Dolphins fans deserve nice things. That should end Xavien Howard trade distraction | Opinion
So league sources were running the gauntlet of local newspapers on Tuesday to get out the message that the Miami Dolphins are fielding calls about trading cornerback Xavien Howard. And the club was so incensed by this it attacked one of those papers before getting around to refuting the report.
It was something to behold.
And I’m not talking something to behold as in viewing the glorious design of the deep cosmos through NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.
I’m talking something to behold as in witnessing a fight between feral cats in an alley somewhere.
Because it was inelegant.
And that leaves me with this question: Why can’t Miami Dolphins fans have nice things?
This team is playing its biggest game in a couple of years at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday. It’s the debut of promised franchise quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, so everyone’s excited. It’s also a chance for the franchise to rise above the .500 mark for the first time in the Brian Flores coaching tenure.
Things are seemingly pointed in the right direction for the first time since 2016.
And as we breathe in those fresh and welcome facts over here, there are smoke alarms going off over there because maybe, definitely not, probably not, perhaps — some stories changed a couple of times — the Dolphins are considering trading their best defensive player?
The Dolphins released a statement to colleague Barry Jackson saying, “We are not exploring any trades regarding Xavien Howard.”
And that definitive on-the-record statement would typically be the end of this distraction. Except ...
I’m not going to be the Alabama coach.
Jason Taylor will play for us or have to retire because we’re not trading him.
We’re not interested in trading for Jadeveon Clowney.
We placed the [franchise] tag on [Jarvis Landry] for a reason. He’ll be here.
There’s no trade in place for [Laremy Tunsil].
Yeah, there have been instances when the Dolphins said stuff and then that stuff changed. That’s not to accuse anyone of fibbing, it’s just that circumstances change. The NFL changes from one day to the next.
And the folks making decisions have to adjust accordingly — which sometimes means turning to the precise direction they promised yesterday they weren’t going.
So trust the Dolphins aren’t looking to trade Howard now. But also recognize things often change.
Which leads me back to this: Why can’t Dolphins fans have nice things?
The Dolphins have won three of the past four games. In two of those games the defense seemed to be better, particularly in the secondary, in that there were fewer busts. There were fewer communication issues.
The operation back there was cleaner.
And that coincided with veteran cornerback Byron Jones returning to the lineup after missing two games with a groin injury.
“...When Byron’s in there, obviously the level of communication increases because of his experience,” Dolphins defensive backs coach Gerald Alexander said. “It really helps us all out as a secondary. Having him, and having [Xavien Howard] and having experienced guys at the perimeter position allows us to eventually just play good defense.”
With Jones and Howard in the lineup, the Dolphins field perhaps the NFL’s best cornerback duo.
That has benefited Howard because quarterbacks cannot automatically go away from him, as Jones isn’t a great choice for them to pick on, either. Howard has four interceptions in six games.
“What he does — and not just from getting a turnover, but there are various games where the guy hasn’t had a ball caught on him,” Alexander said. “Just the fact that he’s back there and doing a great job and when they do try to test him, he’s coming down with the ball, it makes us very opportunistic and obviously feeds our defense in order for other guys to possibly get turnovers as well.”
So now that the Dolphins paid for the NFL’s most expensive cornerback duo and those corners are playing like it, they’re mysteriously fielding unsolicited calls about trading one of them? What gave any team the idea they should even ask about Howard?
So, no!
No, no, no!
That’s not what teams that want to win now do at the trade deadline. That’s something teams that are crashing consider at the trade deadline.
I’m going to believe the Dolphins when they say they’re not trading Xavien Howard. And they better not for the sake of their fans.
Because nice things have started happening. And Dolphins fans deserve that.
This story was originally published October 28, 2020 at 12:37 AM.
