Tin Bits - Rookie Camp Edition

I wasn't planning on doing a Tin Bits today, but some of the one-liners coming out today are too good to pass on, so here goes:

• There are 37 rookies attending the Dolphins rookie camp today.

• John Jerry is working at LG.

• The Primitive Tool with the initials BF, is now a BBF, as in a 'Broken' BF. He apparently needs surgery to repair an ankle that got damaged whilst trying to put on a too-tight pair of Wrangler jeans. This could well spell the end of the Primitive Tool, though obviously not the end of the media coverage wank-off.

• I never pass up an opportunity to belittle the Jets, and it seems their rookie, RB, Joe McKnight is having a rough time getting acclimated to the NFL and the lovely New Jersey air! (J/K Jersey folks!)

• Aren't you glad that we traded for classy WR Brandon Marshall? Look at what the 'other' big WR trade has gotten the...oh look its the sorry Jets again!

• The Dolphins have removed the rookie jersey numbers from their website, resetting everyone back to 0. This comes in the wake of mild controversy of giving the number 54 to rookie LB Aj Edds. UPDATE: Edds has been switched to #49 - all other numbers remain the same.

• PFT's Mike Florio has waged an all-out war on the character of Dolphins, GM, Jeff Ireland. Florio has penned no less than 6 articles plus several more twitter posts full of negative spin in the last 24 hours directed at Jeff Ireland and the Dolphins front office. This latest one shows the context of the question asked of Dez Bryant, and includes an over the top Ireland bashing that seems personal in nature.

• Dolphins LB, Channing Crowder is recovering from surgery on his broken foot from the end of the 2009 season. Tim Dobbins or AJ Edds could start on Day 1 if Crowder isn't ready to go.

• I'm not making this up, but 5 minutes after I wrote the PFT blurb above, Florio is at it again.

• It's getting comical now - Florio has written 5 blogs today on the subject, and over 20 since the story broke. Meanwhile, he missed this story altogether.

That's Right - The Schedule! - Let's Pack Our Bags...

I told you I'd get to this topic after the draft and now seems like the perfect time (if you know what I mean). The 2010 Miami Dolphins schedule has not garnered any of the attention that the 2009 version did. We heard ad infinitum how difficult it was going to be. Personally I thought we played our best ball against the best competition, such as the Colts, Saints, and Jets. We shut down the Patriots once and challenged the Titans, Chargers, and Steelers. In the end, our final record had very little to do with the schedule. We could have easily had a completely different outcome - say 11-5, 12-4, even 13-3 against the same competition, but we made mistakes, had loads of injuries, and didn't come through in the clutch.

So now that we have a 'softer' schedule per the media pundits, shouldn't we expect a winning season?

Well, yes, if you're only considering win-loss-ratio. But what if you're a displaced fan. Someone who can't make it to the games but would really like to attend at least one. If you don't live in an NFL city, you're going to have to travel. That makes for a very expensive 'day out'. So you think to yourself, as long as I combine this game with either a business trip or a vacation, it won't impact my wallet that much more. What if you work a job that has no travel involved?

Then you're in my situation. You're going to have to convince your family to go to one of the cities that is hosting the Dolphins. Miami is over 3,000 miles away and to be honest, I don't have any desire to 'visit' my least favorite former-hometown.  So it's an away game then.  Surely there's somewhere on the schedule my family or myself have been dying to go to where I can take a half-day off of tourist attractions and go to a Dolphins game.

Buffalo?  yeah, right.

Minneapolis?  Has anything good come out of there since Tom Waits wrote Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis?

Green Bay?  I know we're not playing these guys in December but that's 3 cold weather cities in a row and I'm sure I'd end up in the ER with a cheese overdose.

Cincinnati?  As a responsible, loving father and husband, I wouldn't take my family to vacation in Cincinnati.  Would you?  Also, another cold city.

Baltimore?  Same comment as Cincinnati.

Oakland?  Considering that we live in Sacramento, this 1 hour drive to an even bigger dump would not really classify as a vacation.  Also, I wouldn't take my son to a Raiders game and I fear my wife would be kidnapped and savaged by the local ghouls.  That would be a huge waste of money for her ticket...

New Jersey?  LOL.  Garden State, my ass.

Boston? Don't get me wrong, I'd bet Boston is the best option, although it's just as far away as Miami as the crow flies, it at least has some nice attractions for the family, and I hear they make clam chowder the proper way, not that effed up tomato BS.  But on January 2nd, the temperature will likely be freezing or below.

So, you can see that the schedule was developed specifically to keep me from attending a game.  The closest I came last year was thinking of going to the San Diego game, where I would've witnessed Chad Pennington being snapped in half, the Dolphins lose, and potentially picked up an STD from Tila Tequila. 

