Offseason goals met but questions linger
DAVIE — It’s good vibes, and typically only good vibes, this time of year as NFL teams take their summer break. Everyone’s happy. Everything’s working. looks his best
is ever. ready for left tackle.
will answer the pesky critics.
Extend that feel-good over every team and you get the idea. But there are two truths that have alternately buoyed and frustrated this Dolphins regime right through Thursday’s final practice until July’s training camp:
1. They’ve followed their precise plan in free agency and the draft in assembling the team they wanted.
2. They can’t answer the flood of criticism over all this until kickoff on Sept. 9.
Oh, they can give small asides, as has they have on occasion, whether it’s about the oddsmakers’ over-under line of six wins, the loss of high-end talent in free agency or questions (raising my hand) about all the 30-somethings coming in the door.
“No one thought we’d be good in 2016, either,’’ is the common answer.
It’s a good comeback, too. Smart. Fair. Factual. They made the playoffs that year, if you remember. And so, again, the Dolphins braintrust appears equally baffled and frustrated that their quasi-make-over this offseason is being panned so universally in the football world. In other years, there was a continental divide at the top that spoke of coming problems. General manager and coach Ireland and by their
and before even that. There were issues.
This year, by all accounts, coach
vice president of football operations
and general end. manager
all agreed to: move on from big names
and not invest in a Plan B for quarterback and to build a different style of defense. They did precisely as COMMENTARY they hoped, too. This will be their doing or undoing, of course. That’s the point here. They’ve followed their blueprint flawlessly. Their plan was executed in a way that comes back to all of them, for better or worse.
The most obvious example here is draft night, when owner
wanted to trade down, collect another draft pick and, possibly even quarterback
They stuck with safety
to grab a top talent who filled their vision for this defense.
The plan was to find defensive players to better line up against the three-receiver formations they faced 65 percent of the time last year. Fitzpatrick is the versatile talent in the secondary to fit that. Thirdround pick
is a coverage linebacker they needed.
Their big investment replacing Suh on the defensive line was defensive end who underlines the manner this pass-first defense was constructed to play the modern way.
Also on the checklist: An improved line with guard and center better “culture” players who can contribute such as and
and depth such as returning defensive lineman
Some only see a much more talented team here. Some also see five players over 31 years old. That’s part of the intrigue to this offseason, though you have to admit no one is using such ideas nationally. Inside the Dolphins, there’s a wonder people aren’t buzzing more about newly signed receiver after his May and June. The answer, of course, should be it’s May and June.
It should be no one really knows what they’re watching out there. Maybe Kansas City blew it in letting Wilson go for half the price it signed erratic
Maybe he didn’t play a larger role in Kansas City’s productive offense for a reason we’ll see come September and October.
When the Dolphins return in late July for training camp and the official start of the 2018 season, it will be with the constructed team this regime wanted. You see what they did. You see why they did it. And, again, this will be their doing or undoing.