Building The Dolphins “Dream Team”

I have spent the last month trying to figure out the best scenario for the Miami Dolphins depth chart and I think I came up with a great team inside the budget. The first thing that has to be done is Free Agency, so let us focus on that. The Dolphins could pick up 5 key free agents, but we will focus on just the defense for now:

1. Mario Williams – DE
2. Tyvon Branch – SS
3. Reggie Nelson – FS
4. Corey Graham – CB

With this defense, Ryan Leaf could win us a Super Bowl. Having Wake, Starks, Odrick, and Williams always rushing into the QB will leave a great secondary to pick off the pieces. This of course will be costly, but even with removing Yeremiah Bell it will end the Dolphins salary cap with only 3 Million left to sign the rookies, when you need roughly 5 Million. Wait there is good news; the Dolphins only used 92% of their cap space last year, giving Ireland the ability to request an additional $9.05 million in cap money on top of the projected $123 million. So this gives us just enough money to pick up Matt Flynn, the only offensive Free Agent. Still this leaves us about 3 Million short for the rookies; I got you covered. In the draft I have a plan that could bring us just enough, but it will break a lot of hearts, including mine. Here’s how my draft looks:

First Round: Riley Reiff, OT, (6’6” – 300) – This guy is quick and “strong as ox”. Placing him on the Right side of the line is a no brainer.

Second Round: Brock Osweiler, QB, (6’8” – 240) – This guy is a beast. At his height he moves very quickly and has a quick release. He was projected to be in the 4-5 rounds, but is quickly moving up to the 1-2 rounds. I think with Manning going to a team in need, he will be a steal in the second round. I could see him being the next Roman Gabriel, without the Hollywood contract.

Third Round (trade): Joe Adams, WR, (5’-11” – 174) – This guy is quick and reminds you of Devon Bess. The only difference is that this guy is a better kick returner.

Third Round: Ryan Miller, G, (6’8” – 310) – He was moved from Guard to right tackle in his last two seasons. He was impressive as a Right Tackle, and is getting some consideration at the position, but he is dominating in the Guard position.

Fourth Round: Ladarius Green, TE, (6’6” – 237) – He is a dangerous receiver that creates teams to mismatch coverage. In the west coast offense this would work great. He only needs to put on a little more weight to block in the NFL, training camp should do that.

Fifth Round: DeVier Posey WR, (6’2” – 209) – He was suspended because of the stuff that happened at Ohio State. He came in the last three games and didn’t miss a step. He would have went like Teddy Ginn last year if he came out. I know I said the Ginn name, but this guy can take a hit and he plays more like Holmes (without the attitude), at the fifth round he is a steal.

Sixth Round: Randy Bullock, K – This kid is a workhorse. Now the Dolphins have Dan Carpenter, but he is the 13th highest paid player on the team. Expect him to adjust his contract or be replaced with TA&M kicker. In Mike Sherman’s words, “He is the reason we won most of our games.”

At this point, you are wondering, did he just trade off Devon Bess? Yes, I did. He is a great player, but you can trade for Joe Adams and get the same player with a better return game. The only reason I would is because it opens up 3.5 million for the cap. Now remember he was an undrafted rookie, and to get what we have got out of him is great. I think Joe Adams can be the same, but at a lot cheaper price. Other teams might think the same thing, so we would probably have to throw in our 7th pick.

The biggest thing out of this is how many good offensive players are coming in this draft. I think we need to Free Agent our defense and Draft our offense. Offensive players cost more, so it also makes since with our budget.

Let me know what you think. Is there someone else in the positions you would rather have?