This year I was hoping for something a bit more favorable.  I'd love for the Dolphins to travel to Seattle in September, or perhaps Arizona.  An early season jaunt to Chicago could be welcome, and a trip to Denver would provide the perfect excuse for a road trip through the Rockies.  I would even go with the nearby 49ers - it would be a nice 3 day weekend trip.  As for the East coast, Washington has enough vacation backdrop to make the trip more purposeful than just attending a football game.  But they snowed in every winter and the airports shut down as do the roads so it would have to be an early season thing.

The truth is, I must have some sort of self-torturing gene in me that makes me follow teams from places I don't want to live in - Miami, Manchester, etc.  Though I hear Manchester United are coming on a US tour - I'm thinking the likelihood is better that I'll attend a Man United game this year than a Dolphins one.

Oh well, one thing is for certain, this year I'm forking out for NFL Sunday Ticket!!

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Ok folks, I know I'm not the only out-of-town Dolfan out there.  Of the away games, which are you most likely to attend? 

Tin Bits - Contest Results

• Well, it took me long enough, but I've finally managed to finish grading the papers of the Tin's Fins 2010 Draft Contest.  From the 1st entry to about the 26th entry, not a single person had correctly guessed a single Dolphins' draftee.  Out of about 50 entries, only about 6 even got one right - so I don't feel so bad about getting none right myself.  Results are at the bottom of this blog post.

• A couple of lagging news items following the Draft.  Former Elon star WR, Terrell Hudgins, a player I described in the live chat as being a sort of 'poor man's Dez Bryant', has signed a rookie free agent contract with the same team that drafted Bryant - the Dallas Cowboys.  As if they didn't have enough receivers already, the Cowboys also got 'retired-before-hired' rookie free agent TE, Scott Sicko to sign on the dotted line.  As of now, the Cowboys have at WR - Roy Williams, Miles Austin, Patrick Crayton, Sam Hurd, Dez Bryant, Terrell Hudgins, along with a slew of young unproven no-names.

• Speaking of the Cowboys and Dez Bryant - news has surfaced that Dolphins' GM Jeff Ireland asked Dez Bryant if his mother was a prostitute.  This yahoo reporter took it very personally. I thought it was hilarious.  It really trumps any of the other weird combine interview questions we've heard this year.  Ultimately, it sounds as if Dez passed the test, though whether or not he was ever a Dolphins' target is unknown.  If my theory is correct that certain NFL teams work together in the pre-draft evaluations, as I have suggested goes on between Dallas and Miami, then it makes sense that a team that wasn't going to draft Bryant would ask the question on behalf of the team that was.  Whatever you want to think of Dez Bryant and his future, he has, in my opinion, handled himself really well as a 20 year old in the spotlight and with all the criticism he's faced the past few months.  As for the question - yes it's class-less and brutish - it was meant to be - so that yahoo reporter should lay off the Yoo-hoo and stop comparing a 1st round NFL draft pick with someone who works in an office for $40k a year.  Those people also don't have to strip to their underwear, get prodded and medically investigated, interviewed four or five times, have their families and backgrounds checked, their internet history investigated, their twitter followed, and be in 'evaluation mode' for 4 months straight.  Then after they are drafted they are still under evaluation every minute they are at work.  There's really no comparison between an NFL player and a regular person when it comes to what is an appropriate question.  They obviously want to know how he reacts to confrontation, what his temper is like, etc.  This is a physical game, people are hitting each other, adrenalin is pumping.  So, Michael Silver, YOU need a reality check.

• Hooked up with new Miami Dolphin CB, Nolan Carroll, via the internet and verified that Dolphins rookie camp runs from Thursday morning through Sunday evening.  It will be interesting to see who the Dolphins call-in to fill in the missing holes (they essentially need enough players to run a 7-on-7 drill.

And now, drumroll please, the WINNERS of the 2010 TIN's FINS DRAFT CONTEST:

1. Dahlia305 - 52 points
2. 13kvFINS - 51 points
3. NcDolfan  - 44 points

NcDolfan managed to join us in the live chat from Bahrain (if memory serves) as he was deployed by the US Navy to fight pirates aboard the USS Farragut.  He was the only entrant to guess we would draft Austin Spitler and he even got the number pick right.  NcDolfan, as if you couldn't find any better motivation to be safe over there, there is a $15 Gift Certificate waiting for you when you get back!  

13kvFINS had the hardest to read entry, with the most additional narrative added - imagine a contestant on Wheel of Fortune asking if there are any 'R's and then while the Rs are being turned over, that contestant then stating his reasoning behind why he chose R and what other letters he thought of choosing, and you'll get the picture.  He was the only contestant to pick Koa Misi with our 2nd pick - but it didn't count as it was in his 'alternate answer', not the official one. which had zero correct.  Had he submitted the alternate instead, he would have edged out Dahlia305  for the win. 13kvFINS' entry was the only one out of over 50 entries that picked DE as the answer to #10, though his reason for picking that position was wrong, he did type out 'DE' s he gets the points and the $25.

