games into his stretch that the offense clicked. I would say the jolt came from the offense overall rather than from him.
