Lessons to be learned from recent Dolphins seasons, including the offensive line issue
First let’s make this clear: The Dolphins seem to have found a very good coach in Brian Flores who maximized this roster and won more games than anyone could have imagined with a team filled with journeymen and developmental projects. (Heck, only six players drafted in the first three rounds by any team played more than 10 snaps for the Dolphins in their upset of the Patriots on Sunday. That’s pretty remarkable.)
And the good work of several players who were traded or released by Miami (Minkah Fitzpatrick, Kenyan Drake, Jordan Phillips) — combined with the development of DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki and several late-round success stories — demonstrate that general manager Chris Grier’s body of work is better than perceived, with Charles Harris and Leonte Carroo (others also had input in those picks, according to a team source) and probably Cordrea Tankersley the only egregious misses in the first half of the draft during the past several years. Harris was particularly troubling, but every team has multiple misses.
All that aside, here are a dozen lessons to be learned from this season and recent ones:
▪ The Dolphins need at least three new offensive line starters, but the view here is that the organization should not expect to fill most of those holes in the draft.
Third-round pick Michael Deiter’s uneven rookie season and sixth-round pick Isaiah Prince’s December release fuel the belief that the Dolphins — over many regimes and many years — can never seem to strike gold with offensive linemen selected after the first round. (The jury is still out on Deiter, who can’t be fully judged just yet.)
Since the turn of the century, the Dolphins have drafted 21 offensive linemen in the third round or later. Not a single one of them has materialized into an above-average long-term starter, and most were busts. Among third-day picks, only Rex Hadnot started three seasons or more (3.5). It’s too soon to draw a final conclusion on Deiter, but the early signs aren’t encouraging.
Even in the second round, the Dolphins this century have drafted one offensive linemen who was decent (Todd Wade) and another who wasn’t (Jonathan Martin).
So here’s a thought: Fill most of your offensive line needs in free agency, where at least there’s a professional body of work — and film — demonstrating if they can play. Overpay if you need to, knowing you can find cheap talent at running back and the defensive line and cornerback in the draft.
And maybe use one of your three first-round picks on a left tackle. For all of their troubles identifying quality offensive linemen during the second through seventh rounds, the 21st-century Dolphins have found good players in Jake Long, Vernon Carey, Mike Pouncey and Laremy Tunsil in the first round.
But the organization — through a handful of regimes — clearly has not had much luck evaluating college linemen beyond the no-brainer first-round talents, and it’s time to find another way to address one of the team’s three biggest deficiencies.
▪ Don’t fall into the trap of believing that a creative scheme can overcome lack of talented pass rushers.
Dolphins players kept saying all summer that the varying fronts — including one in which every defensive lineman is standing up — would boost a pass rush that lost leading sackers Cameron Wake and Robert Quinn.
What’s more, coaches seemed to believe they could outscheme opponents and parlay that into a pass rush. That happened at times but not enough; Miami’s 23 sacks ranked last in the league. You can be sure the coaches and front office realize more skilled rushers (who aren’t liabilities against the run) are a necessity.
And another thing: Be leery of one-dimensional pass rushers. It didn’t matter that Taco Charlton had five sacks in 10 games. His run defense was such a shortcoming that the Dolphins believed they would be better off without him in three of the past four games.
▪ Don’t follow Adam Gase’s player evaluations.
Grier smartly followed his own instincts, and not Gase’s, in keeping Parker.
▪ Think twice about signing older veteran players dumped by the best organizations.
In past years, Miami mistakenly pursued players that successful franchises didn’t want any more, including former Pittsburgh teammates Lawrence Timmons and Mike Wallace. As it turns out, the Steelers knew exactly what they were doing. Just as New England must have known what it was doing when it moved on from tight end Dwayne Allen.
▪ Be very skeptical when you sign players with spotty off-field records.
The Mark Walton and Robert Nkemdiche signings were defensible low-risk moves, but Miami ultimately got nothing significant from either. We’re saddened by the Walton story, but giving a fourth chance to a player with three previous arrests — as was the case with Walton — doesn’t seem advisable moving forward.
▪ Don’t give as long a rope to an underperforming player because he fits your ideal body type or vision for a player at a particular position.
Opting for Kalen Ballage as the opening day starter at running back over Kenyan Drake — and then sticking too long with Ballage after Drake’s trade — was regrettable, a decision that contributed toward angering Drake to the point that his agent didn’t respond to Miami’s contract offer. Rather than losing him for nothing in free agency, Miami dealt him to Arizona, where he averaged 5.2 yards per carry with eight touchdowns in eight games.
