With our issues on the interior O-Line, our injury to the backup center, and the overall lack of running lanes, why in the hell is Jake Grove still a free agent?  Unless he was banging Sparano's or Ireland's wife, why do the Dolphins not sign him?

We obviously need a center, and because the trade deadline is passed, we will have to go with a FA off the street.  Jake is sitting at home waiting for his phone to ring right now!

I may be missing something, and please correct me if I'm wrong, but what are everyone's thoughts on this?

First, I understand the negatives of restructuring somebody's deal with 2 years remaining.  Supposedly, everyone will want to restructure after having a great year.  However, he is grossly outperforming his current 4 year, $2.318m deal.  He started outperforming this deal the first time he stepped on the field.  Who knows what kind of numbers he could have had in limited snaps last year if Joey P didn't keep sending him off the field, so he could continue his mediocrity.

Typically, if we has a 2nd year 5th-7th round pick, or a Rookie undrafted FA in his 2nd year, I wouldn't think they would do anything to his contract.  However, he is 28 right now, and will turn 29 in January 2011.  If he plays out his contract, then he will re-sign probably during the 2012 season when he is 30, almost 31.

So, the question is, do you think the FO will extend his contract another 4 years or so to lock him up until he is 34ish?  If he has a monster year and finishes with 17 or 20 sacks, do you think this is even a thought?

How is everyone doing in the ESPN Eliminator Challenge so far?  With great thanks and sarcasm to the New Orleans Saints, I am now out of the competition.  How in the heck do the Saints drop one to the Browns?  Come on guys! Oh well.

I remember a few weeks ago, only about half of the original people were still in the challenge - something like 79 out of 142.  How is everyone doing, and if you lost, which team let you down?

It took me a little while to gain the courage to say this.  All week long, everyone has pointed fingers at almost every member of the Dolphins organization to place blame.  I was relieved to see the blame going the other way, but my guilt is almost unbearable.

I didn't wear my usual orange Miami Dolphins t-shirt Monday night.  When I wear that shirt, the Dolphins are 7-2.  I was a little lazy and didn't want to do laundry, so I wore a green Dolphins shirt that, unfortunately, was unproven in the field of battle.

Don't blame Henne, Sparano, Ricky or Ronnie, or the O-Line.  It was my fault.  I will now go take a lap.

I just got back from Gainesville for classes, and I am so pissed off to see that my f-ing DVR didn't record the game.  I know it was set to record because I checked it a million times before I left.  I also set the Tennis match to record afterward in case it went later than 4pm.

I remember seeing something in a post earlier on here that said you can watch the games on NFL.com after they are over for like a 72 hour period, or something like that.  Does anyone know of a legal way to watch this game?

I hate this damn DVR.  It has done this a few times!!

I was thinking about this a few days ago.  Who will our captains be come the start of the season?  As we all know, last year on opening day, the Dolphins had 4 Captains, 3 of which were on defense.  They were Chad Pennington, Jason Ferguson, Joey Porter and Jason Taylor.  Please refer to Matty's post on our Leadership from January. 

As we also all know, Pennington is now relegated to backup duty, Ferguson is suspended for the first 8 weeks, and Porter and Taylor are both gone.  So the question remains, who will step up as our defensive captains? (And another question, has there ever been a football team where all the team captains one year were not captains the next year?)

Who can step up on defense?  The most tenured players are Crowder, Will Allen (who may both be backups) and Yeremiah Bell.  How about Starks?  Dansby?  Yeremiah?  What do you all think?

As we all know, the 1st round of the 2010 NFL Draft went down last night to great excitement.  This evening is the 2nd and 3rd rounds followed by 4th - 7th on Saturday.

What are your thoughts on the new format?  The NFL wanted to make this experience more of a "primetime" thing, and I think they are doing just that.

Personally, I like the new format.  In years past, with rounds 1-3 on Saturday and 4-7 on Sunday, it was pretty cut and dry.  I like the new format for several reasons.  I will share them after the jump.

