As fans of the Miami Dolphins we are left to wait impatiently for the Owners/Players to agree to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.  Judging from the positive news we continue to hear about the negotiations, we may not have to wait that much longer.  While there is no deal in place, we are beginning to hear some details of what might be included in the new CBA…Some of the leaked details could actually help the Miami Dolphins, as the move forward and sculpt their 2011 roster.  We’ll get to that a little later in this post.

First, we want to give you a brief rundown of what the CBA might look like.  For a full breakdown, please check out Andrew Brandt’s latest column here.  Here are some of the leaked details that are being discussed, as part of the new CBA:

• Players will receive roughly 48% over all revenue generated by the NFL
• Unrestricted Free Agency will be granted to players having amassed 4 years of NFL experience
• Following the 2014 season, the NFL will look to add a full Thursday night game schedule, further  increasing revenues

So why do we think the Dolphins could benefit from the new CBA rules that we’ve learned?  The key is the second highlight mentioned above.  Some of the players we’ve discussed the Dolphins targeting this offseason would be unrestricted free agents under this new CBA.  Players such as Ahmad Bradshaw and DeAngelo Williams, to name a few.  At a time, there was talk of the NFL requiring 5 or 6 years of service before becoming unrestricted free agency.  If that happened, neither player would be available without giving their current team draft pick compensation (restricted free agents).

As Brandt mentions in his column, the fact that 4 years will be the requirement to become unrestricted, means that there will be a TON of free agents available.  This will create a buyer’s market, which is bad news for the players and good news for teams looking to add free agents.  It’s a simple case of supply and demand.  If there are more free agents, the players might have to take a little less money than they originally wanted, because teams will have other options to turn to.

We’ve stated a number of times that DeAngelo Williams would be our top choice, with Bradshaw a close second.  Pairing either running back with rookie Daniel Thomas would give the Dolphins a great 1-2 punch in the backfield.  The Dolphins will also look to add a veteran QB (cough Kyle Orton, cough Vince Young, cough), an OLB, OL depth, and ST’ers.  We expect the bigger names to still get the money they want, but it’s the depth and special teams where players might be effected by the glut of free agents out there this offseason.

Hopefully this all gets resolved in the next few weeks, so the new league year can FINALLY start with free agency, trades, practices, etc.  .  Time is ticking, and our patience is growing thin…..In fact, we’re only 82 days away from Patriots/Dolphins to Open Monday Night Football. We’re ready for some football….are you??