Dolphins defensive overhaul
By Sean Denison
Two days into free agency, the Miami Dolphins defense is unrecognizable. With Mario Williams signing a two-year, $17 million contract, the Dolphins add three new players to a defense that desperately needed to be rejuvenated, ranking 25th in the NFL last season.
It appears that the Dolphins new coaching staff, particularly defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, has been hard at work. Their game plan this offseason is obvious: fix the defense.
We knew going into this offseason the Miami Dolphins would have to address their defense. Last year, the Dolphins defense ranked 28th against the run and 21st against the pass. We knew the Dolphins would have some tough decision to make in-house, as well with cornerback Brent Grimes and defensive ends Cameron Wake, Olivier Vernon, and Derrick Shelby.
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So, none of this is a surprise, right? Of course it isn’t. But Dolphins fans are still a little confused.
At this point, fans understand the Dolphins strategy of trying to fix a horrible defense, but it’s how the Dolphins are going about it that has left them bewildered.
With the addition of Byron Maxwell, Kiko Alonso, and now Mario Williams, the Dolphins game plan remains unclear. All three of Miami’s acquisitions this offseason are coming off subpar seasons, which inherently comes with risks.
The Sun Sentinel’s Omar Kelly reported that the Dolphins are expected to release Pro Bowl cornerback Brent Grimes. According to several sources inside the Dolphins organization, Grimes refused to restructure his four-year, $32 million contract.
Later today, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports tweeted that Miami will remove the transition tag from Olivier Vernon:
With now two talented defensive players in Grimes and Vernon set to be gone next season, what exactly do the Dolphins get in return?
It appears that the Dolphins are going the cheaper route and banking on the chance that Maxwell and Williams revert back to the players they were two years ago. It’s hard to imagine that both players can replace the two proven assets in Grimes and Vernon, but we’ve seen this before with the Dolphins.
Alonso, on the other hand, is a small risk that has the potential to bring a big reward. Still playing on his rookie salary, Alonso is cheap ($950,000) and is a versatile inside linebacker with instincts and good tackling ability, which is something Miami desperately needs.
Yes, these moves make you shake your head a little bit. When was the last time the Dolphins got anything right? For the past four seasons, the Dolphins have tried to be the champions of the offseason spending more money than any other team during that span.
Will this offseason turn out as bad as the rest? We won’t know for a while. But at least Stephen Ross and the Miami Dolphins keep you interested. It’ll be exciting to see what transpires tomorrow during day three of free agency.