Former NFL union president changes his tune on Dolphins’ Brian Flores after change to Tua
After the Dolphins lost their first two games by a margin of 102-10 last season amid talk of tanking, nobody chastised the franchise more than former NFL union president Domonique Foxworth.
But Foxworth apparently has learned not to doubt coach Brian Flores after his regrettable rant, and that’s why he says Flores should get the benefit of the doubt about the team’s quarterback change in spite of the peculiar timing, after two consecutive wins.
To recap, Foxworth — a former NFL defensive back and president of the union from 2012 to 2014 — said on ESPN last September that the Dolphins’ stripping the roster last season was “unethical and morally reprehensible. These guys are putting bad film on tape because they’re not trying to win and it’s going to shorten their careers ... These guys are going to be out of the league having their careers ruined by a selfish team like the Dolphins.”
Fast forward: Miami ended up 5-11 with wins over playoff teams Philadelphia and New England.
And Foxworth, an ESPN analyst, was circumspect in evaluating the Dolphins’ decision to replace Ryan Fitzpatrick with Tua Tagovailoa.
“I think back to last season when we all thought they were tanking,” he said. “And I was very critical because of what I thought it does to a culture. When you say we’re playing for the future, that debilitates a team that wants to win right now. But Brian Flores somehow brought them from an 0-7 start to being respectable because he was able to build a culture in that environment.
“I also think if you are going to pull out a starting quarterback that’s playing well to bring in a young guy, that suggests to your team you are playing for the future.
“But I think Brian Flores has proven that doesn’t matter. Whatever connection he has with his team is a connection [new Cowboys coach] Mike McCarthy clearly doesn’t have with his team in Dallas. But it’s a connection that allows him to make some decisions that seem not all that wise but also resonate with your team.”
Meanwhile, the Dolphins’ quarterback decision was a hot topic on NFL studio shows on Sunday. While ESPN’s Matt Hasselbeck and CBS’ Nate Burleson criticized the decision, CBS’ Bill Cowher and Phil Simms defended it.
“When I first heard it, I thought this is not the right move,” Simms said. “But then I rethought it and go ‘Wait, the team is playing better, the offensive line now can protect the quarterback, they’ve got good receivers, good running back. The team is coming together. He’s an accurate passer.’ I think it was a great time to bring him in.”
Cowher, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ former Super Bowl winning coach, said Flores “knows if he’s ready or not. This is a winning football team. This is a unique situation and a unique opportunity. Most of the time you [make a change] you’re doing it for a negative reason. Ryan Fitzpatrick, you can go back to him if [Tagovailoa] struggles.”
Flores, asked Monday if he’s worried about team chemistry if Tagovailoa struggles, said: “I think the guys rally around each other, I think they support one another. To think there would be division if a guy doesn’t play well, I don’t think we have that on this team. I don’t foresee that.”
TRADE DEADLINE
With the Nov. 3 NFL trade deadline approaching, keep in mind that a player would need to be acquired by Thursday in order to be eligible to play in games Nov. 5-9, because of COVID rules that require new players to pass COVID tests on five consecutive days.
Flores declined to definitively say that Fitzpatrick won’t be traded, deferring those questions to general manager Chris Grier, who is unavailable to reporters.
The Dolphins could try to snag a late-round pick for running back Jordan Howard, who has been inactive the past two games. It’s also possible that the Dolphins could look for defensive tackle help in the wake of Davon Godchaux’s biceps injury that likely will sideline him for the duration of the season.
Miami worked out four defensive tackles over the weekend — including former Seattle second-round pick Malik McDowell — but opted to sign none of them.
The Dolphins have three defensive tackles on the 53-man roster (Christian Wilkins, Zach Sieler and Raekwon Davis), and Flores was non-committal about whether Davis’ shoulder injury would allow him to practice this week.
Asked if Miami has enough at defensive tackle, Flores said: “We feel good about our depth on the defensive line. Sometimes you have to play with a short hand. If that’s the case we’ll do our best.”
▪ Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel remains in concussion protocol.
BLIND SIDE DECISION
Brian Baldinger, the former NFL offensive lineman who closely analyzes tape in his job for NFL Network, is curious to see whether the Dolphins stick with Robert Hunt longterm at right tackle to protect the left-handed Tagovailoa.
“Hunt if he stays at right tackle is going to be protecting Tua’s blind side,” Baldinger said. “People said Hunt was just an offensive guard coming out of the University of Louisiana, but he clearly can play out there. You can always put Jesse Davis at right tackle or... you can just let Robert Hunt grow.”
In evaluating Hunt, Baldinger said he “drops his head” at times and “you don’t want to see that. [But] you can clean that technique up on the right side. [Rookie right guard] Solomon Kindley is a wide body. It’s hard to get around him. Something about being four-foot wide eats a guy up.”
Baldinger added: “Tua is athletic and can run but you want to be able to stay in that pocket and be able to throw the ball. Tua’s got great weapons. The offensive line is young, playing pretty well together.
“You’ve got to get Mike Gesicki involved more because he’s an athletic freak. Preston Williams is a hell of a [second-year, undrafted] free agent pickup. He’s been coached. DeVante Parker is athletic, beats good corners, runs good routes. He’s legit. A great weapon to have.”
▪ Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard is not first in the league in interceptions with four, but he is tied with Marcus Peters for most interceptions per game in a career, among active players (minimum 12 career INTs), at 0.35 per game. After those two, the next-closest is Richard Sherman at 0.26.
This story was originally published October 26, 2020 at 4:16 PM.
