The Dolphins have a serious and chronic problem at the wide-receiver spot.
The team that once featured Paul Warfield and ''The Marks Brothers,'' Nat Moore and O.J. McDuffie is trying to emerge from a talent blackout at wideout. So far, neither Derrius Thompson, Marty Booker nor any of the other answers the team reached for in the past decade have provided anything other than more questions.
That is why the presence of five undrafted rookie receivers at the weekend's minicamp caused such a buzz -- and also should be the root of much concern for the 2008 Dolphins.
Maybe one of the five receivers at the rookie camp could show a little sparkle, a little flash and become more like a diamond in the rough instead of a discarded piece of coal. That is Miami's hope for Jayson Foster, Davone Bess, Marcel Reece, Selwyn Lymon and Justin Wynn.
But the fact that any of these players has an opportunity to earn one of the two or three open receiver jobs that will be available at the start of training camp should explain how desperate the Dolphins are at receiver.
These guys all come with warts -- otherwise, they would have been drafted.
SLIGHTLY FLAWED
Foster is only 5-7 and 170 pounds, which means he is dwarfed by kicker Jay Feely.
Bess ran a time of 4.64 seconds in the 40-yard sprint at predraft workouts, and that makes him no faster than many linebackers.
Lymon spent his final days at Purdue suspended from the team after being charged with drunken driving. Before that, he was stabbed in the chest during a fracas at a nightclub near the campus.
And Reece struggled to catch the ball consistently during the weekend, which isn't the classic way to impress coaches.
The Dolphins have 11 receivers on their roster, making that the position with the most players available for inspection outside of defensive end. Only one of those receivers, Ernest Wilford, has any sort of NFL credentials worthy of distinction.
Wilford has caught 141 passes in four NFL seasons and was a dependable starter throughout much of that time while with the Jaguars. The other 10 Miami receivers have a combined 117 career catches.
Sure, there is promise among those remaining 10. Ted Ginn Jr. showed glimpses of greatness as a rookie last season, and it is fair to expect exponential improvement during his second season.
But where will receivers coach Karl Dorrell go from there? Who will offensive coordinator Dan Henning turn to if Ginn or Wilford gets injured?
The list is wholly unimpressive.
LIMITED SUCCESS
Derek Hagan? He has caught 50 passes in two seasons, but, rather than gain a reputation as an improving player, he has a reputation for failing to meet expectations.
Greg Camarillo? His touchdown catch against the Ravens delivered Miami's lone 2007 victory. But it should not escape attention that Camarillo was signed to play special teams, and his eight career receptions in two seasons suggest many things, with stardom not being one.
David Kircus? The signing of this unrestricted free agent caused more of a stir for his off-field problems than for his on-field contributions in Denver-- a modest 15 catches in three seasons.
Tab Perry, who also was signed as a free agent, showed much promise in Cincinnati, and he seems like the best addition of the bunch. He could be the gem that unexpectedly improves Miami's receiver corps the most. But even Perry has been limited to 10 catches in three seasons.
Coach Tony Sparano said Sunday that he hasn't spent a lot of time watching Miami's veteran receivers, other than what he has seen on tape. But he seems to understand the position is more question mark than exclamation point.
''You only have, really, a couple of players who were here that truly played a lot last year,'' Sparano said.
The Dolphins hope one of the undrafted rookies can step forward as a slot receiver, a part-time role that can take advantage of the focus defenses will put on Ginn and Wilford.
It is a search that could extend beyond training camp and beyond Miami's roster when other teams cut some of their receivers. The Dolphins could be looking at those discards as ways to upgrade their receiving corps.
That is how dire the problem appears right now.
