Miami Dolphins Face Decision On Dion Jordan
By Brian Miller
Dion Jordan is a Miami Dolphin and Dion Jordan is a wasted player. A mistake. A wasted pick. Sure he has all the talent in the world. Entering the NFL Draft only two off-seasons ago, Jordan was the highest rated defensive end in the draft and his athleticism and high ceiling was the reason Jeff Ireland moved up to number three to get him.
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Two years later and no one knows who Dion Jordan is and it’s not really his fault.
Since Jordan’s arrival to Miami he has been a trophy sitting on a shelf. A trophy that says we only paid a paltry 2nd round pick to move to get him. A trophy that has initiated trade talk rumors each year since with the Chip Kelly led Philadelphia Eagles. A trophy because frankly the Miami Dolphins coaches either don’t want to use him or don’t know how to use him. As I said, a waste.
Last year Jordan was never penciled in to being a starter along the line. That was Olivier Vernon’s job so his entrance into substance abuse rehab and subsequent eight game suspension didn’t hurt the team as far as losing a starter but it left the team wondering who exactly he was, who he is.
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Even now we don’t know what roll Jordan will play in the defense next year or if he will be in Miami next year. Jordan is slated to count over $5 million in cap space this year thanks to him being a high first round pick. That’s a lot of “wasted” money on a player who has participated in 26 career games. He has three career sacks and 39 tackles in the two years he has been here.
This off-season the Dolphins will once again experiment with the 6’6″ defensive end and use him at linebacker to see if he is a better fit there. Can he be an elite or even a good 4-3 strong side linebacker? Can he assume the role that Jason Taylor played and move around the defense to various positions? Surprisingly when he is in the game he seems very quick and has shown the ability to make plays which confounds the decision to not play him more often. Maybe they can try and convert him to TE and use him in the red-zone.
One thing is for certain, the Dolphins are not coaching this kid up. Could it be a situation of Joe Philbin never wanting him in the first place? Is it that they truly have nowhere to put him? Or could it be that Jordan simply hasn’t shown enough to warrant playing time? In all likelihood it’s a combination of all three.
This season will be a pivotal one for both the team and for Jordan and the Dolphins will need to make a decision on how best to use him. Otherwise a very good college talent is going to waste in the NFL.