Phin Phanatic » Jake Long

DJ’s Crystal Ball – Playing GM on Draft Day

Dale-Paul Jordan — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:33:02 +0000

DJ’s Crystal Ball – Playing GM on Draft Day

The best thing about the NFL draft for us the fans is that we get a chance to pretend we are NFL General Managers. With March Madness ending, our predictive modelling skills can now be used to forecast the upcoming NFL draft. How will the NFL draft play out….no one knows for sure, and if they do, they are pretty much lying to you. We can only base our predictions on research, analysis and a little shot of luck. How do I think the Miami Dolphins draft will unfold, well sit back, relax and enjoy the story; (more…)

Will the Miami Dolphins Trade for Kansas City Left Tackle Branden Albert?

jmendel31 — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:46:11 +0000

Nov 1, 2012; San Diego, CA, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tackle Branden Albert (76) walks to the locker room after the San Diego Chargers beat the Chiefs 31-13 at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

After Albert signed his franchise tender about a month ago for KC there was already speculation that he may be on the trading block.

One of the front runners to get Albert was the Dolphins. It makes sense, to replace Jake Long (who signed with the Rams) with another very good left tackle. He was having a great season until sidelined by injuries.

The Chiefs asking price for Albert is a second round pick in this years draft, and a later pick in next years draft( a 5th or 6th rounder). This is a trade that Miami could easily pull off, having two picks in the second round this year in the draft.

But one big element in getting Albert is that the Dolphins would also get his 9.75 million cap hit. The Dolphins have already done most of their spending this offseason and that number seems way too high. For a player who is only under contract for this year, and coming off injury? The Dolphins should pass.

The Dolphins have already picked up their fair share of star players this offseason and now it is time to build through the draft. This draft is very linemen heavy, Miami could easily draft a solid left, or right tackle (depending on how they feel with Jonathan Martin).

If they draft someone, they would have them under contract for at least three years, and their salary would be somewhere around 2 million. That is a little more then half then what Albert would cost for a single year.

Joe Philbin wanted to bring his method over from Green Bay, which was to get better from the draft. Free Agents are good, but tend to be very expensive and don’t always work out. The Dolphins signed all these big free agent names because they had so many wholes. Now they can focus on drafting the best player available to help this team get better.

Former Miami Hurricane Eric Winston Visiting Miami Dolphins

Tyler McMullen — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:26:05 +0000

Aug 30, 2012; Green Bay, WI, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Eric Winston (74) during the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. The Packers defeated the Chiefs 24-3. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, former Kansas City Chief, Eric Winston, will be visiting the Miami Dolphins’ facility today.

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/314360401817112576

This is incredible news if you are a Miami Dolphins fan, especially after the team lost franchise left-tackle Jake Long just a few days ago.

The former Miami Hurricane is an incredibly athletic offensive tackle – which is a quality Head Coach Joe Philbin stressed during his first few weeks with the team. Standing at a tall 6’7″ and weighing a lean 302-pounds, Winston’s athletic stature is a perfect fit for Miami’s zone blocking scheme.

The 29 year-old is just two years removed from being known as the National Football League’s best right tackle – Miami also had a shot at signing him last offseason when he was surprisingly cut by the Houston Texans but lost out to the Kansas City Chiefs. Now let’s not assume Winston is slowing down at this point in his career. Sure he is beginning to age, but the sturdy right tackle put together a solid season for the Kansas City Chiefs – although penalties were an issue.

The Dolphins have been attempting to get more athletic at every position this season – Tight End Dustin Keller replaces Anthony Fasano, Wide Receiver Mike Wallace replaces Marlon Moore, Jabar Gaffney (I could go on and on), Linebackers Dannell Ellerbe and Phillip Wheeler replace Karlos Dansby and Kevin Burnett, and Offensive Tackle Jon Martin is rumored to be replacing Jake Long, who recently signed with the St. Louis Rams - which is why Winston would be a perfect fit to become Miami’s long sought-after right tackle.

Do not be surprised if the former Cane signs with the Miami Dolphins today to help solidify Miami’s offensive line.