Dahlia305 had some key scores on her entry.  First, she somehow knew/guessed that we would draft John Jerry.  She knew we would trade down.  She was the ONLY entrant to get full points for #1 (maybe she was smart enough to copy from my mock draft - as I also had Trent Williams going 4th overall).  And thus, she's the only one walking away with the $50 first prize.

Congratulations to all the winners.  Prizes will be sent out to Dahlia305 and 13kvFINS on Thursday.  NcDolfan - I will hold yours until you return unless you tell me otherwise.  A couple of honorable mentions:  Elias P. got 43 points and had the best score on #8 (WRs);  Fin_Fan_in_Japan scored 39;  Rob H. scored 38.  Twenty-four contestants scored a 37.  The lowest score was a 24.  There were a total of 112 possible points. 

The New Guys addendum - The Undrafted Free Agents

CB/KR - A.J. WALLACE, PENN STATE - 6'1", 195 LBS 


CB - ROSS WEAVER, MICHIGAN STATE - 6'1", 208 LBS 

FS - JOHNATHAN AMAYA, NEVADA - 6'0", 203  LBS

 

NT - TRAVIS IVEY, MARYLAND - 6'3", 341 LBS


DT - VINCE OGHOBASSE, DUKE - 6'5", 305 LBS 


WR - ROBERTO WALLACE, SD STATE - 6'4", 223 LBS



WR - MARLON MOORE, FRESNO STATE - 6'0", 190 LBS


OT - ANDY LEAVINE, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL - 6'5", 305 LBS

The New Guys

Upon completion of the 2010 NFL Draft, I feel like Miami did well but probably could've done better.  Ultimately we won't know how good a draft it was until a year or two have passed, but to me, none of the players really scream 'Pro-Bowler' to me.  But with that said, there should be improvement to the team overall, and thus I guess you would have to consider it a successful draft at this stage.  

The addition of the undrafted free agents shows that Miami did cover all their needs between Free Agency, Trade, Draft and subsequent free agent signings.  As we sit on April 25th, Miami can head straight to camp with 'all the bases covered'.

JARED ODRICK


KOA MISI


JOHN JERRY

AJ EDDS



NOLAN CARROLL



RESHAD JONES



CHRIS MCCOY 
 

AUSTIN SPITLER 

 

UNDRAFTED FREE AGENTS:

CB/KR - A.J. WALLACE, PENN STATE - 6'1", 195 LBS 
CB - ROSS WEAVER, MICHIGAN STATE - 6'1", 208 LBS

SS - JOHNATHAN AMAYA, NEVADA - 6'0", 203  LBS

NT - TRAVIS IVEY, MARYLAND - 6'3", 341 LBS
DT - VINCE OGHOBASSE, DUKE - 6'5", 305 LBS
WR - ROBERTO WALLACE, SD STATE - 6'4", 223 LBS
WR - MARLON MOORE, FRESNO STATE - 6'0", 190 LBS
OT - ANDY LEAVINE, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL - 6'5", 305 LBS

2010 Draft - Round 1 Report

Well round 1 has come and gone, we got a legitimate 3-4 DE, and a HIGH second round pick, so while there may be some disappointment in the fact we didn't draft one of our favorites, we still did better than most teams.

Buffalo used their pick on CJ Spiller - a great playmaker, but not a Left Tackle or a QB, their two biggest needs and best value pick for the #9 overall.

Cleveland took CB Joe Haden at #7 instead of a QB or a defensive lineman. I think that pick may turn out to be even worse that Buffalo's.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was Jacksonville taking Cal DE, Tyson Alualu with the 11th overall pick. I had Alualu in the mid 50s on my board.

Oakland swiped up Alabama ILB Rolando McClain and early reports are they are trying to switch to a 3-4. It makes sense for the personnel they have, but they will have to target a weakside OLB in round two - they pick one spot ahead of us at #39 overall so Miami may want to try to trade up with Cleveland (or whomever Cleveland trades with because they are expected to try to get to #33 to get a QB.

My favorite prospect, Michigan's Brandon Graham, went to a 4-3 team - another head-scratching move. In fact, there were several head-scratchers once we got through the first 6 picks. Ultimately, once again, the New England Patriots worked the board to perfection, picking up extra draft picks and still getting a great player in Devin McCourty - though they had Jared Odrick very high on their board as well.

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Now, let's talk Odrick. He is 6'5", 305 lbs and pretty much has been that way since 8th grade - this is not a guy who has grown or gained an inch during 4 years of college - he played at the same size in HS, and he played allover the field in HS, not just as a DT. He's not a fantastic player, in comparison to Suh and McCoy, but what he does bring to the table is drive, determination, coachability, ZERO diva-itis, and long arms which help broaden his tackle area. I'm planning on watching a PSU game or two to get some more analysis done, but from what I have seen, he is a very good tackler. He's also a guy who played several positions in College, in PSU's hybrid defense there was a lot of 5-2 fronts similar to what Miami does so perhaps that was a factor in their decision. We all know that Miami wants to be able to take 7 DL to the game and rotate them constantly to keep them fresh and also to prevent o-linemen from 'locking on' to any specific player. It's a great theory, but it was hard to see it working all the time in 2009 - perhaps it was a personnel issue.

