Tag: Davone Bess

Dolphins draft Jamar Taylor, trade Bess, and select Thomas, Davis in 3rd round

Apr. 27 News and Notes 5 comments

Well, day 2 of the draft went just like we all planned, right?  Actually, Austin (@Phinfanalyst) predicted the Dolphins pick in his round 2 mock draft yesterday.  Austin predicted that the Dolphins would use pick #54 on Jamar Taylor, cornerback from Boise State….and the Dolphins did just that.  Some thought the Dolphins might trade up, but they sat tight and ultimately got a very good player.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Jamar Taylor is 5’11″, 192 lbs.  He ran the 40 yard dash in 4.39 seconds and bench pressed 225, 22 times.  He doesn’t mind getting physical with wide receivers and can help against the run.  Taylor was thought by some to be the 4th best cornerback in the draft, so it was surprising that he lasted so long.  Although Jeff Ireland said cornerback wasn’t a ‘need’, he knows that the NFL is a passing league and quality cornerbacks are valuable.  Here’s a look at Taylor’s highlight reel:

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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.

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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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How much have the Dolphins improved this offseason?

Apr. 06 Opinion 2 comments

The Miami Dolphins have had a very busy offseason.  The Dolphins have jettisoned a number of team leaders, while getting both younger and faster at a number of key positions.  The Dolphins lost Jake Long, Sean Smith, and Reggie Bush to free agency and cut ties with 2 starting linebackers, Karlos Dansby and Kevin Burnett.  In exchange, the Dolphins have added Mike Wallace, Brandon Gibson, Dustin Keller, Dannell Ellerbe, Philip Wheeler, Brent Grimes, Vaughn Martin and Lance Johnson to the roster.  The question everyone seems to be asking is whether or not the Dolphins improved their football team.  And if so, how much have they improved.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Let’s take a look at the players the Dolphins brought in and the positions the Dolphins have addressed and try to gauge where they have improved.  We’ll give each position a -3 to +3 rating.  Let us know if you agree or disagree in the comments section.

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Is Tavon Austin a possibility for the Dolphins at #12?

Apr. 01 Opinion 5 comments

The Miami Dolphins have been adding pieces to their offense this offseason, to help accelerate Ryan Tannehill’s development.  The Dolphins brought in Mike Wallace, Dustin Keller, and Brandon Gibson, all of which add firepower to a Dolphins offense that had very little last season.  In fact, the Dolphins let their best playmaker from 2012 leave via free agency (Reggie Bush).  The Dolphins believe that Lamar Miller will be an upgrade over Bush, but that remains to be seen.  It’s impossible to deny that the Dolphins receiving corps has gotten better this offseason…..at least on paper.  So why then would we propose that the Dolphins select a wide receiver at #12 in the 1st round?  Watch this video….then read on:

After watching that, all I can say is: WOW!  Tavon Austin is viewed by experts as the most dynamic offensive playmaker in this draft.  He is considered a 1st round talent, but no one seems to know exactly how high he will go.  He’s only helped himself this offseason, posting a 4.34 40-yard dash and lighting it up in the Combine position drills and during his Pro Day.

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What’s next in the Dolphins offseason plan?

Mar. 26 Opinion 3 comments

The Miami Dolphins kept their offseason plan a secret until it was time to put it into action, earlier this month.  Then, once free agency opened, the Dolphins jumped into free agency by signing Mike Wallace, Dustin Keller, Dannell Ellerbe, Philip Wheeler, Brandon Gibson and resigning Brian Hartline and Chris Clemons.  The Dolphins clearly identified wide receiver, linebacker, and tight end as areas they wanted to improve this offseason.  On paper, it appears they have done so.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

We won’t know just how effective the Dolphins offseason plan will be until we see the team on the field and in action in August and September.  Although the Dolphins have added firepower, speed, and youth to some positions, there are still holes on the roster that must be filled and/or upgraded.  That brings us to the question: What’s next in the Dolphins offseason plan?  Only the Dolphins decision makers know the answer, but we have to assume they have plans A-Z available.

