Phin Phanatic
FanSided

2020 NFL free agent targets for the Miami Dolphins offense

By Dominic Ambrose

NASHVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 24: Jack Conklin #78 of the Tennessee Titans blocks during the first half of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium on November 24, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans defeated the Jaguars 42-20. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 24: Jack Conklin #78 of the Tennessee Titans blocks during the first half of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium on November 24, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans defeated the Jaguars 42-20. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
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NFL free agency begins in less than a week and there is a lot of work to do for the Miami Dolphins as they begin rebuilding the roster.

In 2019, the Miami Dolphins did not make moves in free agency but instead focused on tearing down a roster that struggled for years. Now with free agency ready to begin the process is about to go in the other direction.

As the NFL free agency period gets ready to begin on March 18, 2020 three things are for certain when it comes to the Miami Dolpins.

  • The Dolphins as a team have the most cap space available ($ 88 million dollars) according to overthecap.com.
  • The Dolphins have a lot of areas to improve on.
  • The Dolphins have a lot of draft picks.

So, the question remains, how best to address the areas of need for the team moving forward.  Let’s take a look at the possible free agent targets for the team.  For this article, the free agent tracker at spotrac.com was used.

At quarterback, it seems a forgone conclusion that one will be drafted in the upcoming draft. The question remains if it will be Tua Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert, Jordan Love, Jalen Hurts, or another of the quarterbacks. The likelihood of pursuing a quarterback in the free agent class seems very unlikely. Although with names like Brady, Brees, Bridgewater, and Rivers rumors do spread quickly.

Arguably the biggest need on offense is on the line. As I am sure the team will also address the positions in the upcoming draft, bringing in the right free agents can also help the team move forward in a positive way (and winning).

This year’s free agent class along the offensive line has several players that should at the very least draw interest from the team if not get signed by them. Building an offensive line that can not only keep the quarterback upright, but create running lanes is essential to establishing a winning team.

Currently, the line showed some signs of having quality players, just not in the right positions. I could see Jesse Davis as well as Michael Dieter establishing themselves at the guard positions. The tackle spots as well as center seem open for change. With that being said, Jack Conklin from the Tennessee Titans, Germain Ifedi from the Seattle Seahawks, and Cameron Erving of the Chiefs should all be targeted.

All three men are big bodied and athletic bulldozers that have shown the ability to attack opposing defenses to the benefit of the teams they were on last season.

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Conklin at 6’6” and 308 lbs. rebounded nicely in the 2019 season (injury in 2018 limited him to 9 games) with the Titans to not only have over 90% of the snap counts at tackle, but to help create space for Derrick Henry as well as protection for Ryan Tannehill during the playoff run the team had that took them to the conference title game.

With Ifedi, who is 6’5” and 325lbs. who is an athletic mover that attacks defenders and does well protecting the edge. Also, he has not missed a game in his career, so he stays healthy. Lastly, in Erving, at 6’5” and 313, he is quick for his size and also has experience playing guard as well as center. He was in more of a reserve roll with the Chiefs last year so a change of scenery might be something Erving would welcome.

Although the guard position could benefit from players consistently lining up at the position, the names that stand out are Andrus Peat from the Saints, Brandon Scherff from the Redskins, and Joe Thuney from the Patriots. All three would be beneficial and upgrade the line. In Peat as well as Thuney you get quarterback protectors and players to establish running lanes as well as leaders on and off the field.

In Scherff, the former first round pick could go for a fresh start out of Washington although he has dealt with injuries the past two seasons.

Running back is another interesting area both in terms of free agency and being a need for the team moving forward. Melvin Gordon, Derrick Henry, Damien Williams, Devontae Booker, and Jordan Howard are among the names on the free agent market. Gordon seems the most likely target among big names, although keep an eye on Jordan Howard and Devontae Booker. While with the Chargers he was very dynamic and able to both run the ball as the “bell cow” type of running back as well as be effective in the passing game. He could provide a legitimate running option for Brian Flores and staff that had Ryan Fitzpatrick lead the team in rushing for the 2019 season.

Jordan Howard seemed to disappear after being dealt to the Eagles so a change in scenery and offenses could be a benefit to Howard. Devontae Booker could be open for a scenery change as well with the emergence of Phillip Lindsay in Denver. Damien Williams and Derrick Henry seem like longer shots with Henry coming off a league rushing title in Tennessee and Williams helping the Chiefs win the Super Bowl.

For lack of a better word, it feels as though the Dolphins as a team will do their due diligence on both the pending free agents as well as how to best supplement their picks with free agents to bring in the right presence in order to get back to the winning ways the fanbase has been longing for. However, pursuing Gordon, Howard, Conklin, and Peat could go a long way in giving the Miami faithful some positive excitement to look forward to in 2020 and beyond.

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