At the same time, there is a very strong possibility that either Paul Soliai, Philip Merling or Tony McDaniel are going to be traded. If not then I wouldn't expect any of the 3rd tier guys: Ikeaka Alma-Francis, Ryan Baker, and Lionel Dotson to be around much longer.

I think someone threw out the possibility of us going to a 4-3 scheme. That would entail us asking a couple of players to put on 30 lbs and the entire front 7 to unlearn everything they've been doing for the last two years - not to mention Bill Parcells relinquishing full control - and Mike Nolan changing his mind-set of the last decade. It's not going to happen.

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Now, let's discuss what's going to happen tonight. The Dolphins have the 40th, and 73rd overall picks tonight. We have 2 shots at greatness.

Most fans want or think we should go OLB here. I thought so last night too but I've thought about it and now think it may not be good value at #40. I think we should wait until #73 or later. However, there are many options, so here are my three suggestions. Please chime in with your comments and your dream scenarios.

SCENARIO #1:
#40 - Sergio Kindle, OLB - medical issues forced Merling to drop, Dolphins could get an even better deal here.

#73 - Morgan Burnett, FS - The safety out of Georgia Tech could be a real steal at 73. In pads he looks like Sean Smith's clone, with his 6'3", 210lb frame topped with dreads. The difference is he can hit people and tackle. His ball-skills are stellar with 14 picks in 3 seasons.




SCENARIO #2:
#40 - Nate Allen, FS - Allen is probably the highest rated Safety still on the board unless you are a USC fan. To me, Allen is very much like Yeremiah Bell, and that's not a bad thing considering how valuable Bell has been and the fact he's getting older. Allen is a solid, physical player and could play both safety positions.



#73 - Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, DB - Owusu-Ansah represents value with his position flexibility, being able to play FS and nickel corner, and his return skills. Miami could double up on safety on Day 2, and get a couple of OLBs on Saturday.

SCENARIO # 3:

#40 - Golden Tate, WR - Let's be realistic, Brandon Marshall helps bring Bess and Camarillo from average to slightly above average.  Using the 2nd rd pick on an already above average or even pretty good WR and then lining him up across from Marshall, would then make him good or REALLY good.  This would also benefit Marshall and Henne and of course whichever shmuck we have playing tight-end.  Tate would be really good value at #40 and can return kicks.

#73 -  Torrell Troup, DT -  One of the best options to replace Soliai, Troup's work ethic is stellar, he's intelligent, and he's 6'3", 314 lbs.  If he lasts till 73, we should not hesitate to take him.

New Dolphin - Jared Odrick, DL

"As a junior at Lebanon High, Jared Odrick would go to school, head over to track practice, then rush home to do his homework. Instead of propping his feet up on the recliner in front of the TV and calling it a night, Odrick went back to school from 7 to 9 p.m. to hit the weight-room.

Most nights, he was the only kid there.

"We had somebody come in at night," Head Coach Bill Giovino said. "Jared wanted to do it."

Such commitment is telling of a man refusing to settle for less than his potential."`Nate Mink, The Daily Collegian.

BOB FLOUNDERS, The Patriot-News writes:

The Miami Dolphins selected Penn State's standout defensive lineman in the first round, 28th overall, in the NFL draft Thursday night.

Odrick, a three-year starter for Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions and the 2009 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, can play tackle or end and will likely do both for Miami's organization, which is run by Bill Parcells, the former head coach of the New York Giants, Jets, New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys. The Dolphins' head coach is Tony Sparano.

The 6-5, 305-pound Odrick, a Lebanon High School graduate, led all PSU defensive linemen in tackles last season with 43. Despite constant double-teaming, Odrick recorded 11 tackles for loss, 7 of them sacks.

"I like [Odrick] a lot,'' said former Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden in his role of analyst on ESPN's draft coverage.

"I've seen him play defensive tackle in a nickel [defense], defensive end in a base. When he comes off the ball, he can bull rush. He's a problem inside.''

Odrick, who attended the draft Thursday night in New York City with his family, was considered by some draft experts to be the third-best tackle prospect available, behind Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh and Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy.

He started his PSU career as a defensive end but moved inside during his sophomore year of 2007. Odrick can play tackle in a 4-3 and is also projected as an end in a 3-4.

Miami plays a 3-4 defense and will be without projected starting nose tackle Jason Ferguson for the first eight games in the fall. Ferguson, 35, was suspended by the league for using a performance enhancing drug.

Miami's defensive line rotation includes Kendall Langford, Phillip Merling and Randy Starks.

End. Tackle. Maybe even a series or two at nose tackle. Odrick could do a little bit of everything for Miami. Just like he did at Penn State.

"There's a lot of things that Odrick does [well], using his hands, and clubbing people, getting them out of the way,'' Gruden said.

