Speaker 1: Cutdown, Miami Drawn. What is up, Dolphans And welcome to
Speaker 1: the Drivetime Podcast part of the Miami Dolphins podcast network,
Speaker 1: covering your team, your Miami Dolphins. How's it going everybody?
Speaker 1: I am your host, Travis Wingfield, And on today's show,
Speaker 1: we're gonna get you caught up on the latest from
Speaker 1: around the web regarding your Miami Dolphins, will preview the
Speaker 1: NFC South, a division the Dolphins played this season as
Speaker 1: we resume the NFL preview series for this season, and
Speaker 1: we'll get into my favorite camp battles coming up next
Speaker 1: month in Miami Gardens. All of that and a whole
Speaker 1: bunch more on this edition of the Drive Time Podcasts,
Speaker 1: and the opening segment during the summer shows is turning
Speaker 1: a bit into the TV talk of the podcast and
Speaker 1: real quick, my wife and I started a show together
Speaker 1: this last week, which is a bit of a rare
Speaker 1: occurrence since we have almost polar opposite tastes when it
Speaker 1: comes to well everything pop culture. But the morning show
Speaker 1: on Apple TV is pretty gripping and Jennifer Aniston is
Speaker 1: an absolute monster in it. And I don't mean like
Speaker 1: a bad character or anything. She just dominated the performance
Speaker 1: as an actor all the way through, and season two
Speaker 1: just came out, so we're about halfway through season one.
Speaker 1: I would highly recommend that for individual watch or for
Speaker 1: a couple's watch. It's a good kind of back and
Speaker 1: forth men and women type of thing, and just a
Speaker 1: really good show with some star studied characters in the
Speaker 1: cast as well. Alright, So the theme of this offseason
Speaker 1: for the Miami Dolphins, and really the goal anytime, according
Speaker 1: to head coach Brian Flores and GM Chris Career, is
Speaker 1: to create competition. And the team feels good about out
Speaker 1: their ability to do just that this offseason, as we
Speaker 1: have heard repeatedly in media availabilities. So I wanted to
Speaker 1: take a look at some of the battles that are
Speaker 1: going to ensue next month that I'm most intrigued to
Speaker 1: watch play out in late July and into August. With
Speaker 1: camp in the preseason, and I've mentioned this on the
Speaker 1: pot a few times, but this team will have some
Speaker 1: really tough decisions to make it come cut down day.
Speaker 1: But that's where you want to be better than the opposite.
Speaker 1: So let's go ahead and take a look at my
Speaker 1: top camp battles. And I want to preface this by
Speaker 1: saying you know, no jobs are going to be given.
Speaker 1: All of this is I think the word is presumptive
Speaker 1: based upon what we know or what we've seen so far.
Speaker 1: But in the NFL, every day, the information can change,
Speaker 1: so any assumptions are just that, they're assumptions. And so
Speaker 1: in no particular order. Well, actually there is a bit
Speaker 1: of an order here. It's the order by which I
Speaker 1: always go down the roster, which is quarterback, running back, receiver,
Speaker 1: tight end, offensive line, defensive line, linebacker, and we finished
Speaker 1: in the defensive backfield. And for our specialist. Uh, there
Speaker 1: are four specialists on the roster. Two of those guys
Speaker 1: are long snappers, so I guess Blake Ferguson and Rex
Speaker 1: Sunahara battling it out there for that job. And then
Speaker 1: All Pro place kicker Jason Sanders returns as the only
Speaker 1: kicker on the roster, and Michael Pollardi currently the only
Speaker 1: punter on the roster, So that would be our specialist
Speaker 1: on the end of that list there. But up first
Speaker 1: on our list is the number two running back role.
Speaker 1: And even that feels like it might be a bit
Speaker 1: of a stretch because we know this position across the
Speaker 1: league has really become more committee than any other position group,
Speaker 1: and the Dolphins will certainly alter their plan based upon
Speaker 1: the opponent that given week. And that's another disclaimer we
Speaker 1: should probably disclose here. Gone are the days of projecting
Speaker 1: a whole season's worth of playing time or depth charts
Speaker 1: or plans for a particular season, because really, when you
Speaker 1: preview the season, you're kind of previewing week one, because again,
Speaker 1: information changes all the damn time, and maybe for a
Speaker 1: handful of other teams, it's not like we talked about
Speaker 1: with the Miami Dolphins, where you change a base upon
Speaker 1: your opponent that week. And I don't know that maybe
Speaker 1: a handful of teams to operate in that sense that
Speaker 1: this is my outside linebacker and he's playing at outside
Speaker 1: linebacker unless he's able to go. You might recall we
Speaker 1: had Dick Anderson on the podcast last year and he
Speaker 1: talked about this how in his day, if you were
Speaker 1: the starting defensive end or the starting free safety or
Speaker 1: whatever it might have been, you played every snap. Your
Speaker 1: backup only came into the game if you were injured.
Speaker 1: It's just crazy to think about how much the game
Speaker 1: has changed. Anyway, we are off the frigging rails already,
Speaker 1: I talked about committee, but when Myles Gaskin was available
Speaker 1: last season, it really wasn't much of a committee. And
Speaker 1: that was entering the season where he was again the presumptive,
Speaker 1: again the key word here, but among the national presumptive perspective.
Speaker 1: He was the number three back heading into track any
Speaker 1: camp with the additions of Jordan Howard and Matt Brita
Speaker 1: in the backfield, respectively, but from Game one he was
Speaker 1: the dude, playing of the offensive snaps in that opener
Speaker 1: up in Foxborough, only to see that number increase the
Speaker 1: next two weeks up to sixty five and then seventy
Speaker 1: percent in the Week three win at Jacksonville. He was
Speaker 1: then sixty sixty three, seventy, and then eight eight percent
Speaker 1: in the Rams game to round out the first half
Speaker 1: of the season before he missed the next four games.
Speaker 1: He came back to play the Bengals and was in
Speaker 1: their first seventy one percent of the offensive snaps, missed
Speaker 1: two more games, and then finished the season playing seventy
Speaker 1: percent of the reps in Vegas and sixty one up
Speaker 1: in Buffalo. But he's not the only back on the
Speaker 1: roster that can play. You've got a nice variety of
Speaker 1: skill sets in that room, aside from what Miles brings
Speaker 1: which jives with the weekly game plan idea. Malcolm Brown
Speaker 1: and Savan Akhmed have the most pelts on the wall
Speaker 1: in terms of their NFL production, especially with regards to
Speaker 1: last season. Patrick Laird settled into a nice special team's
Speaker 1: role last year and had a key a crucial third
Speaker 1: down conversion in the Patriots game in the second half
Speaker 1: at the tailback position. And then we've got rookie Jared Oaks,
Speaker 1: who is an absolute maven and past protection in college.
