Ranking the top 5 Dolphins off-season moves
By Brian Miller
Take your pick. Was the re-signing of Kiko Alonso a bigger deal for the Dolphins linebackers or was the addition of 32-year-old Lawrence Timmons? By my calculations they both are.
Alonso provides the Dolphins something that the defense has been missing since Zach Thomas at the position. Heart. And Alonso has a lot of it. He immediately clicked within the South Florida community and is play on the field gave fans another defensive player to root for.
In 2017 Alonso may move to the weak side spot while Timmons takes over in the middle. The Dolphins are not saying who will play where just yet.
Timmons comes from a very good Pittsburgh defense and continuing the trend of the Dolphins off-season moves, tends to stay healthy. Miami’s gave Timmons a two-year deal worth around $12 million total. It’s a good contract for both sides.
Simmons has seen his production dip the last two seasons but the Dolphins believe that he will provide the kind of play-making that should fix their biggest weakness. Stopping the run. Something Timmons is very good at.
Both Timmons and Alonso should compliment each other within the Dolphins defensive scheme as both have strong non-stop motors. But the issue will be who plays the strong side. Koa Misi is returning or so the Dolphins hope but they still need to find an outside linebacker that provides a stronger future with less concern over health. It’s an area the Dolphins should address in the draft.
The Dolphins entered the 2017 off-season needing three linebackers. They have two and hope Misi can return to enough to cover the 3rd or draft his replacement.