"This guy is relentless, he plays on an every-down basis and rarely gets tired. I think Odrick is a perfect Bill Parcells-type player. When he hits the quarterback, they go down hard.''

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Ahh....the Draft....

Tin Bits Pre-Draft Edition

• I'm getting pretty excited about the draft.  If we take a player I covet at the 12th spot, I just might have to have a raucous party to celebrate.  Right now the buzz is starting to develop for Jerry Hughes at the 12-spot.  Personally I don't see it because I haven't seen him ranked in the top 15 at all.  Dallas has been spending a LOT of time with Hughes during the process.  Someone is going to fall for us because it looks like both Oakland and Denver may be making surprise picks and there's a strong chance San Francisco is going to trade up as well.  I still think Brandon Graham is the best choice because he could start from Day 1 and rotate with Cam Wake from SOLB to WOLB, allowing Wake to improve his all-around game on the fly.

• The Schedule is out - I'm going to do a write-up on this during the doldrums that are the post-draft months, but something to watch out for - Miami hosts the Steelers in the 6th game of the season.  Ben Roethlisberger has been suspended for a conditional 4 to 6 games.  There's an outside possibility that the suspension will still be in effect.  There's a stronger possibility that the helmet-less one will be traded by then anyway.

• Jason Taylor's exit interview last night showed that he was not happy with the way the Dolphins front office dealt with him and that they made no offer to him since the one they made in November and that they hadn't informed him of their plans all off-season.  Personally I don't believe a word of it, since Ireland said on two separate occasions that they informed JT that they would not make a decision or an offer until after the draft.  Even if they didn't talk to JT directly, this was all over the press, and any agent worth his wage would have made a quick phone call to clarify things with the Dolphins.  Come to think of it, didn't the agent say one week before JTs visit to the Jets that the Dolphins did inform them that they would not make a decision until after the draft?  Then less than 2 weeks later he said they had never talked?  Ultimately, the Dolphins did make an offer in November for $1.5 million.  JT declined.  JT says now he would've played for $1 million in Miami.  The end result is that 1. JT declined an extension offer during the 2009 season, 2. JT sided with Joey Porter during the JP radio debacle, 3. JT dissed both the coaching staff and a team-mate in Cameron Wake whilst doing so, 4. JT refused to wait until after the draft to talk to other teams, 5. JT chose to be wined and dined by the Jets, the most-hated rivals of the Dolphins, 6. JT's agent went on every radio show he could get himself booked on and leaked all kinds of information that was detrimental to the team, including secret meetings and potential draft direction, and 7. despite JT and his agent's insistence that the Dolphins had not reached out to him, after 1 thru 6 occurred, they still made an appointment before the draft to talk to him, thus showing they were interested in communicating with him.  So while the fans will ultimately buy JT's side that this is all the Dolphins fault, keep in mind that players are employees, nothing else, and they don't set the rules.  The second the Trifecta gets soft, the whole thing will start to crumble.  We pay them to make the tough decisions and to keep things under control.  They may come across as the bad guys from time to time, but that is what we want them to be as long as it benefits the TEAM.

• Back to the draft, I was wondering if I should do a live chat on the site for the draft but I just found out this morning the chances of me even being at home for the first few picks is in jeopardy as I have been sucked into a late afternoon meeting at work.  It's unlikely that I'll be able to sneak out halfway through the meeting.  I will however, still post a live chatbox for those of you who aren't stuck at work and watching from home. 

•  Last chance folks, who are we taking with our 1st round pick?

 

Jason Taylor....JT....J..e..T?

Jason Taylor has apparently given up on the Dolphins and will sign with the Jets today.* The NY Jets have been going out of their way to impress JT for a couple of weeks now and have been pursuing him for even longer.  The deal may not sit well with many Jets fans, but nothing ever does.

Be positive though Jets fans, as this signing garners a divisional enemy who mustered an impressive 4 tackles and 0.5 sacks in the last 4 games he played against you over the past 3 years.

More info to follow later.

*UPDATE:  One report says the bald one will sign with the Jets today.  Another report says that he will 'provide an answer' to the Jets by Wednesday.  Honestly, this story is way too big and too chaotic for what it is, an over-the-hill, past-his-prime stopgap player who isn't expected to be part of the future for either of the two teams involved.

2nd UPDATE:  It's official, Jason Taylor has agreed to terms with the New York Jets.  R.I.P.

Tin Bits - Monday, 4/19/10

• The live mock draft on Friday was a lot of fun.  It was a bit awkward at times because there was about a 2 second delay on the phone (which I didn't know about until I was on the air) but other than that it went well, and it was funny how many teams I pissed off by taking Brandon Graham with the 12th pick.  He seemed to be the top choice for several teams behind me including the Pats and the Jets.  It's always a bonus pissing them off.  If you'd like to listen to the show, click HERE and then you can either play it straight through your browser or get from iTunes, etc.