Speaker 1: Jordan's Scarlett, who coached Flores, has mentioned they're a fan
Speaker 1: of what he brings this offseason a few times. And
Speaker 1: a former fifth round draft pick who's actually the highest
Speaker 1: drafted player in the entire running back room. And Carl
Speaker 1: Tucker is in the room too, but he's a fullback,
Speaker 1: so not really part of this conversation for the point
Speaker 1: of this podcast. So Brown the hammer, the guy that
Speaker 1: can drop those two and twenty two pounds and forced
Speaker 1: defensive backs into business decisions. A guy that can catch
Speaker 1: the football out of the backfield. He can also get
Speaker 1: out wide on stretch runs too, even at that size,
Speaker 1: and that stature a guy that can push a pile
Speaker 1: forward in short yardage, the thunder to the lightning that
Speaker 1: has savan Akhmed who have we seen turn on the
Speaker 1: jets on those afore mentioned outside runs. And also I
Speaker 1: don't believe his forty yard dash time that is reported
Speaker 1: across when he ran in a a pro day back at
Speaker 1: you Dub, because there's a story on online about how
Speaker 1: he packed on some weight and his run up to
Speaker 1: the draft and ran a little bit slower than he expected.
Speaker 1: But on that thirty one yard run in that same
Speaker 1: win over New England in week fifteen, that was not
Speaker 1: four point six speed, not even close. He can burn
Speaker 1: much faster trails than that. So I don't think we
Speaker 1: have a clear cut winner here. I think it's game
Speaker 1: plan specific, and I know camp and preseason will be
Speaker 1: great competition for reps, and I think all of these
Speaker 1: guys are in the mix to earn some of them,
Speaker 1: and running back is one of the possessions that I
Speaker 1: value the experience of watching the most in the preseason
Speaker 1: from my own personal evaluation, because you can get a
Speaker 1: sense of how hard a guy runs. I think that
Speaker 1: always translates and carries over into the season and it
Speaker 1: feels like every single August, and you know, last year
Speaker 1: didn't count because of course there was no preseason. But
Speaker 1: I think you'd be hard pressed to imagine James Robinson
Speaker 1: and Jacksonville, the undrafted free agent who went for over
Speaker 1: a thousand yards in his rookie season. I would probably
Speaker 1: venture to guess he would have had a dominant August
Speaker 1: last year if there were preseason games, and especially in
Speaker 1: the modern training camp era where there's not as much
Speaker 1: contact and tackling to the ground, I think those preseason
Speaker 1: games are really really valuable to get a look at
Speaker 1: what your running back room can do. So I'm taking
Speaker 1: a close look at that running back room, not just
Speaker 1: in practice, but in this year's preseason games to see
Speaker 1: how they round out the rotation with Miles Gaskin, Malcolm Brown,
Speaker 1: Savan Akhmed Patrick Lair, Jordan's Scarlett and Jared Oakes the
Speaker 1: rookie running back there out of Cincinnati. At the receiver room,
Speaker 1: that's where we go next, and it's the entire room,
Speaker 1: because I think we've still got to sort out the
Speaker 1: players you want as your primary snaptakers up top, and
Speaker 1: then of course you have specific package deployments. Do you
Speaker 1: go big and personnel. When you're in, for instance, your
Speaker 1: twelve personnel package, do you go with speed merchants in
Speaker 1: that package? You have stions that you can decide throughout
Speaker 1: the course of training camp. And I do think it's
Speaker 1: pretty safe to say that Will Fuller, Davante Parker, and
Speaker 1: Jalen Waddle are going to get some playing time. And
Speaker 1: coach mentioned that camp will be the time where they
Speaker 1: kind of sorted out and find out the best five,
Speaker 1: six or seven guys to keep on this receiver roster.
Speaker 1: And the room is so deep that it might well
Speaker 1: force Miami into keeping seven guys, like coach mentioned as
Speaker 1: a possibility, and that would be akin to what some
Speaker 1: of these college programs have been doing these days. And
Speaker 1: I heard this mentioned on the Move the Sticks podcast
Speaker 1: on NFL Media podcast, and Daniel Jeremiah mentioned that he
Speaker 1: was at a passing camp and the camp had something
Speaker 1: like a hundred forty campers listed as receivers and there
Speaker 1: were only nine defensive backs on the field, nine of
Speaker 1: them against the one forty. That's insane. Like, you go
Speaker 1: out there as a receiver, you might get two reps
Speaker 1: where dbs are getting fifty sixty reps. Because they have
Speaker 1: to go through all these receivers, and so with all
Speaker 1: these receivers kind of growing on trees these days, with
Speaker 1: all the passing camps and all the emphasis on explosive
Speaker 1: offensive football, colleges can kind of run these line changes
Speaker 1: of sorts to borrow a hockey term and just try
Speaker 1: to stay fresh. Now, I don't think that is quite
Speaker 1: how it's gonna work in the NFL going forward, as
Speaker 1: we've seen the college game kind of milled into the
Speaker 1: pro game more and more the last few years. But
Speaker 1: you can be five or six or seven deep, like
Speaker 1: coach mentioned, because there are so many good ones out there,
Speaker 1: and we've got our hands on several of them down
Speaker 1: here in South Florida. Preston Williams mentioned it Tuesday. An
Speaker 1: accomplished player when he's healthy, can really sink his hips
Speaker 1: in the top of his routes, which push the dB
Speaker 1: on their heels at the top of the stem, and
Speaker 1: that pairs so well with his size and his vertical
Speaker 1: arsenal that produced some damn fine catches down the field
Speaker 1: in practice, in preseason and eventually on Sunday. So far
Speaker 1: in his two years as a pro out of Colorado State,
Speaker 1: Lynn Bowden Jr. We saw his role last year elevate
Speaker 1: as the year went along. A dual functionality player who
Speaker 1: can work as a ball carrier, wildcat trigger man in
Speaker 1: addition to his work as a receiver. And just look
Speaker 1: at what he did in the SEC as a receiver
Speaker 1: converted to quarterback to make up for the injuries Kentucky
Speaker 1: had when he was there. He goes out and sets
Speaker 1: SEC records for most rushing yards by a quarterback in
Speaker 1: a game and plenty of other just astronomical accolades he
Speaker 1: accomplished there at Kentucky. He's the ultimate competitor, a tough guy,
Speaker 1: a rack guy in an offense that showed some rhythm
Speaker 1: and the short passing game and how he can create
Speaker 1: off of those kind of layup type of throws you
Speaker 1: want to build into the passing game to get your
Speaker 1: quarterback confidence, get completions going shorten the sticks, you break
Speaker 1: one tackle, you get a first down. There you go, baby,
Speaker 1: there's your drive starter. And that's what Lynn Lynn Bowden Jr.
