Category: News and Notes

Dolphins fleece Raiders in trade up for Dion Jordan…what’s next?

Apr. 26 News and Notes 5 comments

The Miami Dolphins shocked everyone when they traded up to the #3 pick with the Oakland Raiders.  As soon as the trade up happened, everyone assumed it was for left tackle, Lane Johnson of Oklahoma.  The next big surprise was when commissioner Roger Goodell announced: “With the 3rd pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins select, Dion Jordan, defensive end, Oregon”.  I saw watching this all unfold and was literally speechless.  The Dolphins made a very bold move, draft a player that many have compared to Jason Taylor.  I thought I was dreaming and literally pinched myself.  Then, unimaginable fear overcame me……WHAT DID THEY GIVE UP TO GET HIM?!?!

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

According to the often used NFL Trade Value chart, the Dolphins move from #12 to #3 should have cost them two 2nd round picks.  Instead, the Dolphins moved up 9 spots and surrendered only the #42 pick to do so.  Whether or not you love the pick of Dion Jordan, you can’t deny that the Dolphins essentially moved up into the top 3 for half the price of what it would normally cost.  The Raiders wanted out of the top 3 so badly and needed extra picks so badly, that they made a good deal (for the Dolphins).

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The crystal ball: 1st Round Mock Draft

Apr. 25 AFC East Preview, Breaking News, Dolphins Gameplan, Miami Musings, News and Notes, Opinion, Uncategorized 10 comments

After about eight long months of intense draft preparations, we have all officially survived mock draft season and the real deal is finally here. As Mel Kiper has stated, “This has not been a comfortable year to do mock drafts.” Here we are less than 24 hours away from Roger Goodell announcing Kansas City is on the clock and there is still debate on who the pick should be. There are simply no ‘locks’ in this draft years draft, but with no ‘locks’ I can assure you there will be plenty of steals.

We here at PhinNation encourage comments, criticisms, and questions regarding our intelligence, or furthermore our sanity at this point in time. Enjoy!

Pick Position               Selection
1 Kansas City  OT     Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M
2 Jacksonville  OLB      Dion Jordan, Oregon
3 Oakland       QB      Geno Smith, W.Va
4 Philadelphia  OT        Eric Fisher, Central Michigan
5 Detroit        CB        Dee Milliner, ‘Bama
6 Cleveland     DE        Ziggy Ansah, BYU
7 Arizona       OT        Lane Johnson, Oklahoma
8 Buffalo         QB         Matt Barkely, USC
9 NYJ              FS         Kenny Vaccaro, Texas
10 Tennessee    OG         Chance Warmack, ‘Bama
11 San Diego    OT         DJ Fluker, ‘Bama
12 Miami           WR          Tavon Austin, W.Va
13 NYJ           DE/OLB     Keke Mingo, LSU
14 Carolina         DT         Shariff Floyd, Florida
15 New Orleans OLB       Jarvis Jones, Georgia
16 St. Louis         OG         Jon Cooper, UNC
17   Pittsburgh    DE          Bjoren Werner, FSU
18 Dallas            DT          Star Lotulelei, Utah
19 NYG              TE           Tyler Eifert, Notre Dame
20 Chicago          OT          Menelik Watson, FSU
21 Cincinnati     WR         Cordarrelle Patterson, Tenn.
22 St. Louis         WR         DeAndre Hopkins, Clemson
23 Minnesota     WR         Keenan Allen, California
24 Indianapolis    CB         Xavier Rhodes, FSU
25 Minnesota      DT        Sheldon Richardson, Missouri
26 Green Bay       RB         Eddie Lacy, ‘Bama
27 Houston          QB        Ryan Nassib, Syracuse
28 Denver            CB         Dez Trufant, Wash.
29 New England   WR        Justin Hunter, Tenn.
30 Atlanta             CB         DJ Hayden, Houston
31 San Francisco DE         Datone Jones, UCLA
32 Baltimore         LB          Arthur Brown, Kansas St

The Dolphins recent rumblings sending Bess to Cleveland lead to the selection of WR/RB/KR/PR Tavon Austin. Many will consider this a luxury pick, but the combination of Mike Wallace and Tavon Austin will bring an entire new dimension to the Dolphins offense.
Be sure to follow @Phinfanlyst on twitter for further analysis throughout the draft Saturday.