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This is my 2nd post in as many minutes, but I just thought of this reading the "Devious Minds" post.  The Dolphins traded away their 2011 2nd round pick, but what if there is a lockout in 2011?  A few questions come to mind about that:

1. What happens to NCAA players whose senior year is 2010?  Do they just have to wait until 2012 for the draft?  That would create some interesting scenarios for a 2012 draft.  You would have senior from 2010, seniors from 2011, juniors from 2011 and redshirt sophomores from 2011.  Talk about stacked.

2. What happens to traded picks for the 2011 draft?  As I said above, the Fins traded away their 2011 2nd rounder, so if there is a lockout, does that traded pick just not matter?  Or will they still draft in 2011, but just not play the season?

The latest news is that the two sides are "far apart" on negotiations, and all things point to no deal being made.  I think neither side should want that, because it is billions of dollars lost. It would also alienate a lot of the fans.  People are losing their jobs, homes and savings and having their lives ruined right now.  A lot of people like the NFL because it is an escape from their lives and they can be entertained for a few hours.  I believe a lot of us will be pissed if they cancel the season because multi-millionaires and billionaires are squabbling over money.

Let's say the Rams want to trade out of the #1 spot b/c they don't want to invest the money.  Or the Bucs would want to trade out of #3 because they have no money right now.  Why can't they just swap with like Tennessee at #16, or Arizona at #26?  Does the lower team HAVE to throw in a 2nd or 3rd round pick in order to move up?  Or can one team say "we don't want to pick at #3, let's just swap 1st rounders."  And the other team say, "we don't care about dropping $50m on a player, we will swap our #15 for your #3 straight up."

I know the league has to approve the trades, but if a team really badly wants to get out of a top pick, why can't they just agree on a trade with another team.  Nobody is having their feet held to the fire if they both agree on a swap.

What do you guys think?

The only reasoning I can think of, is that it would let the richer teams constantly trade up into the top 5 to get the top talent regardless of the millions invested.  I assume that having to throw in a 2nd or more keeps parity.

As we all know, when a player is traded to another team, they usually like to wear their same number if it is available.  If it is not available, the better player (or big Trade/FA signing) usually gets it (ie Donovan getting #5 from Colt Brennan).

The question is, who gets #15?  It's not like Davone is some nobody.  Granted, I assume not too many people outside Dolphin nation, ESPN and NLFN know who he is, but he is a good WR.  So, what does everyone think?  Bess keeps it?  Marshall gets it?  Vote below.

I have read various summaries and whatnot regarding the uncapped year, but I haven't seen an answer to my question.  What happens to new contracts?  For example, let's say that in FA this offseason the Dolphins sign a player to a 5 year $20m deal.  How does the uncapped year affect his deal?  Would only 2010 count as being uncapped, so maybe they won't backload his deal?  Or would they front load the deal so that they have a player that is relatively cheap in future years when there will be a cap?

Thanks for the responses.

What about cutting Gibril and moving Will Allen to Free Safety?  Will is a little smaller than both Gibril and Yeremiah.  He is only 5'10" and 196 vs 6'0" and 205 for both Bell and Wilson. Chris Clemons is 6'1" and 210.  I'm not too knowledgeable about the nuances of CB vs FS vs SS, but Allen did run a 4.29 and has very good pass coverage skills.  And I know that FS must be a little smaller and faster than SS.  Do you think this is a viable option?

I was looking at the updated standings on nfl.com and noticed that overall, the Dolphins are not that bad on offense, but very bad on defense.

You can look at stats anyway that you want to.  If given enough time to research information, I can make any player in the league #1 at their position based upon creative statistics.  The only ones that truly matter are points scored and points allowed.  If you score more points, you win.  If you score fewer points, you lose.  Nobody remembers that some QB was 70% on 3rd down conversions 4 years ago.  All they remember is "oh yeah, didn't they go 5-11that year?"

On offense, the Dolphins have scored 256 points this season.  That puts us in 12th place in the league (Saints and Pats play tonight, but since they are 1st and 7th in the league respectively, it won't affect our ranking).  The teams ahead of us are the Saints, Vikings, Chargers, Colts, Packers, Eagles, Pats, Falcons, Giants, Cardinals and Texans.  That's not too shabby.  For us losing our starting QB and RB and having no #1 receiver and relying on essentially a rookie QB, a 32 year old RB, a receiver coming off an ACL injury, a 2nd year UDFA receiver and a rookie receiver that is showing a ton of promise, that is actually pretty darn impressive.