Speaker 1: Can bring to an offense. And he also showed a
Speaker 1: real chemistry late in the season. I thought with two
Speaker 1: a tongo byloa and speaking of rack guys. Albert Wilson
Speaker 1: is now two and a half years removed from that
Speaker 1: hip injury in ten and he looks like it. He
Speaker 1: can also carry the football, mentioning Boden. As you might recall,
Speaker 1: he rushed for two first downs another one in nineteen
Speaker 1: on top of thirty three receiving first downs those two
Speaker 1: years combined, and his yards per reception figure I thought
Speaker 1: I found very interesting over the course of his career,
Speaker 1: sixteen point three as a rookie, twelve point nine the
Speaker 1: following season, then a dip to nine point oh, then
Speaker 1: it comes back up to thirteen point two, and way
Speaker 1: back up to fifteen point oh in his first in Miami,
Speaker 1: and then it goes down to eight point two en,
Speaker 1: So he can really to me, that tells me that
Speaker 1: he can run routes at all three levels of the field,
Speaker 1: the short, the intermediate, and the deep. But he's really
Speaker 1: a difficult tackle in space, especially when you get in
Speaker 1: the fourth quarter down here in South Florida, as the
Speaker 1: teen Chicago Bears learned quickly in that game where Bert
Speaker 1: just caught footballs and wouldn't be tackled in that game,
Speaker 1: I think that provides real, real value. Again with this
Speaker 1: quarterback and what he excels at. You know who else
Speaker 1: is dangerous with the ball in their hands, well, Jachim Grant.
Speaker 1: In fact, he led the NFL and missed tackles forced
Speaker 1: on punt returns in twenty that's per next Gen stats.
Speaker 1: We've seen the vertical threat and flashes. We've seen the
Speaker 1: dominance as a punt returner, and we recently saw the
Speaker 1: ability to take the top off the defense and that
Speaker 1: mini camp video on the long reception off the hand
Speaker 1: of Tongue Bailoa. And one of my favorite things to
Speaker 1: watch every single training camp is the suddenness with which
Speaker 1: Jachem Grant practices with. He is a practice pro out
Speaker 1: there and he creates a ton of separation and I
Speaker 1: see no reason to expect that to change this August.
Speaker 1: So that's seven. But we aren't even close to being
Speaker 1: done yet. This is again no particular order here. Mac
Speaker 1: Hollins is one of the best special teams aces in
Speaker 1: the league. He's also one hell of a blocker in
Speaker 1: the run game, which, for my money, is the single
Speaker 1: most overlooked element all of football receivers who can block
Speaker 1: down the field. You see a big writing play, you're
Speaker 1: gonna see a receiver blocking someone yards down the field.
Speaker 1: He also made two huge, huge catches last year, the
Speaker 1: game tying touchdown in Arizona and the fits Mary. I
Speaker 1: don't know what we're calling it, but the miracle in
Speaker 1: Las Vegas. Fantastic body control and field awareness to stay
Speaker 1: and bounce on that catch in the Honey Hoole. But wait,
Speaker 1: there's more. I'm a big Malcolm Perry fan. When I
Speaker 1: had coach ken Niya mant Lolo of Navy on the
Speaker 1: podcast last summer, he said Malcolm was the best runner
Speaker 1: with the ball he's ever coached. And remember how many
Speaker 1: great runners Navy has had under his watch there in
Speaker 1: that triple option offense. What about Robert Foster who had
Speaker 1: one of the best mini camps at the position in
Speaker 1: my opinion, and he's fast as all get out. He
Speaker 1: can play special teams, and if you recall those early
Speaker 1: Sean McDermott Buffalo Bills, Robert Foster was one of the
Speaker 1: most productive receivers on that team and one of the
Speaker 1: most productive rookies in the league in that class. He
Speaker 1: had five d forty one yards and three touchdowns and
Speaker 1: average an absurd twelve point three yards perk. Target. That's
Speaker 1: a crazy number. Alan Hurds made some tough catches, important
Speaker 1: catches in enough so that he earned a contract extension
Speaker 1: that year and the average eight point nine yards per
Speaker 1: target that season, and made a bunch of really tough
Speaker 1: catches contested catches between the numbers. Kirk Merritt, like Foster,
Speaker 1: had an excellent many camp and another one of those
Speaker 1: physical freaks with the build and like so many of
Speaker 1: his teammates on that four three four four range of
Speaker 1: forty yard dash times and the infusion of speed on
Speaker 1: this team this offseason, it sure was something, wasn't it?
Speaker 1: And I know Kirk was last offseason, but he's just
Speaker 1: another one of these guys that can flat out fly
Speaker 1: and last but not least, Kai Locksley an interesting skill
Speaker 1: set as a former dual threat quarterback who posted eight
Speaker 1: hundred and seventy five rushing yards and eleven touchdowns on
Speaker 1: the ground in two years at you TEP after transferring
Speaker 1: from Texas. So I look at this group and at
Speaker 1: the battle for I don't know, two three four, maybe
Speaker 1: even five spots, and I think you have such tough
Speaker 1: decisions to make, but you can also make them based
Speaker 1: upon what you think the needs of the roster are
Speaker 1: at that point, right because you've literally got everything from speed, size, power,
Speaker 1: running after the catchability, special teams, prowess, it's all there
Speaker 1: in that unit and staying with the past catchers. Let's
Speaker 1: go ahead and stop by the tight end room real quick.
Speaker 1: We talked about Mike Asiki's ascension to one of the
Speaker 1: top ten producing tight ends in the NFL the last
Speaker 1: two seasons, but what about what's with him in that
Speaker 1: tight end room? How will the pecking order shake out
Speaker 1: in that role that kind of pairs well with Mike
Speaker 1: and his ability as a receiver. If Mike is your
Speaker 1: fine red wine, who's gonna be the steak to go
Speaker 1: with the sizzle? There? And his best buddy Durham Smith
Speaker 1: is the king of dirty work, blocking special teams, the
Speaker 1: occasional touchdown catch and I thought he and Adam Shaheen
Speaker 1: kind of rotated in that role last year very very well.
Speaker 1: Of course, that produced a franchise record eleven touchdowns from
Speaker 1: the tight end position last season. But then you've now
Speaker 1: an added Hunter Long who gives you kind of the
Speaker 1: best of both worlds, and that he has an accomplished
Speaker 1: past receiving resume. Just go check out Boston College tape
Speaker 1: last year. They looked to him first and foremost in
Speaker 1: that offense, and when he was bracketed or doubled or
Speaker 1: just kind of covered in general, that offense really struggled
Speaker 1: to move the football. And that's coming off a couple
Speaker 1: of seasons where he and the Eagles were a downhill
Speaker 1: run first throwbacks. Wad and Hunter did a ton of
Speaker 1: inline blocking for those teams. He did last year too.