• The dead-line passed for the entrance into the Tins Fins Draft Contest.  This one saw a drop in total entries (there were a lot of complaints about it being too hard but it was virtually identical to the one from 2009 - I did employ a lot of cut and  paste).  In any event. for those that entered you have a better chance of winning now.  Results will be posted next Monday morning after the draft.

• The Brandon Marshall contract was apparently (according to profootballtalk.com) significantly leaner in the guaranteed money area than was originally reported.  It looks like the Dolphins really got a good deal in the end.

• LB Channing Crowder on Marshall: "I worked out with him yesterday and he's strong as hell, fast as hell, so he's going to help us."

• Jason Taylor is due back from his mini-vacation today, and since the Dolphins canceled their 'leaked' meeting with him last week, and the Jets are still ga-ga over him, I wouldn't be surprised if he signs with them by the end of the day.  Then again, since it's JT, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't sign anything until August, either. 

• Ricky Williams recently shared this - "I woke up this morning knowing I had to study most of the day. I was feeling overwhelmed by all I have to do, & on top of that I couldn't find my cellphone. Funny, several hours later we found it in my massage chair.. definitely not somewhere I would have expected it to be..."  I thought that was interesting because it made me think...if you were on a vibrating chair and your phone was on vibrate, would you be able to feel it, and if it dropped out of your pocket and you had a friend call your number, would you be able to hear it vibrating against the chair?  Yes, these are the kinds of thoughts I have before I get half a cup of coffee down.

• And finally, I just wanted to share this video because it captures exactly what I was doing over the weekend as one of the most exciting things imaginable occurred in the sporting world.  And it just goes with what I've said many times in the past - that the Dolphins need to take a page out of the world of soccer, specifically the English Premier League, and specifically the Manchester United Red Devils.  It ain't over till it's over, so play on and never stop trying to win!  Cheers!
  
  
  
  
  
  

Go Mock Yourself!

Today at 4:00pm Eastern, the Fantasy Sports Channel is hosting a live mock draft on their BlogTalkRadio station.  Tin's Fins has been chosen to represent the Miami Dolphins - I'm scheduled to be on air around 4:45pm Eastern.  Since this is my only alternative to crashing the real draft and locking up all the Dolphins' reps in the bathroom, I intend to create some waves.  Of course, I have no idea who will be on the board since it's a bunch of other bloggers choosing for the other teams too.

Some details on the actual show:

The show starts at 4:00 PM Eastern FRIDAY.  Here is the link:

http://BlogTalkRadio.com/Fantasy-Sports-Group

If you have any suggestions, air them out below in the comments.

UPDATE:  Tinshaker, aka Bill Parcells, chose Brandon Graham with the 12th overall pick.  Dan Williams, Earl Thomas, Rolando McClain, Sergio Kindle, and Mike Iupati were all still on the board so get your vengeance in the comments.

New Dolphin - Brandon Marshall, WR

I knew a Brandon Marshall trade was imminent once he signed his RFA tender, and I knew if it came down to Miami vs Seattle, that Miami would win out, but I was still a bit shocked when I heard the news.

The Dolphins have traded their 2010 and 2011 2nd round draft picks for the services of the star Broncos wide receiver.

The truth is, this trade just about screwed up all the mock drafts out there, and also proves once and for all that the Trifecta a) never believed they had that #1 WR on the roster or that they didn't need to get one, b) weren't going to go between the Dansby signing and the Draft without another big move, and c) can never, ever, ever again say with a straight face that their number one concern is bringing in high character guys.

They've brought in some misfits in their time, but this move proves that in the end, talent wins out over good character, and on the field at least we should have a much improved team already with a now experienced rocket arm QB, a true #1 WR, a healthy and experienced o-line, a much improved interior linebacking group, and any secondary that doesn't include Gibril Wilson.  The Dolphins would do very well to wait out an extension on Marshall's contract to see if a new mature Marshall shows up or the same old locker room diva.  At least 'popcorn muscles' won't be in the locker room with him.

There is one thing this trade brings into focus.  It implies that the Dolphins are going to try to recover a 2nd or early 3rd round pick to sort of make-up for the one they lost.  It implies that WR is out of the running for the 1st and 3rd round picks they currently have.  It implies that OL, FS, DT, and LB are the only likely choices with those picks.  I'd go a little further than even that to suggest that the Dolphins will now most likely go with FS at the top of the draft.  I still think Brandon Graham is the safer choice, but someone like Eric Berry or Earl Thomas are rated higher as far as BPA goes.

I also think the Dolphins should hang on to Ted Ginn Jr now.  A combination of Marshall, Hartline, Bess and Ginn is the complete game-day foursome that covers any play-calling options you need.  Ginn could go back to returning kicks and punts full-time (he's more likely to score TDs that way anyway).

UPDATE:  Per Adam Shefter, "Brandon Marshall reaches agreement with Dolphins on four-year, $47.5 million extension, including $24 million guaranteed."  Personally I think that's a bad move by the Dolphins.  They should've either waited to see what version of Marshall shows up to camp or cut the guaranteed money.  This 5 year/$50M or $10M per year deal is insane.  How did the bank ok this?  Was it Washington Mutual?

