Mike Tannenbaum Forcing Miami Dolphins To Develop Talent

Much was made of the gargantuan deal the Miami Dolphins gave to Ndamukong Suh but for the most part it’s served as camouflage to the real front office maneuvering. Their moves to rid the roster of malcontents, busts, and aging veterans have been justified as cap relief and finding the right mix of personnel; but one can only wonder if there’s more meaning to it all.

More from Dolphins News

In many ways it’s evident new Executive VP of Football Operations Mike Tannenbaum is cleaning house of the bloated contracts from previous management decisions but more seems at play. While coming in and establishing an identity is common place among new regime leaders, I continue to focus on the burden he’s putting on general manager Dennis Hickey to hit on his draft picks. Plus pressure on Joe Philbin and his staff to develop young talent. Don’t get me wrong, those things should be expected of them as it pretty much sums up their job description, but the burden on them is real none the less.

Tannenbaum is putting an immense amount of pressure on these two gentlemen under him with what is a definite power play – regardless of ownership’s political correctness of even distribution of power. With the front office and coaching staff on notice, Hickey and Philbin better develop players from within the organization to get over the hump and into the playoffs or else….

They’re fired. Simple as that.

The Dolphins on defense alone have the look of a team depending on a handful of youngsters to fill a couple key roles. A starter is needed at cornerback and strong side linebacker, with contributions needed along the defensive line to give the starters a breather. Not to mention resigned starter at safety Louis Delmas is still working his way back from a late season ACL tear.

Along with potential draft picks, the development of youngsters such as Jamar Taylor, Walt Aiken, Michael Thomas, Dion Jordan, Chris McCain, Anthony Johnson, and Will Davis are going to be pivotal as the defense will not be the one they wish for it to be on contributions from Suh and Cameron Wake alone. The question is, can the Dolphins bring that potential out of those players?

It’s been pretty clear that Jordan would be a better linebacker than defensive end, he’s a fantastic player in space with uncanny athletic ability. They can still use him in the pass rush rotation, because on third down the strong side linebacker is almost never on the field. Good teams develop and utilize unique talents such as this.

The concern with utilization is real, as Joe Philbin sits and tells reporters Jordan is staying at defensive end because if he isn’t playing on the line he won’t be able to practice his pass rushing.. What??? Close to one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard, you won’t play him at linebacker to ensure he gets some extra reps rushing the passer, which takes almost no mental capacity, but you’ll keep him on the d-line and ask him to play in space on occasion and understand defensive coverages with little to no practice reps? Sounds very backwards to me…

That picture becomes even more convoluted when factoring in Jordan’s absence from the beginning of offseason work outs, begging the question as to what exactly is going on there. Is he in rehab, on the move through a trade, or simply eventually getting cut? When is it exactly ok to part ways with a former first rounder and what message does that send fans about the staff? How can a coaching staff get close to no production from someone who was the first defensive player selected in his draft?

Offensively, Miami still has holes on an offensive line that has gotten Ryan Tannehill sacked more than any other QB in the league during the past two seasons. Take this into perspective for a second, Tannehill, in his first three years in the league has been sacked only three less times than former Texans QB David Carr was during that same time span. That should excite Dolphins fans to the type of QB they have that continues to improve.

The Fins need to fill both guard positions and to think they’ll be able to accomplish this solely through the draft is ludicrous. Miami has addressed the position twice the past two drafts and neither Dallas Thomas or Billy Turner started as rookies. Yes the two recent additions of veteran interior linemen helps depth, neither of them is a front line starter despite starting experience.

It’s clear a rookie can’t be expected to come in and start right away unless they’re a first or second round pick and even then I’d be surprised if the Fins went that route early in the draft. Plus, while resigning Jason Fox was a prudent move, insurance for Branden Albert is also needed as he’s still working his way back from a devastating knee injury. Hickey has got to help his coaching staff here because they can’t feel too great heading into minicamp with Thomas and Turner as their starters at guard.

Miami will also have to account for all of their offensive weapons aside from newcomer Jordan Cameron being younger than 25. Rishard Matthews, coming off a season in the dog house represented the elder statesman in the wide receiver room heading into his forth year in the league before the recent addition of veteran Greg Jennings. Jarvis Landry and new comer Kenny Stills are both 22, representing the Miami Dolphins main options in the passing game. While all three are talented players; this team with playoff aspirations may be counting a bit much on the development and maturation of these young pros.

While the potential is there, potential gets coaches fired. In Joe Philbin’s case, where player development and proper talent utilization isn’t a real strong suit of his staff, they have their work cut out for them. The crazy part about this whole transition is how young the team has gotten from all of the maneuvering. Making this the youngest roster the Miami Dolphins have had during Philbin’s tenure. While the Dolphins clearly got better with the addition of Suh, the jury is out on the rest of their moves with the draft left to play out.

Tannenbaum has created excellent leverage for himself to take over the team completely next offseason if Hickey and Philbin take a misstep. Plus he’s also left himself with a win win situation because if they do make the playoffs, that means a bunch of young cheap talent stepped up saving Philbin and Hickey’s hides in the process.

Follow me on Instagram @tonesetter

Home/Dolphins News