Speaker 1: He's one of the main guys for me to watch
Speaker 1: this training camp because we know that tight end is
Speaker 1: traditionally one of the tougher spots to come in and
Speaker 1: learn and produce right away. You have to learn the
Speaker 1: passing game and the route concepts, the past protection concepts
Speaker 1: as well, or the protection scheme in general, and also
Speaker 1: run blocking, all three things kind of like a quarterback
Speaker 1: in terms of knowing the entire playbook. So it's a
Speaker 1: bit of a crash course for a young player. But
Speaker 1: Hunter is a very smart guy that builds computers and
Speaker 1: can put together rubricks cubes and like twenty nine seconds.
Speaker 1: So that's why I'm so intrigued to see what he
Speaker 1: offers as a rookie and if he can be that
Speaker 1: guy that kind of keeps the offensive personnel flexible when
Speaker 1: he's on the field, Like we come out with two
Speaker 1: tight ends and the defense says, well, they might flex
Speaker 1: out that tight end, they might put that receivering tight
Speaker 1: end in the backfield. You can do multiple things with
Speaker 1: guys like that. And speaking of that, you've got Sethan
Speaker 1: Carter who can play some h back and some fullback
Speaker 1: and as another one of these guys who is a
Speaker 1: special teams Mayven and Chris Myrick has been on the
Speaker 1: practice sq of the last two years, but he earned
Speaker 1: his first NFL action last season as well. And then
Speaker 1: Jimbrey Blunt will look to make the conversion from the
Speaker 1: hardwood to the gridiron. That tight end position is suddenly
Speaker 1: full of intrigue this offseason. Rounding out the offense is
Speaker 1: the offensive line. I feel pretty good about putting Jackson
Speaker 1: and Hunt into two of those roles, and we know
Speaker 1: coach has emphasized the best five are gonna play, and
Speaker 1: since there are so many guys that can play multiple spots,
Speaker 1: we're gonna have to see how things play out in camp.
Speaker 1: And not to mention that where Robert Hunt plays could
Speaker 1: shake things up based upon how you want to throw
Speaker 1: out the roster around that, because he can really play
Speaker 1: any spot, or at least he has played four of
Speaker 1: the five spots going back to his time in college.
Speaker 1: And then Solomon Kinley's best tape at college came from
Speaker 1: left guard, but he also had some great tape at
Speaker 1: right guard last year too. Jesse Davis has played both spots,
Speaker 1: and he offers that invaluable experience on a young offensive
Speaker 1: line where you can post him between a pair of
Speaker 1: young players and he helps you get the calls communicated
Speaker 1: out to the tackles from that guard position, or maybe
Speaker 1: he does play tackle too. Either way, if I've got
Speaker 1: one of these two guys and Kinley and Davis coming
Speaker 1: off the bench, then I feel really damn good about
Speaker 1: my offensive line depth, especially when you factor in d J. Fluker,
Speaker 1: another guy who has accomplished resume as a guard in
Speaker 1: this NFL with tackle experience too. And then there's rookie
Speaker 1: Liam Eichenberg, who, if you go back to our draft podcasts,
Speaker 1: the notes from nearly unanimously every single scouting report I
Speaker 1: read on him, was it the highest floor tackle in
Speaker 1: the entire class, Like you can expect this out of
Speaker 1: leam Eikenberg at minimum a technician who just gets the
Speaker 1: job done. And if you have five of those guys
Speaker 1: on your offensive line, that's more than satisfactory. But we're
Speaker 1: not done there yet. I thought Adam Pinky had a
Speaker 1: good training camp last year and earned some reps and
Speaker 1: heavy personnel and came in when injuries kind of began
Speaker 1: to mount towards the end of the season, as they
Speaker 1: do in this war of attrition. Then you've got Larnel Coleman,
Speaker 1: and through our social team, there was a cool video
Speaker 1: of his draft moment, the call as it were, where
Speaker 1: the brass talked about how they're excited to work with
Speaker 1: him and the potential he shows in developing that guy.
Speaker 1: A hat tip to the Developmental Podcast on Tuesday with
Speaker 1: three Guards to Laurnel Coleman. And where do Michael Dieter
Speaker 1: and Cameron Tom fit in? We know about Dieter in
Speaker 1: his two years here. Meanwhile, Tom has two years of
Speaker 1: development with the Saints and coming out of Southern miss
Speaker 1: He scored an eight point nine three on the Relative
Speaker 1: Athletics scorecard courtesy of Kent Lee Platt at math Bomb
Speaker 1: on Twitter with elite level testing scores and all of
Speaker 1: the movement and agility drills like the three con the shuttle,
Speaker 1: the broaden vertical jumps, the forty yard dash, and the
Speaker 1: twenty and ten yards splits. In fact, he ranked out
Speaker 1: of two hundred and forty two qualifying centers at the
Speaker 1: time of his combined workout, and he also has thirty
Speaker 1: three and three quarter inch arms. That's length for a
Speaker 1: center in the middle of your offensive line. And then,
Speaker 1: of course there's the free agent signing and Matt Skura,
Speaker 1: who has some really impressive tape the last couple of
Speaker 1: years with Baltimore. In twenty nineteen, he was playing his
Speaker 1: way towards a possible Pro Bowl nod before an injury
Speaker 1: cut that season short. And the veteran acquisitions in the
Speaker 1: room continue with the newest of the newcomers in Jermaine Iluminoire, who,
Speaker 1: like Flucker, has accomplished resumes as a garden tackle in
Speaker 1: this league. And then you've got Tyler Gothier, derv All
Speaker 1: Kiras Netto, and Jonathan Hubbard, who have been working here
Speaker 1: with coach Lemiel John Pierre the last couple of years
Speaker 1: on the practice squad. These next few are more just
Speaker 1: about how they're gonna issue snap counts because there's so
Speaker 1: many good players and so much depth, it's really just
Speaker 1: to work through the sheer volume of productive players each
Speaker 1: of these spots, Like the interior defensive line rotation. We've
Speaker 1: talked about this in the podcast all off season. How
Speaker 1: do those snaps get divvied up among the mainstays like
Speaker 1: Christian Wilkins and Zach Seiler and Adam Butler and ray
Speaker 1: Kwon Davis. Where does Jonathan does John Jenkins factor into
Speaker 1: the mix? Is Benito Jones ready to make a year
Speaker 1: to jump after some impressive work as a rookie and
Speaker 1: limited playing time. How about the linebacker rotation? We know
Speaker 1: Jerome Baker and Bernardrick McKinney are accomplished three down players
Speaker 1: in this league. We talked about Van Ginkl's emergence the
Speaker 1: last two seasons, specifically his performance in two games where
Speaker 1: he saw snap count l of aation in place of
Speaker 1: an injured Shack Lawson. And he certainly looks the part
Speaker 1: there and there might not be a better run defender
Speaker 1: on the roster than he Landed Roberts a captain of
Speaker 1: the defense last year. Where does he factor in? And
Speaker 1: Duke Riley comes in? With a nice resume from a
Speaker 1: coverage standpoint, and especially on special teams where he arrived
Speaker 1: mid season to Philadelphia and then still earned Special Teams
Speaker 1: captain honors there. Which sub packages he getting on on defense?