Latest news on Davone Bess, Branden Albert potential trades

Apr. 25 News and Notes 7 comments

Alright Dolphins fans, it’s the day we’ve all been waiting for……HAPPY DRAFT DAY!!!!  Well, it’s only the first day of the draft, but still, Happy Draft Day!  By this time on Sunday, the Dolphins will (hopefully) have added a number of talented football players that will improve the overall talent on the 2013 roster.  After a busy offseason, the Dolphins will look to fill the remaining holes on the roster.  In particular, we surmise that the Dolphins will be looking for a starting left tackle, starting cornerback, a pass rushing defensive end, a tight end and depth on the offensive line, running back, and perhaps some more secondary help.

Bess Dolphins-com

With the draft quickly approaching, there are rumors flying all over the place.  One rumor in particular surfaced last night, suggesting that ‘many’ teams have contacted the Dolphins about WR Davone Bess.  Bess is probably the #4 wide receiver on the Dolphins right now after the resigning of Brian Hartline and additions of Mike Wallace and Brandon Gibson.  The Dolphins also have youngsters Armon Binns and Rishard Matthews on the roster. So it appears, Bess is on the trading block.  Here are a couple of tweets that we found particularly interesting, regarding Bess:

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Dolphins looking at trading up, possibly for Joeckel?

Apr. 24 News and Notes 6 comments

This week, everyone seems to have a rumor about the Miami Dolphins and a theory about what they are going to do in this year’s draft. The truth is, this is exactly what the Dolphins want.  They do not want anyone to know if they are trading up, or down, or sideways (wait, what?).  They don’t want other teams to know what players they are really interested in. This time of year is very much like a game of poker.  Teams hold their cards close and try not to tip there hand….there is a lot of bluffing going on…..and there is a lot of luck involved.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

We are now just 1 day away from the draft, so the rumors are REALLY flying now.  However, a few different reports have surfaced indicating that the Dolphins might be willing to trade up into the top 10 of the draft. No one seems to know exactly whom they would be trading up for.  BUT, if the Dolphins are going to trade up, it would only make sense to do so for a left tackle, right?  I mean, the Branden Albert trade is still a possibility, but if that doesn’t happen, there is still a huge hole at tackle for the Dolphins and they will have lost assets that could have been used to acquire one.  (UPDATE @ 10:30AM – Armando Salguero is reporting that the talks between the Dolphins and Chiefs is back on track and heating up

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Dolphins new uniforms REVEALED

Apr. 23 News and Notes 5 comments

The Miami Dolphins are planning on unveiling their new uniforms this Thursday night, just before the 2013 NFL draft gets started.  The Dolphins plan to have players like Cameron Wake and Ryan Tannehill model the new uniforms as a grand unveiling to the world. Yes, we know what the logo and the helmet will look like, but what about the jerseys and uniforms?  Well, moments ago, @UniWatch sent this out on Twitter:

Latest news on Albert: Dolphins willing to pay him, waiting on Chiefs

Apr. 22 News and Notes 3 comments

This Branden Albert deal just keeps twisting and turning on all of us.  Yesterday, Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports reported that Branden Albert’s contract demands were too high for the Dolphins liking.  This afternoon, we heard that the Dolphins and Chiefs haven’t spoke about a trade in 5 days.  Now we hear from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network that the Dolphins ARE willing to meet Albert’s contract demands!  If this is how draft week is going to play out, I may need a vacation after the draft is done on Saturday….seriously!  Here is what Rapoport tweeted earlier tonight:

 

So here’s what I think happened.  I think the Dolphins offered the Chiefs the #54 pick sometime last week and were given permission to talk to Albert’s agent to negotiate a deal.  While in depth negotiations might not have happened yet, I think both sides know where the deal will ultimately end up.  As Rapoport mentioned, the deal will likely be in line with what Duane Brown received (6 years, $54 million, $22 guaranteed).  Depending on how the contract is structured, Albert will probably never see the end of that deal, so the devil will be in the details.

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Report: Dolphins haven’t talked about Albert trade with Chiefs in 5 days

Apr. 22 News and Notes no comments

The ongoing saga regarding the Dolphins search for a starting left tackle continued into draft week.  Rumors have been flying about a trade that would bring Branden Albert to Miami for a few weeks now.  Earlier today, we learned that the talks between the two teams have stalled because of Albert’s contract demands.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Now, we’ve learned from ProFootballTalk.com that, as of Sunday, the Dolphins haven’t talked to the Chiefs in 5 days.  We also saw an unconfirmed rumor on Twitter that the Chargers might be entering the mix.  The Chargers are looking for offensive line help to protect their franchise QB, Phillip Rivers.  And Albert would essentially do the same thing for the Chargers that it would for the Dolphins.  Trading for Albert would alleviate the Chargers from needing to spend an early draft pick on a left tackle.

