Dolphins mailbag: Talking 1-4 start, front office questions and more
The Dolphins early season tailspin continued last Sunday with a 45-17 road loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a fairly competitive game that quickly got out of hand in the fourth quarter.
With a 1-4 record, the Dolphins opened as 2½-point favorites ahead of their Week 6 game against the winless Jacksonville Jaguars in London, a matchup that could mark the return of starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa from fractured ribs.
In this week’s mailbag, I take a look at the Dolphins’ continued struggles, whether Brian Flores and Chris Grier should be on the hot seat and more. And a reminder that if you have questions you would like me to answer in future mailbags, you can ask me on Twitter or email me.
Here we go:
Was there any evidence of this during training camp? Wilson dominates camp and is no factor at all in season? - @jccdixon33
I’m assuming the first question is in regard to the team’s 1-4 start. Optimism is always at an all-time high during training camp, and for good reason. I was able to catch the last few weeks of training camp, and while I thought the offense would take a step forward, I did see some potential issues with the offensive line, which have manifested in the regular season. The jury is still out on the offense with Tagovailoa having missed the last few games and I’m reserving judgment on the unit until he can get a few more starts in this season.
As for the defense, this is probably the biggest surprise of the 2021 Dolphins. They haven’t been able to fix their issues stopping the run but they’re also inexplicably terrible on third down after being the best unit in such situations in 2020. They’re also not forcing turnovers at the same rate as last season when they led the NFL with 29 takeaways. It doesn’t help that the offense hasn’t been able to consistently finish drives but the defense has regressed all around.
With Wilson, he was sidelined by an injury by the time I arrived on the beat but I was told of how well he practiced before being injured in the first days of training camp. The Dolphins did enter the season with a lot of depth at wideout, but I figured he would have received more playing time with DeVante Parker and Will Fuller out against the Buccaneers. Instead, the team opted to use tight ends Adam Shaheen and Durham Smythe as opposed to three-wide-receiver sets.
The Dolphins have been more successful in 12 personnel [one running back, two tight ends] as opposed to 11 personnel [one running back, one tight end] and co-offensive coordinator George Godsey, who also coaches tight ends, said there are matchup advantages the team can exploit with multiple tight ends on the field.
Like you, I would like to see more of Wilson in the offense if Parker is unable to play a second straight game.
Hey Daniel, you got to cover the Ravens, who have one of the best personnel departments in the NFL and handled a transition from [former general manager Ozzie] Newsome to [current GM Eric] DeCosta pretty seamlessly. What’s your initial perception of the Dolphins [front office] and subsequent ineptitude? - @asg_grant
The one thing that sticks out to me about Baltimore’s front office is that from DeCosta and the entire scouting department to head coach John Harbaugh and the coaching staff, there is a top-to-bottom understanding of the type of players the team wants in the organization. And this shows up in all facets of player personnel, from the draft to free agency. I remember speaking last year with NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah, who worked under Newsome as an area scout, and him explaining how diligent the Ravens were in training their scouts before sending them on the road.
I can’t speak for the Dolphins front office yet because I just haven’t been around the organization long enough but in the Grier era, there have been a host of questionable decisions that have put the team in the predicament we now see. And that’s not to say that a team can’t miss on a pick or free-agent signing; the Ravens have missed on a bunch over the years. But one thing the Ravens normally hit on is their first-round picks. If you compare that to some the Dolphins’ first-rounders in recent years, they have come up short. And it’s harder to establish a competitive team when the players who are supposed to be cornerstones are not panning out.
Don’t want to be the overreaction guy. If [Deshaun] Watson is out of the question, I think giving up a draft pick or two for a high-caliber starting lineman is a must so we can see Tua’s potential. He’s not overly athletic so he needs the [Cleveland] Browns O-line. Any players we could target? - @Nick01736583
There’s a reason you don’t see a ton of starting-caliber offensive linemen — outside of Laremy Tunsil — getting traded during the season: because they’re so hard to come by. I think Miami may be on to something with playing Liam Eichenberg at left tackle and moving Austin Jackson inside to left guard but only time will tell. If they do target an established lineman, it’s much more likely to be in free agency.
As for the Browns, want to know how their offensive line was built?
- Left tackle Jedrick Willis Jr.: 10th overall pick, 2020 draft
- Left guard Joel Bitonio: 35th overall pick, 2014 draft
- Center JC Tretter: Three-year deal worth $16.75 million, 2017 offseason
- Right guard Wyatt Teller: Trade with Buffalo Bills involving late-round pick swaps, 2019 offseason
- Right tackle Jack Conklin: Three-year deal worth $42 million, 2020 offseason
Cleveland did open its wallet for Conklin and to some extent for Tretter, but they made a shrewd move in acquiring Teller and hit on their early picks of Willis and Bitonio. We’ll see if Miami can get its offensive line together.
At what point do we start questioning Flores and calling for Grier’s job? - @mrcrisscross
Questioning Flores’ decision to appoint co-offensive coordinators and his overseeing of a defense that has regressed dramatically? Fair. Questioning a litany of moves by Grier that have seemingly put the Dolphins in this 1-4 hole while the Los Angeles Chargers are an ascending team with Justin Herbert? Also fair.
I won’t go as far as to say that someone should lose their job but if anyone is on the hot seat, I would say probably Grier more than Flores. At the same time, I’d like to see how this team looks with Tagovailoa back. He likely won’t cure all problems with this team but at least we’ll all have a clearer picture with him playing.
What other enjoyable things will you be doing in London? Surely watching the Dolphins game isn’t one - @daflow2020
Hey, the matchup isn’t as bad as you’re making it... I think. With Tagovailoa potentially back, who wouldn’t want to see a quarterback duel of two top-5 draft picks the last two years?
I’m still putting my tourist itinerary together. I went to the United Kingdom with my family when I was like 5 so I have very little recollection of the trip. I’ve been told to visit the London Eye and I’ll also probably use a Hop On Hop Off Bus to see the area. If you all have any recommendations, I’m open to any and all. I might even put together a little photo gallery with highlights of the trip.
This story was originally published October 12, 2021 at 11:37 AM.