We understood the initial fascination with Ballage, who looks the part, and the desire to keep Drake fresh. But in retrospect, Miami should have committed to Drake as a bell cow starter; he was the most talented runner in the group.
▪ If a highly skilled player wants to play only one position, give more thought to acquiescing if he’s an elite talent.
I understand Flores insisting that Minkah Fitzpatrick accommodate coaches by playing multiple positions, because changing his core principles to accommodate one player would run counter to the coach’s beliefs. But if Miami had relented, they would have had a Pro Bowl safety and a starter for the next decade.
This was a tough call — and I respect Flores’ insistence that every player put the team first — but I would have kept Fitzpatrick and made it work. You don’t give up a high-end player under team control for several years for the uncertainty of a draft pick unless it’s assured of being near the top of the draft.
▪ This is an indictment of the former coaching staff — not this one — but never allow your preference or familiarity for a player you coached to affect playing time.
That was reinforced this season when Dolphins discard Jordan Phillips produced 9.5 sacks for Buffalo. Phillips likely wouldn’t have lashed out at former defensive line coach Kris Kocurek — which led to his release after four games in 2018 — if Kocurek had played Phillips more instead of giving too many snaps to journeyman Akeem Spence, whom Kocurek knew better from their time in Detroit.
This staff gave ample opportunity to several former Patriots, but all of their decisions were defensible or paid off.
▪ If you want to position yourself to get the best quarterback in the draft, don’t sign Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick made an immensely positive impact, particularly on Parker and Gesicki, and there was real value in that. But Fitzpatrick did just what we predicted in March: put together enough good games to take Miami out of contention for the draft’s cleanest/best quarterback prospect (Joe Burrow, though nobody knew he would be that guy back in the spring).
The Dolphins, ultimately, had no problem with this, because as we wrote in August, owner Steve Ross did not want an embarrassing product and was fine with the idea of winning five games, believing Miami had the draft capital to land a top QB.
Though Burrow would have been the safer pick from a health standpoint, this could still work out, with Miami in position to draft Tua Tagovailoa if he turns pro and if Dolphins doctors are satisfied with his medicals. But if Tagovailoa returns to Alabama, the decision to sign Fitzpatrick could ultimately be very damaging in the franchise QB search.
▪ Getting more skilled cover guys on the field is generally a good thing.
The decision to move Eric Rowe from corner to safety might have been the staff’s smartest decision, because it allowed the Dolphins to defend tight ends more effectively than they had in years.
It’s no coincidence that this coaching staff moved three corners to safety: Bobby McCain, Rowe and Montre Hartage. Whether that has any negative impact on stopping the run should become clearer next season, if McCain and Rowe play alongside each other for a full season. McCain’s and Rowe’s grades against the run were subpar, per Pro Football Focus.
▪ Even though edge players are the priority on defense, don’t forget the interior.
Christian Wilkins — who played a lot of defensive end in a 3-4 — and Davon Godchaux had some good moments, and Wilkins improved late in the season — but you would like more disruptive plays and more consistency. Wilkins had three tackles for loss, Godchaux two in 15 games before getting two in the finale.
Among 116 qualifying interior linemen, Godchaux and Wilkins were tied for 74th in Pro Football Focus’ rankings.
Both are players you want in your rotation; neither was liability. And Wilkins could be very good.
But another tackle capable of getting in the opponent’s backfield is a necessity. And though the edge players were primarily to blame, everyone is accountable for a run defense that allowed 135.4 rushing yards per game, sixth worst in the league.
▪ There’s a difference between things you absolutely need and things you want, and here’s how the Dolphins’ list should break down.
Absolute needs: two edge players who can stop the run and rush the passer (preferably a defensive end and linebacker), a starting left tackle, at least one starting guard (depending on where Jesse Davis plays), a defensive tackle who’s capable of starting or logging significant snaps, a starting cornerback, a slot cornerback to challenge Jomal Wiltz, a starting running back and obviously, a long-term quarterback.
Things you would ideally want: a third edge player, a second guard, preferably another defensive end, a veteran tight end to challenge Durham Smythe, a No. 2 running back and perhaps a center (if an upgrade can be found over Daniel Kilgore).
This story was originally published January 2, 2020 at 3:08 PM.