Speaker 1: Does he continue his role as that core special teamer
Speaker 1: as he has done every stop along the way since
Speaker 1: leaving l s U in college. Vince Beagle was back
Speaker 1: among this group. What's his role coming off the Achilles
Speaker 1: injury last season? He led the team and quarterback pressures
Speaker 1: in twenty nineteen. How about Brendan Scarlett another new guy
Speaker 1: here that can wipe out the edge in the running game,
Speaker 1: but we also saw him drop into coverage and pick
Speaker 1: off a pass in the hook zone during minicamp. Sam
Speaker 1: ega Von has special teams pelts on the wall and
Speaker 1: has played well in sub packages as a fill in
Speaker 1: on defense last season as well. Then you've also got
Speaker 1: Tyshan Render and kyl And Johnson who got some valuable
Speaker 1: experience on the practice squad last year, and Render got
Speaker 1: the call for a couple of games to make his
Speaker 1: NFL debut last season two. So both those two groups
Speaker 1: have tons of depth. Just gonna see how it all
Speaker 1: works out in camp. Then finally, in the defensive backfield,
Speaker 1: that slot cornerback position. And this might be my favorite
Speaker 1: one of all because we've heard about Noah Igbonogady getting
Speaker 1: more work inside. We've covered Nick Needham's success in that
Speaker 1: new role last season. Justin Coleman was one of the
Speaker 1: very best slot cornerbacks in the game when he was
Speaker 1: with the Seahawks. Brandon Jones and Javon Holland have college
Speaker 1: tape as slot cornerbacks as well. Options a plenty. And
Speaker 1: speaking of those last two, how do the safety rotations work?
Speaker 1: We know that Holland can play all of the defense,
Speaker 1: Jones can too, Eric Rowe is an established safety at
Speaker 1: this point of his career, and Jason mccordy has experienced
Speaker 1: all over the defensive backfield as a corner, as a
Speaker 1: safety everywhere. Also, I mean, I need a couple more
Speaker 1: sets of eyeballs to track all the stuff at training
Speaker 1: camp because I just can't wait to see it all
Speaker 1: play out. It's gonna be so competitive and iron only
Speaker 1: serves to sharpen iron. We are one month away, all right,
Speaker 1: Let's go around the web here with regard to the
Speaker 1: NFL and Dolphins news before we cap this podcast. With
Speaker 1: our NFC South preview. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated had
Speaker 1: some great detail in his latest mm QB column before
Speaker 1: he headed off to summer break, and speaking of Peter
Speaker 1: King is already on his break on Football Morning in America.
Speaker 1: Two of the weekly pieces I read every single week,
Speaker 1: and I'd highly recommend reading his first guest writer who
Speaker 1: stepped in his absence, Will Leach. I was glued to
Speaker 1: that piece, particularly his ten Things I Think I Think,
Speaker 1: which is a format I used to kind of copies
Speaker 1: my own when I wrote for Dolphins message boards, like
Speaker 1: fifteen years ago. I was a Sunday night recap columnist
Speaker 1: for a message board, and I would write ten Things
Speaker 1: I Think I Think based upon Peter King, one of
Speaker 1: my what are those inspirations I should say? From my
Speaker 1: football media career, but from Brier story, sources tell Albert
Speaker 1: that two teams as of June sevent had crossed the
Speaker 1: much talked about eighty five percent threshold for player vaccinations,
Speaker 1: fully vaccinated or in the proce of being vaccinated. Those
Speaker 1: two are the Dolphins and the Saints. He then sent
Speaker 1: a follow up tweet after that first one, and he
Speaker 1: covered the whole league scope and this m m QB
Speaker 1: piece go check it out if you haven't done so already.
Speaker 1: But the follow up said, the league has hosted educational
Speaker 1: calls with the purpose of teaching teams and staffs all
Speaker 1: they can to allow them to properly educate their players
Speaker 1: and giving them an opportunity to make an informed decision
Speaker 1: on the vaccine, and that Brian Floor has participated in
Speaker 1: all of those NFL calls. And I think the only
Speaker 1: appropriate reaction to that news is to go to Jesse Pinkman,
Speaker 1: Yes Science. And we turned now to this piece from
Speaker 1: my close personal friend Kyle Crabs of Locked on Dolphins
Speaker 1: and at the Dolphins Wire, where he wrote about the
Speaker 1: Dolphins ranking twelve in three year salary cap forecast per
Speaker 1: Pro Football Focus, which Kyle sites here and his piece,
Speaker 1: and that three year window just happens to coincide with
Speaker 1: the young quarterback to a Tunge Viola was rookie deal
Speaker 1: prior to the option to exercise a fifth year option
Speaker 1: on the back end of that contract. And we've talked
Speaker 1: about the depth of this roster paired with blue chip
Speaker 1: pieces and countless players that have performed quantifiably, as well
Speaker 1: as from my own personal tape study as better than
Speaker 1: average players at their position, i e. A very valuable
Speaker 1: commodity in the National Football League, and that coincides with
Speaker 1: an abundance of draft capital in the coming years. To boot,
Speaker 1: the same piece from Pro Football Focus valued Miami's draft
Speaker 1: capital as the tenth most in the league over those
Speaker 1: three years. Miami was also twelfth and effective cap space
Speaker 1: and ninth in Pro rated money. To finish out their study,
Speaker 1: So you've got talent, you've got depth, you have your
Speaker 1: young quarterback, you're rich with draft picks, and you have
Speaker 1: cap space to either import more talent, extend your own,
Speaker 1: or a combination of both. That's around the web. Let's
Speaker 1: finish up this podcast with our NFC South preview, a
Speaker 1: division the Dolphins will see this year in their schedule,
Speaker 1: and the first game is the Buck in week number
Speaker 1: five at Tampa Bay at one o'clock. I think the
Speaker 1: biggest news here is Tom Brady. We got to see
Speaker 1: this guy again. The last time we saw Tom Brady
Speaker 1: twenty nineteen, we were victorious in the final minutes in
Speaker 1: that Foxborough victory, A very fun game for Dolphins fans everywhere.