Now let's look at defense.  The Dolphins have given up 275 points.  That is 7th worst in the league, or 26th best., however you want to look at it.  The only teams that have given up more are the Lions, Bucs, Rams, Titans, Chiefs and Browns.  Those 6 teams are a shocking 13-53.  I think we have a pretty stout front 7.  I also feel that we have a lot of potential in our secondary.  However, quite simply our defense is playing like shit this year.  We give up way too many points.

Thoughts/comments?

In the only stat that matters, wins and losses, the Jets over the last 5 weeks are tied for 2nd worst team in the league.  As we all like to point out, the Jets are 1-4 in their last 5 games after starting out 3-0.  After their improbable 3-0 start, everyone was rushing to crown Sanchise as the next coming of Jesus, Ryan as an absolute cocky genius, and the Jets defense as the greatest since the '85 Bears.  Even now that they are decidedly mediocre, they still talk shit like they are going to run the table this season and go to the playoffs.

After that start, they absolutely crumbled.  They went 1-4 and their only win was against the Raiders in a blowout.  Whoop-diddy-doo.  The Raiders are abysmal.  So, this got me thinking about NFL teams and their records over the last 5 games.  I looked on nfl.com and checked it out.  Let's see what kind of company the Jets are in.

The only team with a worse record is the Buccaneers who have gone 0-5 in the last 5 games.  The teams that are 1-4 in the last 5 games are the Jets, Browns, Titans, Raiders, Chiefs, Redskins, Lions, 49ers, Seahawks and Rams.  Oh yeah, that is an elite group Jets fans!  Playoffs here you come.  These teams combine for a season record of 18-63.

Keep talking shit Jets.  You are on the downward spiral while the Fins are going up.  We will be passing you next week.

I stumbled across this article where Rex is talking about the upcoming game.  Shockingly, outside of the first comment, he is not a total dickhead.  He almost compliments Henne, Ronnie and Ricky.  Of course, the Jets focus on the first comment where he makes it seem like we are crying that Will Allen is out.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/sfl-dolphins-jet-rex-allen-102809,0,6295017.story?track=rss

We need to give them hell this weekend.  I'm glad it's a 1:00 game so we don't have to wait the extra few hours.  I think after that letdown loss last week, the defense is going to give Sanchise hell.

Curious as to how Mr. Ginn averages in games, I got his stats and did a little math to come to per game averages of him compared to our receivers and other receivers around the league.

Tedd Ginn has 108 receptions for 1421 yards and 5 touchdowns in his career.  Over 2 full seasons plus these first 6 games, that comes to 2.8 receptions for 37 yards per game.  And a touchdown every 7 or 8 games.

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I was a tad bored today, so I started looking up Dolphins players and their rankings on Pro Football Focus.  I was pleasantly surprised by a few, and a little disheartened by some others.  Here is a sample:

Henne - T 20th

R. Brown -8th   R. Williams - 2nd

L. Polite - 1st

D. Bess - T 10th   G. Camarillo - 36th     T. Ginn - 64th

A. Fasano 4th

J. Long - 18th, saddened by that.

Sean Smith - 9th!     V. Davis - T 33rd

R. Starks - 3rd     K. Langford - 5th     P. Merling - T 10th   Studly DEs!!!!!

Head over to check out the others if you're interested.  http://www.profootballfocus.com/home.php?tab=home

Hello everyone!  I am a Dolphin fan and a member of the Phinsider, the Dolphin SBNation blog. 

First let me say that I like the Saints.  I have watched many of their games over the last 5 or 6 years and the fans seem great.  Not cocky like other teams, they just like to party.  Obviously I am a fan of that.  I am also a giant fan of the city of New Orleans.  I just made my first trip out there 2 weekends ago for the Florida/LSU game.  That city is wonderful, the bars are outrageous and the food is fantastic.  Court of Two Sisters and Stanley's is amazing. My friends and I are making that a mandatory trip every 2 years from here on out.