Tin Bits - Tuesday, April 13th 2010

• Tin's Fins suffered a brain fart yesterday as I wrote an article for the blog and then forgot to click 'publish' and didn't realize it until this morning.  Since it was only relevant yesterday we'll just have to move on without it.

• A reminder to everyone that you have until Friday night to get in your entry for the Draft contest.  The reason I'm closing out the deadline a bit early is because while teams with the 1st pick generally sign the #1 choice before the draft, I could see as many as the top 3 signing their players before draft day if the dominoes start falling.  However, I read an article today that suggests Bradford may still not want to sign with the Rams, and that they would draft him anyway (without a signing, the Rams have to wait until draft day to pick him up, and even then they could change their minds completely by then).  This could make the first question in the contest a lot trickier than it seems at first glance. 

• Reports have come out stating that WR Dez Bryant is 'off the Jaguars board' and may be off several others as well due to character concerns.  We hear these kinds of reports every year at this time in the run up to the Draft.  Last year it was Vontae Davis.  What are the odds that the Dolphins, specifically the Trifecta, are the ones who are starting these character assaults?  Hard to say, because the Dolphins had the 1st overall pick in 2008, so we really only have 2009 to go by for evidence.  Still, I've always suspected the Trifecta of playing these kinds of games, haven't you?  Maybe someone who has more knowledge of previous Parcells' run drafts can look to see if there is a pattern of this kind of thing.

• Pat White's hilariously ill-timed Twitter post yesterday that he would be better off going back to baseball rather than play wide-receiver got the newspapers in a total orgy of ineptitude.  I printed the 'Tweet' here yesterday about 1 minute after it was posted on Twitter, with a speculation that maybe the Dolphins had brought it up - because I'm sure White wouldn't bring it up to them.  The interesting part of this is that White claimed he was just trying to 'stir the pot'.  Whatever he wants to say, the reality is that he was thinking about it, he did write about it, and it took him a considerable amount of time to retract it.  Also the timing of it - that same day the Dolphins front office was going around getting information from all the players on what their social networking accounts were and presumably reminding them not to leak any information or discuss anything detrimental to the team.  Now, whether or not this tweet happened before or after the Dolphins' Head of Internet-Lockdownedness got to White is unknown.  If it was after, then the only pot that was stirred was that of the Dolphins' F.O.

• Apparently Jason Taylor and Coach Sparano are meeting this week.  Boooooring.

• 
  
  I'm sure most of you already saw the Roethlisberger press conference yesterday but I just have to throw this quote out there, "I understand that the opportunities I have been blessed with are a privilege ... I absolutely want to be the leader this team deserves, valued in the community and a role model to kids." Would you want this motorcycle crashing, misogynistic, overweight, alcoholic, date-rapist to be a role-model to your kid?  Of course you would, he is a Super Bowl champion after all...
  
  
  
  

CONTEST # 4 - Just Draft It!

First Prize is a $50 gift certificate to NFLshop.com.

Second Prize is a $25 gift certificate to NFLshop.com.

Third Prize is a $15 gift certificate to NFLshop.com.

OK, here's how this will work.

All entries MUST be e-mailed to 'tinshaker@gmail.com' with the subject "CONTEST".

All entries must be in my inbox by midnight Eastern time on April 16th (Friday night).

Ok, now the actual contest.

Below are ten questions/challenges. In parenthesis are the point values for each question. The fan with the most points wins, with the second most points comes in second and so on. In the case of a tie for first place, the tie breaker question #11 will be used to break the tie, and the loser of the tie-breaker then becomes the second place finisher. This would push the second placer down to third, etc. The same tie-break formula would be used for a 2nd or 3rd place tie-breaker. If there is a three-way tie (or more) and the first tie-break results in two or more people still being tied, then the order in which I received the e-mail entry will be used to number the entrants, and I will then use a random number generator to choose a winner. Only other rule is that Tinshaker can't play.

Here are the questions:

1. Predict the first five picks in correct order. It doesn't matter if a team trades the pick, the number of the pick is what's important. (1 point for each name, 1 point for being the correct number/name combo, and bonus 3 points for getting all five picks perfect). note: you may get a couple of free points here.

2. Predict the teams that will draft a QB in the first round. (2 points for each correct team)

3. Predict how many Offensive Linemen will be drafted in the first round w/ bonus if you can name them. (3 points for getting the number of OLs right, 1 point for each correct name you list, however, you will lose a point if you list someone who is not chosen in the first round. Example: if the answer is 5 and you choose 6, you will lose a point for each incorrect name, and you'll score no points for getting the number wrong).