Speaker 1: Will this dude ever slow down? Well? Right, now the
Speaker 1: answer looks like no, because he's still at the top
Speaker 1: of his game seventh Super Bowl last season, and he's
Speaker 1: got an arsenal weapons to work with with Mike Evans,
Speaker 1: Chris Godwin, Rob Gronkowski, Scotty Miller, Tyler Johnson. It just
Speaker 1: keeps on going and going. And then they go out
Speaker 1: and ad Giovanni Bernard, who to me is a great
Speaker 1: compliment to playoff Lenny Leonard Fournette, and oh, by the way,
Speaker 1: they have probably the best offensive line in the NFC,
Speaker 1: if not the entire NFL. Tristan worse his sheer size
Speaker 1: and just athletic ability, the way he powers that he
Speaker 1: is a dominant, dominant player. Ryan Jensen one of the
Speaker 1: nastiest centers in the National Football League, Ali Marpett possibly
Speaker 1: the best offensive guard, and Alex Cappa isn't too far
Speaker 1: behind him either, another one of these small school standouts
Speaker 1: at the scene your Bowl. Both Kappa and mar Pett,
Speaker 1: who made a name for themselves in Mobile and have
Speaker 1: turned in great NFL career so far. And then Donovan Smith,
Speaker 1: who's been doing it forever, is kind of the veteran
Speaker 1: old hat on that offensive line and on defense, they
Speaker 1: have an embarrassment of riches too. And it's not just
Speaker 1: about Vita Villa and real quick, can I brag about
Speaker 1: my scouting report on vite Via that year. He has
Speaker 1: turned into one of the best defensive tackles in all
Speaker 1: of the National Football League. It's not just about veia
Speaker 1: Or and Dominican Sue or Shack Barrett or Jason Pierre Paul.
Speaker 1: There's depth there with Nunez Roaches, with Steve McClendon, with
Speaker 1: Jeremiah lead Better, with William Golston, and that extends into
Speaker 1: the second and third level of the defense because Lavonte
Speaker 1: David is a future Hall of Fame linebacker and Devin
Speaker 1: White might be even better. And they still have also
Speaker 1: behind those guys, Kevin Minter in the fold. I love
Speaker 1: Carlton Davis and their secondary. Sean Murphy Bunting was an
Speaker 1: awesome playoff cornerback last year, getting takeaways at a high rate.
Speaker 1: I love Jamil Dean out of Auburn. Two those guys
Speaker 1: were all really, really good players. And you know how
Speaker 1: much I loved watching Antoine Winfield at Minnesota. He was
Speaker 1: as advertised as a rookie. They're only real big additions
Speaker 1: in the off season where Kyle Trask, Geo Bernard, and
Speaker 1: they add Joe try On who just signed his rookie
Speaker 1: contract with the Bucks. The big storyline there is getting
Speaker 1: the band back together to try to run it back.
Speaker 1: How will that work? It's always tough to do a
Speaker 1: second year. You're gonna get everyone's best shot. But they
Speaker 1: did so good to bring these guys back. They give
Speaker 1: Lavonte David the bag, Brady got extended, God Woind got
Speaker 1: franchise shot, got extended, Brown for net, Donovan smith sue.
Speaker 1: They even brought back last year's third stream quarterback and
Speaker 1: their backup and Ryan Griffin and playing Gabbert. Will they
Speaker 1: start slow this year because last rear they did a
Speaker 1: little bit, but now they have a full year of
Speaker 1: of work and experience in the offense. I can't imagine
Speaker 1: those offensive struggles continue like they did at the start
Speaker 1: of last year. When they finally hit their stride at
Speaker 1: the end of the season. I assume that's the Bucks
Speaker 1: team will get early on. I just wonder if maybe
Speaker 1: they have a little bit of the same or if
Speaker 1: it's guns blazing right away from the jump in training camp.
Speaker 1: Definitely a tough matchup on this Dolphin schedule, and then
Speaker 1: two games later we see another team from the NFC South,
Speaker 1: the Atlanta Falcons, a home game in Week seven, a
Speaker 1: one o'clock kickoff. Is Matt Ryan still the guy that's
Speaker 1: gonna be a big storyline for so many teams this
Speaker 1: year in terms of the guys that passed on possible
Speaker 1: quarterbacks justin fields most notably among that group, But as
Speaker 1: Matt Ryan still the guy, I believe he's one of
Speaker 1: the more underrated quarterbacks of the last decade or so
Speaker 1: in the National Football League. Just a high, high level thinker,
Speaker 1: a guy that has done so much for that team
Speaker 1: to keep that team competitive when their defense wasn't always
Speaker 1: the best and kind of a I suppose a curious
Speaker 1: move to pair the decision to trade Julio but also
Speaker 1: to bring in Kyle Pitts, because you kind of want
Speaker 1: to see those two guys together in that offense. Now.
Speaker 1: I know there was a bit of swirling rumors about
Speaker 1: the Julio trade this whole entire offseason and what that
Speaker 1: eventually became as he goes to the Titans. But now
Speaker 1: they get to elevate Calvin Ridley too, who is one
Speaker 1: of the again, like Matt Ryan, one of the more
Speaker 1: underrated players in this league. I am curious see how
Speaker 1: that offense works, especially with the addition of Arthur Smith.
Speaker 1: But man I wanted to see Julio, Calvin Ridley and
Speaker 1: Kyle Pitts altogether and their backfield. It's there's no notable
Speaker 1: names in the backfield that you would say, oh, yeah,
Speaker 1: I know who that guy is or a possible fantasy draft,
Speaker 1: So it might be a committee by option, an option
Speaker 1: by committee. Back there and then on the offensive line
Speaker 1: has been kind of a rough go for them in
Speaker 1: recent years as Matt Ryan's gotten kind of beat up
Speaker 1: behind the offensive line. Gotta find out what you have
Speaker 1: in Caleb McGary there and Jake Matthews has been steady
Speaker 1: on that offensive line, and they also have to find
Speaker 1: out what they have in Matt Hennessy, the center out
Speaker 1: of Temple from a couple of years back. Defensively, Grady
Speaker 1: Jarrett is an absolute monster, one of the best pass
Speaker 1: rushers on the interior. They go out and add Dante
Speaker 1: Fowler to give them more edge rush. They've kind of
Speaker 1: been lacking in that area since Jonathan Abram left Atlanta.
Speaker 1: Marlon Davidson played a hundred and thirty two snaps as
Speaker 1: a rookie. I am curious to get a look at
Speaker 1: him this season. Depth is a bit of an issue there.
Speaker 1: It's the same deal. Linebacker Dion Jones is the one
Speaker 1: name on the mark he that really stands out, But
Speaker 1: they kind of have some work to cultivate and find
Speaker 1: out which of the guys in the back end of
Speaker 1: that roster can step up and beat productive players. And
Speaker 1: then it's a big year in the secondary for a
Speaker 1: couple of guys Isaiah Oliver, who really turned it on
Speaker 1: in some areas last year like tackles and pressures and
Speaker 1: was used up close to the line of scrimmage more.
Speaker 1: It's also a big, big year for a J two Rill.
Speaker 1: They need him to get good now. And then they
Speaker 1: also added plenty of bodies and names to that secondary
Speaker 1: with Richie Grant, Dron Harmon, one of my favorite safeties
Speaker 1: for a long time now with the Patriots is now
Speaker 1: in Atlanta, and Eric Harris their off season in general,
Speaker 1: A J. Mccaren camp comes in to back up Matt Ryan.