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Dolphins sign Brandon Gibson, welcome Brent Grimes for visit

Mar. 15 News and Notes no comments

The Miami Dolphins are back to signing players every hour! Earlier today it was Dustin Keller and this afternoon the Dolphins signed Brandon Gibson, former Rams WR to a 3 year contract. Gibson adds depth to what is becoming a good receiving corps in Miami.  Last year, Gibson caught 51 passes for 691 yards and 5 TDs.  Right now he is probably the Dolphins 4th wide receiver behind Mike Wallace, Brian Hartline, and Davone Bess.

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

Additionally, the Dolphins announced that free agent cornerback, Brent Grimes visited today. Grimes tore his Achilles early in the 2012 season, but was considered a top cornerback in 2011. Rumors were swirling that he signed, but they turned out to be false….at least at this time.

Finally, Jake Long is heading home from St Louis, without a contract. Just saw on Twitter that Richie Incognito is going to the airport to pick he and his wife Jackie up. He’s leading a twitter campaign to keep Jake in Miami. Mike Pouncey has also chimed in!

[UPDATE 1030pm] Incognito is still going strong on Twitter, trying to start a grass roots effort to get Jake to resign.  At one point, he even told a Twitter follower that he’s do the truffle shuffle for Jake….Richie is definitely one of my favorite Dolphins!

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A look at how the Dolphins could recruit Mike Wallace

Mar. 06 Opinion 6 comments

The Miami Dolphins have made it clear that they plan on pursuing Mike Wallace once free agency begins.  The Dolphins can begin talking with Wallace’s representatives on Saturday.  They can’t speak with Wallace himself until Tuesday at 4pm.  We’re sure the Dolphins have a big elaborate plan on how they want to recruit Wallace.  But, as we mentioned in our earlier post, the Dolphins would be wise to take a small contingent of players to help the recruitment process.  Here’s a look at how we think it might unfold (hat tip to FinsNation.com for the format below, they created the screen play idea, I just thought it might be fun illustrate this scenario in this way):

“Hi Mike, I’m Ryan Tannehill, QB of the Dolphins.  I’m here to tell you that we want you…..We’re here to do anything possible so that you’ll bring your talents to South Beach.  Along with me here are Jeff Ireland our GM, Cameron Wake our Pro Bowl DE, Davone Bess, a fellow receiver, and Mike Pouncey, Maurkice’s twin brother”

“What’s up guys?  You didn’t bring your owner with  you?”

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Pursuit of Wallace MUST end with him signing with Dolphins

Mar. 06 Opinion 3 comments

The Miami Dolphins have not-so-subtly leaked their top priority for free agency next week.  They intend to go after Mike Wallace very aggressively.  That aggressive approach will become public knowledge on Saturday morning at midnight.  March 9th is the first day that the Dolphins can legally speak with Wallace’s representatives.  However, they can’t speak with Wallace himself until Tuesday at 4pm according to the new NFL rules.  Now, we’re all not naive enough to think that discussions have not already happened at some point.  BUT, we’ll probably get a bit more news once Saturday gets here.  My worry is that since the Dolphins have let news leak out that they are targeting Mike Wallace, they could be set up for a repeat of previous years.

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beal via Wikipedia

Photo Courtesy of Jeffrey Beal via Wikipedia

If you are a Dolphins fan, and why wouldn’t you be if you’re reading this post, you’ve seen this movie before:

Scene 1: A big name coach or player becomes available

Scene 2: The Dolphins let it be known that they want to sign the big name coach or player

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Dolphins and Hartline close to agreeing on a new deal

Mar. 05 News and Notes 1 comment

Yesterday, the Miami Dolphins locked up one of their own free agents, by placing the franchise tag on Randy Starks.  While the 2 sides continue to try to agree on a longer term deal, the Dolphins are also in the process of negotiating with their other free agents.   Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com reported today that the Dolphins and Hartline are close to finalizing a multiyear deal.   The local media members have quoted sources saying that the two sides are ‘deep in talks’.  One way or another, it sounds like the deal is going to get done sometime soon.

Photo courtesy of Dolphins.com

Photo courtesy of Dolphins.com

The deal that Marvez is reporting is worth between $6-$6.5 million per season.   In my opinion, that’s a pretty good payday for a wide receiver that scored just 1 touchdown last season.  We do not know the financial details of the deal, probably because they aren’t finalized yet.  However, I would expect the cap hit for this season to be closer to $4 million than $6 million.  If I had to guess, I’d say this deal is somewhere around 3 years for $19 mil or 4 years for $24 million.

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