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Analyzing the cost for the Dolphins to trade up or down in the 2013 Draft

Apr. 21 News and Notes 2 comments

The Miami Dolphins have created some flexibility in this week’s draft, by making moves earlier this offseason, addressing holes that needed to be filled.  The Dolphins currently hold 11 picks in the upcoming draft, but that could change before…or even during the draft.  With sources indicating that the Dolphins are currently negotiating a new contract with Branden Albert, the Dolphins might have 1 less draft pick by the time the draft actually starts.  My belief, is that the Dolphins will end up making a few trades, moving up or down, depending on who is on the board and who they are targeting.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

So that brings us to the question about the cost of moving around in the draft.  How much should each draft pick be worth?  How much would it cost the Dolphins to move up in the first round to draft a left tackle, if the Branden Albert deal doesn’t go through?  We’ll look at a few scenarios to give you an idea of just how costly it might be.  We’ll also look at a few trade down scenarios, as the Dolphins might like a player at 12, but if they can get him at #22, why not trade down?

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Analyzing the Dolphins 2013 schedule…..how hard is it?

Apr. 19 News and Notes no comments

On Thursday, the NFL released their schedule for the 2013 season, so the Miami Dolphins now know what their path to a return to the playoffs will look like.  Some have said that the NFL schedule makers did the Dolphins no favors.  In reality, it’s very difficult to know just exactly how difficult (or easy) the Dolphins schedule will be until the rest of the offseason plays out and the season actually begins.  Having written that, let’s take a closer look at the Dolphins schedule.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Below is the Dolphins schedule, courtesy of Dolphins.com:

September 8th, 1:oopm  - @ Cleveland Browns

September 15th, 1:00pm – @ Indianapolis Colts

September 22nd, 4:05pm –  vs. Atlanta Falcons

September 30th, 8:40pm – at New Orleans Saints

October 6th, 1:00pm – vs. Baltimore Ravens

October 20th, 1:00pm – vs. Buffalo Bills

October 27th, 1:00pm – at New England Patriots

October 31st, 8:25pm – vs. Cincinnati Bengals

November 11th, 8:40pm – at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

November 17th, 1:00pm – vs. San Diego Chargers

November 24th, 1:00pm – vs. Carolina Panthers

December  1st, 1:00pm – at New York Jets

December 8th, 1:00pm – at Pittsburgh Steelers

December 15th, 1:00pm – vs. New England Patriots

December 22nd, 1:00pm – at Buffalo Bills

December 29th, 1:00pm – vs. New York Jets

(CLICK HERE, continued on page 2)

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Report: Dolphins to give Branden Albert a physical…but is he worth a 2nd rounder?

Apr. 18 News and Notes 14 comments

The Miami Dolphins are not comfortable with their offensive line right now.  How could they be, considering that 2nd year tackle Jonathan Martin is penciled in at left tackle and journeyman Nate Garner is penciled in a right tackle.  The Dolphins KNOW they need to upgrade their offensive line, otherwise the other, more flashy moves made this offseason, won’t matter one bit.  If Ryan Tannehill is running for his life, he’s not going to have time to find Mike Wallace streaking towards the end zone….or Brian Hartline deep in the opposing secondary.  For this reason, the Dolphins are looking at a variety of options to improve their offensive line.

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beall via Wikipedia.org

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beall via Wikipedia.org

That brings us to the latest development of this Dolphins’ offseason.  Yesterday, news began to swirl about the Dolphins and Chiefs working on a trade for recently ‘franchised’ left tackle, Branden Albert.  League sources have told a variety of reporters that there have been ‘extensive talks’ between the two clubs.  Then, this morning we received word from the National Football Post, that the Dolphins might be giving Albert a physical in the coming days.  John Clayton of ESPN confirmed that the Dolphins are the only team the Chiefs have given permission to, to speak with Albert.  At face value, this sounds like the deal is moving forward.  However, remember that if a trade like this is going to happen, it would probably have to happen before next Thursday/Friday.

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