Now on to the game.  I think this game will be close.  Obviously our running attack is #1, and our run defense is very stout as well.  Our pass defense lacks a little, but that can be attributed in part to our linebackers not being too hot in coverage.  The safeties are expected to make a lot of plays.  When the Dolphins shut down the running game, I see this as a big passing game for Brees.  It will test our young secondary a lot.  Sean Smith is doing quite well and Vontae Davis has made some big plays, but also some big rookie mistakes.  I think Brees' passing attack will be limited, however, due to our offense keeping them off the field. 

This has the air of the Colts game all over again.  The Dolphins controlled the ball for 75% of the game, but still lost due to surrendering too many big plays in Manning's limited time on the field.  Our play calling also got conservative in the Red Zone leading to settling for field goals.  You can't beat Peyton Manning by kicking field goals, and I don't think you can beat the Saints by kicking field goals.

My prediction is that the Dolphins mirror what they have done the last few weeks with the playcalling and get aggressive.  Our offense tires the Saints D by keeping them on the field (and hopefully Henne makes good decisions and Darren Sharper doesn't have a field day).  Brees makes big plays while he is in, but we are able to match him touchdown for touchdown instead of field goal for touchdown.  Saints don't keep their streak of 14 point wins. I think this is a letdown game for the Saints after their big start, whereas the Dolphins are getting on a roll with Henne 2 games deep as a starter.

Dolphins win 31-28

Please post comments and predictions below!

Apparently Steve Smith feels as if he is no longer an asset to the Carolina Panthers.  Jake Delhomme is simply not getting it done right now.  Any chance the FO makes a play for Steve Smith before the deadline tomorrow?  He would give us more value than Thigpen (even though I like Thigpen, he doesn't do anything for us holding clipboards).  Read the article on the link below.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/274688-thats-a-wrap-folks-the-panthers-need-to-trade-steve-smith

I never go to other blogs much.  However, I have been on GGN several times since last Monday night just to rub it in a little.  One of the things I love about the Phinsider is the constant posts, fanshots, and commenting that is done.  GGN has old ass posts and few comments.  My routine in the morning once I get to work is to read all the new posts on the Phinsider.  I really like that Matty has at least one new one every day.  I would hate to be a part of a blog that had new posts only every few days.

Over at GGN, there are several Fanposts that are still up from after the game last week for Pete's sake!!  We hardly have fanposts stay on the FP for more than a day!

So here's to Matty and to all of us members that make this the best blog on SB Nation.  And here's to being better than the jets at one more thing!

I got to thinking about some of our players and their contracts.  Our last 2 drafts are appearing to be quite special compared to the last decade or so.  The FO has produced several starters in the 2nd round and beyond.  To get starters, or at least important contributors, at such a great value is simply amazing and is a long way from where we have come with previous regimes.

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Okay, it is the bye week and I am bored at work.  It is just myself and the receptionist today, so that means I have a full day of Dolphins articles and news to read.

This post is not particularly important, but it is the bye week, so anything related to Dolphin football is good for the soul.  Something that I have wondered ever since I saw him on the field, is what kind of helmet does Pat White use?  Most people may not have noticed, but I have a keen eye for observation and his helmet is different than others I have seen.  I am also an engineer, so stuff like this intrigues me.

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I will have to rewatch the game to see when it happened, but on one of the plays where Pennington looked a little shaken up in the pocket and dumped the ball out to the flat, the replay showed a very wide open receiver.  Hartline was on a slant or skinny post route and the replay was from behind Pennington.  You could see the linebacker shift and move to the sideline and the safety over Hartline was moving in the same direction.  This left Hartline in the middle about 30 yards downfield with nobody within 10-15 yards in any direction. 

He was clearly in Pennington's line of sight, it just looked like he was scared to make the deep throw.  But even with a "weak" arm, you still need to make that throw.

Also, I liked that on the last 3 or 4 plays, Pennington was throwing deep.  I don't like that the 2 minute drill was crap, and I don't like that Miami waited until the last 3 or 4 plays to go downfield, but it was nice to see a deep ball.  I really wish that they would go 30-40 yards downfield a few times throughout the game.

Well, anyway, all I wanted to say is that it was shocking to see some open receivers and Pennington not taking chances.  It seems like he will only go deep when it is called and he is too scared to make the read and improvise a deep ball when the opportunity presents itself.  I still want him to be our QB, but I would like to see some balls.