Miami Fails In Free Agengy So Far.....

[Tarpon Guide]

Well, according to Bleacher Report, Miami got a fail on their free agency so far......


Notable 2016 Acquisitions: S Isa Abdul-Quddus, DL Mario Williams

Notable 2016 Losses: DL Olivier Vernon, DL Derrick Shelby, RB Lamar Miller, WR Rishard Matthews



No matter how big a supporter of Abdul-Quddus' game I've become, the Miami Dolphins got taken to the cleaners this offseason.

Like I've said, the Abdul-Quddus signing was fantastic, but they lost out on their starting running back, one of their wide receivers and two great defensive linemen.

I'm not sure how you feel, but replacing Vernon and Shelby with Williams is not exactly an upgrade in my opinion.

For some time now the Dolphins have been trying to find a replacement for Miller to pair with Jay Ajayi, and they can't pull the trigger on anyone, striking out on Alfred Morris, Matt Forte and C.J. Anderson.

The Dolphins fail because they simply downgraded from last season.

[Idahomer]

I completely disagree. Mario Williams despite his age is an upgrade over OV in terms of production. He's even projected to have 5 more sacks than OV in 2016. Throw in the fact that the Giants paid an AVERAGE DE money comparable to what JJ Watt is making and I would say keeping him at that price would have been the fail. Shelby was decent, but that was it. I see the Branch signing as equal to what we lost. We did lose our RB, but the fact is he wanted to go play for the Texans. He turned down more money for the promise to be the main back and get the ball 20 plus times a year. Until we see the draft I don't see how you can say we're worse off than last year. I mean Ajayi could be the next Adrian Petersen for all we know. He is cheap, young, and needs to be on the field. Signing Miller long term would have amounted to wasting that pick. And Ajayi should have been a 1st rounder if it wasn't for concerns about his knees, which by the way have never hindered him to this point.

It really doesn't matter what Bleacher report writers think. They are normal guys like you and I that decide if they like something without the acumen to actually do the job. Every year we spend big in FA and win the big prize and every year it haunts us. This year we took a much more conservative approach. We replaced our guys with either unknowns like Abdul-Quddus, or young, but experienced guys coming off poor seasons, but who as recently as a season or two ago were all pro type players (Maxwell, Alonzo), And then we added some vets like Williams (poor scheme fit last season), Bushrod, Urbik.

The strategy of not bringing in high priced FA's and keeping the compensatory picks for losing them this year seems solid. We've drilled this team for not building through the draft, and when they do they are FA losers. Guess what, all the teams that win are FA losers. FA is a tool to fill holes and make short term fixes IMO. The draft is the tool for building a long range sustainability. I like the fact that we shifted away from a strategy that failed us the past decade.

[DolphinsFreak]

In my opinion the people writing this article and grading the Dolphins for "Losing" on OV didn't watch him play on a regular basis. The biggest loser in Free Agency are the Giants for signing him. Is there anybody on this forum that would have wanted the Dolphins to pay as much as the Giants did for OV? If the Dolphins did pay the exact amount for OV to stay in Miami THAT signing would be under the LOSER column. Haters got to hate.

I think losing Rishard Matthews was their biggest loss but Miller and Shelby can be replaced in the draft.

[Idahomer]

Completely agree. No one hammered the Giants for that signing, but can you imagine what they would have said had we paid him that $$. In all honesty I've watched every game OV played for Miami since he was drafted. He is simply nothing special. He's a good player and an NFL starter, but he has never been a guy who created turnovers. He gets penalties at the most inopportune times. His stats for hurries is impressive, but he's not finishing the QB off. Honestly look at JJ Watt and his impact on a football game and compare to OV.. Those two are making similar $$. That is a complete fail for the Giants.

[DolphinsFreak]

Exactly !! He is average. I can't wait to see his numbers compared to Williams' numbers this season. I will go as far as to say that Mario Williams will have 8 more sacks then OV this season. Yep, I typed it. Aha The Miami Dolphins would have been the laughing stocks of the NFL had they made that signing. Favorites? Yes, the NFL has them and they have teams they love to hate, and the Dolphins are one of them. I just wish they could find a coaching staff to finally shut their mouths by putting a team together on the field that can win and gain some much needed respect.

[marino4ever]

DF,
Well said man.

[FTLDOLFAN]

The Dolphins simply could not afford to resign OV to a $17M a year contract. I think if we get a motivated Mario Williams and combined with the fact that he is playing in a 4-3 scheme which is what he thrives in then I think he could actually be an upgrade over OV at half the price but I really think at worst it will be a wash still at half the price.

I like the Isa Abdul Quddus signing. I think he will be an upgrade over Thomas/Aikens.

I am not that concerned with losing Lamar Miller. How much of an impact did he really make for us? He basically had the same stats last year as Rashad Jennings. Would you be upset if we lost him in free agency?

I might have made more of an attempt to resign Shelby and Matthews but really they are not difference makers. Parker will basically replace Matthews production and then some. Shelby can be replaced with a comparable player in the draft.

You forgot to mention the trade with the Eagles for 2 starters. Kiko Alonso and Byron Maxwell. We don't know how good of a trade that will be as of now but it has the potential to be a very good trade especially since it only cost us 5 draft spots and we get 2 defensive starters.

[cuchulainn]

Agree with Freak and Ida... anyone who thought losing OV hurt us didn't watch him play enough. He was a mop up guy here. Another good thing to come of the OV signing that rediculous contract was that it forced the Pats to trade away Chandler Jones, who was a far superior player to OV. Nice to have him out of the division.

[DolphinsFreak]

I really like that Jones is out of the division. They may need to outscore their opponents this season and Bennett will help with that but they shouldn't be able to do that for long.

[cuchulainn]

Hope so... really expecting us to put another beat down on Brady and who ever the bills and jets trot out at QB. We've got to be stronger in our division before anything else. We don't play in a cupcake division like the AFC South.

[AquaXI]

We fail in the writers eyes. Great now we can win the regular season. Love our new strategy!

[cuchulainn]

Yeah, these 'grades' are just stupid at this point. None of it matters until the regular season is underway.

[HndRkyaBong34]

I think we could of done a lot better..... but I like the Williams pick up, and I metioned Williams on this Forum when it was rumored he would be up for grabs... And this Forum blew up in boooooooo's... None of you liked the idea... Just a little reminder... Plus, I will toot my horn once again, that I metioned we should of picked Maxwell Last off season and that didn't go over well here either... What gives???? Two solid FA pick ups this year..

[AquaXI]

Williams and Ezekial will get you drunk fast! In fact if they doubled up with Henry and go DB in 3 and Guard in 4, you my friend will need my services hehehe.

[HndRkyaBong34]

HAHAHA! Cheers!!! I'm buying!!!