4. Predict the first cornerback chosen. (2 points for name, 2 bonus points if you name the team that picks him)

5. Predict the first safety taken in the draft. (2 points for name, 2 bonus points for team).

6. Predict the number of times Pat White will be mentioned during the NFL Network  live coverage on day 2. (this could also be a good drinking game, 5 points)

7. Predict all 10 Miami Dolphin draftees. (since there may be trades, I have to grade this by each pick. 3 points for each player correctly identified in any order. No matter how many picks we end up with, a bonus of 12 points will be given to each entrant who correctly predicts at least 50% of the players).

8. Predict the first 10 wide receivers drafted. (2 points for each name, 10 bonus points if you get them all right in the right order).

9. Will the Dolphins trade up, down, or stick with the #12 pick? (4 points)

10. Predict the position of the first Miami pick, ie DT, WR, CB, etc. All pass-rushers under 265lbs will be considered an OLB for this question. (10 points)

Tie-Breaker:

11. Guess how many combined-college-career touchdowns were scored by all of the 2010 Miami draftees. (The closest wins, and TD passes count, whether it be a QB or a halfback option, as do special team TDs, and defensive TDs). Yes I know this is hard but that's why I said 'GUESS'. The best way to do this would be to take your answers from question # 7 and add up the TDs for those players.

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As you can see, it's very unlikely there will be any ties, but #11 is the tie-breaker so think about it for 5 seconds and make a guess. If two entrants are tied, and one fails to answer #11, but the other does answer it, the latter would automatically win. Even if he/she put 3000.

Any questions should be addressed in the comments section so everyone can see the question/answer.

Once again, entrants must e-mail their entries to me by midnight Friday, the 16th. Good luck!

Below is a printable version in pdf format:

Jeff Ireland speaks about JT....or not...

Well folks, I don't know what Jeff Ireland is going to say today in his pre-Draft press conference.  Based on previous experience I'd say he's not going to say anything that will provide us any insight into who the Dolphins will pick, and I'm sure the organization as a whole is happy that the Jason Taylor distraction just so happened to come up at this opportune time.  It means that the media will be focused on JT like they have been for the last 3 or 4 years, and completely miss the 'team' element of the story.

They will ask about JT with the first or second question, then ask why re-sign Jason Ferguson and not JT (duh, Ferguson is more important to the team), and the cherry on top will be something about Dez Bryant's character.

At the end of the day we'll know next to nothing more than we did before hand.

I encourage you all to watch it live on miamidolphins.com, or read the transcripts on the newspaper sites.  I, on the other hand, will not be watching as the ridiculous prison sentence of a job I work is having it's ribbon-cutting ceremony today so I'll be outside trying to dig up some dirt on the mayor whilst partaking in some sparkling cider and cheese spread.

However, please make plenty of comments below so I can catch up later.  Peace!

2010 Draft Prospect - CJ Spiller, RB

I saw no reason to put any words above the video for this blog entry.  There's a LOT of good players in the 2010 draft.  Suh, Berry, McCoy, Okung, Bulaga, etc, I could name twenty or more who fit the top 10 mold.  But as far as an offensive threat goes, Spiller trumps all of them.  He could be the only running back taken in the 1st round this year.  He could be the only skill player chosen in the top 15.  Truth is, he could go anywhere in that Top 15, including Miami.

I know what most Dolfans think when they think of Spiller at #12.  We don't need a running back.  We have Ronnie Brown.  We have Ricky Williams.  We have Lex Hilliard.  We have Patrick Cobbs.  Well it's at about this point I'd slap these fans in the face and shout, "Wake up!  You're living in a fantasy world!"

Truth is, Ronnie is coming off a major injury, again.  Ricky is aging and never quite stable enough in his commitment to football.  Lex Hilliard?  riiight.  Cobbs?  riiight.  The reality is we're currently an injury, a CBA, a retirement, a suspension, a roster cut away from being very thin at running back, an arguably most-important position to focus on considering we'd like to run the ball more than pass.

But it's not just about bodies.  If Spiller were available at #12, he'd be the best player available, most likely.  He would immediately contribute - think Percy Harvin in 2009 - and probably take over a role in the Wildcat as well as show our slew of slot receivers how to get YAC.

But there's always going to be some fans who say, we simply have too many holes to fill to draft a running back.  To which I say this, "Isn't an offensive play-maker the biggest hole we have?"  Sure we didn't have too many issues scoring points last year and our defense had too many issues stopping the other team from scoring.  I get that.  I shed tears over that in 2009 like the rest of you.  But every time someone asked who our best player was for the last 3 years, I always said Ronnie Brown and said it with a conviction so strong that suggested I didn't even have to think about it.  Truth is, I didn't.   Brown not only was the cog that kept the offense turning, he was the offense.  

Things went very smoothly on both sides of the ball when Ronnie was the focus of the play-callers.  After he went down to injury or during games where they struggled to get him the ball, we looked inconsistent, panicked, desperate, and tired.  Ricky Williams had a nice 2nd half of the season, but it was hardly good enough to save our season.  We lost something when Ronnie went down.  We lost that threat.  We only ever really had the one.  I would really like to have to think about it harder next time someone asks me who the best player or biggest offensive threat on the team is.