Speaker 1: They add Mike Davis is kind of their top back
Speaker 1: on that depth chart. Lee Smith, the blocking tight end
Speaker 1: of the Bills, comes down Jalen Mayfield can compete with
Speaker 1: some of those guys in the offensive low me mentioned.
Speaker 1: They get Brandon Copeland and Barkibious Mingo off the edge.
Speaker 1: Fabian Moreau also added to that defensive secondary, and then
Speaker 1: grant her Her Harmon and Eric Harris in that defensive backfield.
Speaker 1: They signed twenty undrafted free agents and had to trade
Speaker 1: Julio because the cap situation was not great, So kind
Speaker 1: of taking some of that medicine now with also the
Speaker 1: hope to win now as you kind of rebuild and
Speaker 1: try to win in the immediate interim under Arthur Smith,
Speaker 1: who I have so much love for him, keeping Matt
Speaker 1: Ryan and going with a possibly potential heavy twelve personnel
Speaker 1: offense with the likes of Lee Smith and Kyle Pitts
Speaker 1: because those guys can be a little bit uh yin
Speaker 1: and yang and how they play the game. And then
Speaker 1: you get Calvin Realley on some option routes. Let him
Speaker 1: be that blazer that A. J. Brown was on those
Speaker 1: deep over routes in those two man route combinations, working
Speaker 1: off of play action. Like Ryan Tannehill did so well
Speaker 1: with the Titans under Arthur Smith, Matt Ryan can do
Speaker 1: the same in my opinion, I'm just curious see how
Speaker 1: it all works without Derrick Henry, with Mike Davis as
Speaker 1: the current most accomplished running back in that backfield, and defensively,
Speaker 1: they had to have a remake with Dan Quinn now
Speaker 1: out there. But Dean ps has coached a punch of
Speaker 1: great defenses for a long long time and he's back.
Speaker 1: I'm curious to see how they shift that thing from
Speaker 1: more of his classic varied fronts with big bodies that
Speaker 1: can stack and create lanes opposed to the one gap
Speaker 1: scheme and speed the Falcons played with us for so long,
Speaker 1: and really we're kind of up and down with our
Speaker 1: success on that defense on that side of the ball.
Speaker 1: Then week twelve, the Carolina Panthers are coming to Miami
Speaker 1: for a one o'clock kickoff. It starts at the quarterback position.
Speaker 1: Will Sam Donald have that? I wouldn't call it resurgence?
Speaker 1: Will he find his groove in the NFL? Really, for
Speaker 1: the first time, they passed on Justin Fields, just like
Speaker 1: the Falcons did, to stick with Donald, and it was
Speaker 1: reported that was their guyal along. They were really attracted
Speaker 1: to the idea of Sam Donald them Denver, Detroit Atlanta
Speaker 1: could be tied to that possible passing on fields for
Speaker 1: years to come. I cannot wait to see how that
Speaker 1: plays out. The depth behind the quarterback who has missed
Speaker 1: at least three starts every year of his career are
Speaker 1: p J. Walker and Will Greer. That Bode's watching. Losing
Speaker 1: Curtis Samuel I think hurts. He was one of my
Speaker 1: is one of my favorite players in the entire National
Speaker 1: Football League. He's versatile. I think has a bunch of
Speaker 1: potential to really break out in the coming years. Robby
Speaker 1: Anderson and d J. Chark are a nice pair, though,
Speaker 1: but the depth behind those guys is a little bit.
Speaker 1: You know. Depth is becoming more and more common places.
Speaker 1: We discussed at the receiver position in the National Football League,
Speaker 1: but it's just not there for this team. They're tight
Speaker 1: end depth is great, however, with Ian Thomas dan Arnold
Speaker 1: and the rookie they drafted, Tommy Tremble out of Notre Dame.
Speaker 1: So how about Christian McCaffrey. An important year for him
Speaker 1: because he is one of the most electric players in
Speaker 1: the National Football League, but he struggled to stay healthy,
Speaker 1: kind of like say Kwon Barkley over with the Giants.
Speaker 1: They invested heavily into the offensive line that finished twentieth
Speaker 1: last year and pressures allowed per Pro Football Focus, so
Speaker 1: that should have a positive impact. Brian Burns is one
Speaker 1: of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Can't wait
Speaker 1: to get a look at him up close and in person.
Speaker 1: It's your gross Mottos and Morgan Fox. Can those guys
Speaker 1: kind of carry the load because the depth behind those guys.
Speaker 1: This is a team that underwent a rebuild last year
Speaker 1: and they're still in it and Matt Rules doing a
Speaker 1: great job with it. It's gonna take some time to
Speaker 1: get some of that talent that he wants on his
Speaker 1: roster there at the linebacker position. I love the addition
Speaker 1: of Denzel Perriman as well as Hassan Reddick, who goes
Speaker 1: with shaff Thompson as a nice second level and in
Speaker 1: the secondary. I just wrote about Jeremy Chen He is
Speaker 1: an absolute monster. Isaiah Simmons light in that second round
Speaker 1: and he played better than Simmons as a rookie. So
Speaker 1: their offseason was Chuba Hubbard, Terrence Marshall, and Shy Smith
Speaker 1: three rookies that I really like out of the SEC
Speaker 1: as well as Hubbard from the Big twelve in Oklahoma State,
Speaker 1: David Moore they signed from Seattle. We talked about Dan Arnold.
Speaker 1: There was a great video of the negotiation between the
Speaker 1: Panthers and the Arnold's agent on Twitter. Tommy Tremble. We
Speaker 1: talked about him and what he brings to the passing offense.
Speaker 1: Talked about the offensive line overhaul, Pat Elflyne, cam Irving,
Speaker 1: Brady Christensen from b y U. I love his tape.
Speaker 1: He should get a chance to play early. Then they
Speaker 1: get Davey on Nixon the defensive tackle. Talked about Morgan Fox,
Speaker 1: Hassan Reddick, Denzel Perriman, and then J. C. Horne to
Speaker 1: the defensive backfield. My favorite corner in this entire class.
Speaker 1: He is a straight ball hawk. The big storyline for
Speaker 1: the Panthers for me all defensive draft picks last season,
Speaker 1: and the wheels kind of came off in the second
Speaker 1: part of the season as they are just thin at
Speaker 1: those areas except for a linebacker and they're asking a
Speaker 1: rookie cornerback and J. C. Horne to come in to
Speaker 1: really be their best guy. And we talked about this
Speaker 1: overbal times in the podcast. How tough it is for
Speaker 1: a rookie cornerback to come in and have success because
Speaker 1: they're gonna go after you. Can you handle it as
Speaker 1: a rookie, It's tough to do. The depth in general,
Speaker 1: I think playing them late in the season, we'll see
Speaker 1: what kind of team we get. With Carolina, you never know.
