Taylor on Zach Thomas’ Hall bid and state of Dolphins. And Fins position switch finalized
Less than two weeks ago, Jimmy Johnson - the man who drafted and coached Dolphins great Jason Taylor - got word he would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the two men both cried in the aftermath.
Now Taylor hopes that his former teammate, Zach Thomas, gets the same good news on Saturday, when the remainder of the 2020 Hall class is determined.
“If it wasn’t for Zach Thomas, I wouldn’t be in the Hall of Fame,” Taylor told me Wednesday at the Miami Beach Convention Center. “He was that dude, a bad you-know-what. Very deserving. He’s got the numbers. He has the resume. There are a few guys that are in that I thought he would be in before or with. His time will come. Hopefully, it will be in a few days.”
Taylor was texting Johnson while JJ was being told on live television that he would be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
“I texted while it was going on, which wasn’t very considerate seeing he was in the middle of doing something,” Taylor cracked. “He got me crying while he was crying on screen. It meant a lot to me to see the emotion he had. It’s a no-brainer. The guy is special. He’s a special talent evaluator, coach, motivator, X’s and O’s guy. Jimmy was the whole package. He deserved to be in there.”
Taylor, who joined the Dolphins’ preseason TV crew last season, said he’s hopeful about the Dolphins’ rebuilding program.
“Got a great coach and a great GM,” he said. “The staff is doing a good job. It was courageous of Flo to change up the coaching staff and make changes he felt were necessary to this team. It shows his commitment to making this thing work. I think they’re in good hands. Got to get some players.
“You see guys [traded] like Laremy Tunsil and Minkah Fitzpatrick that are Pro Bowl guys. You hate to get rid of talent. They have a plan and you have to applaud his commitment to his plan. I trust Chris Grier. I’ve been around Chris Grier for a long time. He scouted me. He was around my entire career. He’s a smart, smart dude, knows what he’s doing. Coach Flores comes from a great pedigree. They’ll be fine. Nobody has patience in this league. It takes time.”
Taylor was promoting the New Era/Jason Taylor NFL Shield 9FIFTY®, a custom cap that he designed and features a teal colored satin with an orange and teal tonal NFL Shield on the front, and an embroidered “99” on the cap’s right-side panel. Taylor’s autograph is inscribed on the visor. It’s retailing for $99.99 and available at neweracap.com and at the NFL Shop in the Super Bowl Experience at the Miami Beach Convention Center. “It’s cool” to have a signature hat for the first time in his life, Taylor said.
ROWE STAYS PUT
As expected, the Dolphins informed Eric Rowe that they intend to keep him at safety. Rowe said that decision was conveyed to him in his exit meeting after the season.
Rowe moved from cornerback to safety in mid-October and played so well that the Dolphins gave him a three-year, $18 million contract extension.
“I am going to stay at safety for the years I’m here,” he said, adding he’s happy about that, though he also would have been fine playing cornerback.
During his exit meeting, Flores gave him “positive feedback, said keep working, we’ll try to do better next year and keep the same work ethic.”
Asked if he plans to gain any weight for the physical rigors of safety, he said: “I’m not sure about that because I’ve still got to cover; that’s my main job.”
We’re told the Dolphins’ plan, at this point, is to keep Bobby McCain at safety next season, instead of moving him back to slot cornerback. So that could mean a Rowe/McCain starting safety tandem in 2020, unless something else arises that makes Miami reconsider on McCain.
Rowe said the defensive coordinator transition from Patrick Graham to former cornerbacks coach Josh Boyer “will be smooth like nothing happened. Same coaching style.”
He said Boyer was more involved in defensive game-planning that a typical cornerbacks coach.
“That’s why it’s going to be smooth, like nothing happened,” Rowe said. “Obviously his football IQ is really high. And he knows how to put players in positions to get the most potential out of them.”
MARINO ON TUA
Asked by USA Today Sports about the Dolphins’ interest in Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (which is widely known), Dolphins executive Dan Marino initially deferred (“the draft is a long way [away]”) but then said, “He’s a heck of a player. It’s a shame he had to go through the injury stuff. He’s a much better college player than I ever was.”
Marino, who doesn’t have a set title, said of Flores: “Really enjoyed the way he coaches. Young players, he got them to believe every game they played in. Lot of positive things to look at, the way we played at the end of the year, for one. I think it’s going in a positive direction.”
Here’s my Wednesday piece with Teddy Bridgewater’s comments about what happened with him and the Dolphins, and a Preston Williams update.
This story was originally published January 29, 2020 at 5:25 PM.
