2015 Dolphins grades: Mike Pouncey
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins have watched center Mike Pouncey make the Pro-Bowl in three of his five NFL seasons. Prior to the start of the 2015 season, Pouncey was given a contract extension and he rewarded the team with another Pro-Bowl birth.
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Mike Pouncey – center
2016 salary – $10.25 million
The Miami Dolphins may want to look at Pouncey’s contract but it’s unlikely they will try and rework the deal to save cap space. At $10 million he meets the value of his current contract and that contract runs through 2020. The problem is that Pouncey’s deal averages $9 million per season each of the remaining years so restructuring now would increase his salary cap number the next five years.
In 2015 Pouncey had a good but not great year despite his Pro-Bowl award. He was the 11th ranked center in the league and ProFootballFocus.com gave him an overall grade of 78. He was effective in pass blocking receiving a 72 grade but the lack of guard play made his job that much harder. In run blocking he graded out at 77.6. Pouncey spent the end of the season injured and his seasonal bouts with injury should be a concern for a team paying these salary numbers. In 2015, Pouncey played only 809 snaps.
When Pouncey is healthy he is a strong center who can call the needed line assignments and he could be a lot better if the Dolphins can fix the guard positions. His best season came when Richie Incognito lined up to his left. If Miami can solve those issues, Pouncey’s production should get a lot better.
2015 grade – B
Why a “B”?
Pouncey was solid but he didn’t hit it out of the park. Frankly his Pro-Bowl election should have gone elsewhere but Pouncey is consistent and that is more than anyone can say about the other offensvie line players. His yearly injuries are a concern as well but they are not repeats of the same injury year to year.