Speaker 1: It's twelve weeks into the year, so it's just a
Speaker 1: complete mystery as to what this team will be. And
Speaker 1: then again the Donald and Fields gamble. I cannot wait
Speaker 1: to watch that as well as how Christian McCaffrey bounces
Speaker 1: back because their biggest storylines for the Panthers this season.
Speaker 1: We finish up with a Week six team game at
Speaker 1: the Saints Monday night football Bump Bump Bump Bomb eight
Speaker 1: fifteen kickoff there in New Orleans. Drew Brees and the
Speaker 1: replacement at the quarterback position. Will it be Taysom Hill?
Speaker 1: Will it be Jamis Winston? They won games with Hill
Speaker 1: and Bridgewater over the last two seasons, but that was
Speaker 1: a ball control offense with a stout defense. Does Jamis
Speaker 1: fall into that category that bears watching. Alvin Camara is
Speaker 1: the best back in the entire league for my money,
Speaker 1: and adding t J. Montgomery is a good addition to
Speaker 1: kind of to not offset but to compliment Camara rather
Speaker 1: and then Lotavius Murray is important for what could probably
Speaker 1: become a real run centric football team, especially if Taysom
Speaker 1: Hill is the guy that wins the starting quarterback job.
Speaker 1: I'm not a fan of losing Emmanuel Sanders. I love
Speaker 1: his game and Jared Cook. They didn't really have really
Speaker 1: replacements for those guys in terms of what they brought
Speaker 1: in in the weapons department. But you do get Michael
Speaker 1: Thomas back, but man, that offense was one dimensional without him,
Speaker 1: and if you lose him for even a game now
Speaker 1: without Cook and Sanders, that could be a challenge. The
Speaker 1: personnel has kind of always matched a defense slash ball
Speaker 1: control team. They just happened to have an all Pro
Speaker 1: quarterback to boot, which is why they were essentially one
Speaker 1: of three or four teams with annual Super Bowl contention
Speaker 1: in their back pocket for three or four years there.
Speaker 1: But look at the offensive line with with Tehron Armstead
Speaker 1: Ryan Ramcheck, that's probably the best tackle combo in the league.
Speaker 1: Caesar Louise and Eric McCoy are both awesome players on
Speaker 1: the interior, Andrew's Pete still kills it and they have
Speaker 1: depth there too. Kamarrow might be the click to pick
Speaker 1: and fancy this season. Some additions they made Nick Vannette
Speaker 1: the tight end to know Passengo the pass rusher. They
Speaker 1: also go out and get Peyton Turner in the first round,
Speaker 1: a couple of nice book and asitions. To help offset
Speaker 1: the loss of Trey Hendrickson. They get Pete Warner, the
Speaker 1: linebacker out of Ohio State in the middle round, Paulson
Speaker 1: Adebo cornerback from Stanford, and Ian Book, the Notre Dame quarterback,
Speaker 1: is also a draft pick of the Saints, and that's
Speaker 1: pretty much it. They tagged Marcus Williams, who has been
Speaker 1: so so good, but he has the unfortunate, the unfortunate
Speaker 1: one rep there to be the soul in the vicinity
Speaker 1: of the play in the Minneapolis Miracle. So I feel
Speaker 1: like he gets a bad rap from fans because of that,
Speaker 1: but he is a great player. They said goodbye to
Speaker 1: Sanders and Genera's Jenkins and Kwai Alexander and Cook as well.
Speaker 1: Cooking Sanders are the ones that I'm really kind of
Speaker 1: concerned about. They traded Malcolm Brown to Jacksonville and of
Speaker 1: course lost Trey Hendrickson. To Cincinnati, so you can see
Speaker 1: where Passengo and Turner editions come into play there. They
Speaker 1: attacked the edge and the past rusher position after Hendrickson
Speaker 1: just basically played himself into a massive money deal with
Speaker 1: the Bengals. I also like Carl Granderson is the type
Speaker 1: of player that can kind of be Hendrickson light early
Speaker 1: in his career, situational pass rusher with some production in
Speaker 1: that role. And I would be totally remissed if I
Speaker 1: didn't mention David Anya Model one of the most underrated
Speaker 1: interior defensive lineman in the National Football League. He led
Speaker 1: the NFL and pressures from the one tech position last
Speaker 1: year at linebacker to Mario Davis. The same is true
Speaker 1: of him at linebacker in terms of his ultimate dominance
Speaker 1: at that position. Now they're thin here, but I'm curious
Speaker 1: see what is Zack Bond from Wisconsin, a first round
Speaker 1: draft pick last year, does in year two he played
Speaker 1: just one hundred snaps as a rookie in and then
Speaker 1: the secondary. I love C J. Gardner Johnson, and of
Speaker 1: course Marshawn Lattimore is a hell of a player, and
Speaker 1: Malcolm Jenkins as well as the aforementioned Marcus Williams. That
Speaker 1: is a fantastic top four in your defensive back They're
Speaker 1: gonna be a tough out even without Drew Brees. That
Speaker 1: roster is deep and it is good the division winners.
Speaker 1: For me, the best player is Alvin Kamara. The best
Speaker 1: quarterback to me is Tom Brady. It's always Tom. I'll
Speaker 1: take him office. Let's when he retires, because trying to
Speaker 1: predict when his play might actually decline is the most
Speaker 1: impossible thing to do in sports. Again, the best non
Speaker 1: quarterback besides Kamara is either there's so many options here,
Speaker 1: Christian McCaffrey if he's healthy. Ryan Ramcheck is just really
Speaker 1: dang good, Michael Thomas, what about Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
Speaker 1: I'll go with ram Check. He's a safe bet. He's
Speaker 1: been sturdy and dependable and reliable on the offensive line.
Speaker 1: To me, the best defender is Lavonte David, although Devon
Speaker 1: White is coming in hot, and then Antoine Winfield of
Speaker 1: Marcus Lattimore deserves to mention their Marshall Lattimore, I should say.
Speaker 1: The best coaches Sean Payton. The most intriguing team to
Speaker 1: me is the Saints, and my division champion again will
Speaker 1: be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Actually they didn't win the
Speaker 1: division last year. They were a wild card team, all
Speaker 1: given the NFC South this season. All right, that's gonna
Speaker 1: be it for this lengthy edition of the Drive Time Podcast.
Speaker 1: You all please be sure to subscribe to the podcast
Speaker 1: on Apple, Spotify, tuned in Google Play, wherever your your
Speaker 1: podcast from. Follow me on Twitter at Winkol NFL. Follow
Speaker 1: the team at Miami Dolphins, check out the Fish Tank
Speaker 1: and the Audible podcast, and of course Miami Dolphins dot com.
Speaker 1: Until next time, Fens