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Dolphins News: Panthers Get Gilbert
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Dolphins News: Panthers Get Gilbert
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*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***
Mar 25, 1998: -- Panthers Get Gilbert --

** Gilbert Agrees to Deal with Panthers According to reports on the news wires, Redskins' defensive tackle Sean Gilbert has agreed to a deal with the Carolina Panthers that would make him the highest paid defensive lineman in the league. Reports vary, but the deal appears to be worth more than the deals given to Warren Sapp in Tampa and John Randle of the Vikings.

Gilbert is getting a 6 or 7 year deal worth as much as $45.5 million which includes a $10 million signing bonus. This offer was too rich for the Dolphins and they dropped out of the bidding for Gilbert after the Panthers made their winning offer.

Any deal for Gilbert is contingent upon the Panthers and Redskins working out a suitable trade. Since the special master ruled against Gilbert in his bid to become an unrestricted free agent, the Redskins still own the rights to Gilbert and he still carries the franchise designation. This means that the Redskins could be entitled to as much as 2 first round picks for Gilbert, if they choose to force the issue with the Panthers.

The reported compensation that the Redskins are asking for includes two draft picks this year and possibly one next year. This year, they want a first and a third round pick and next year, they want a second or third round pick.

** McPhail and Brent Smith to change positions

The Dolphins also announced yesterday that running back Jerris McPhail will move to wide receiver and offensive lineman Brent Smith will go to left guard and compete with Jeff Buckey for the starting position.

McPhail has been the designated third down back for the past 2 years, but with the new offensive scheme, the third down back will be used far less this year. Because of McPhail's inconsistent play at running back and his blazing speed, he will be moved to wide receiver to try and give the Dolphins more speed at that position.

Brent Smith had been listed as a tackle for the Dolphins, but when the re-signing of James Brown solidified the right tackle spot, the weakest position on the Dolphins line became the left guard. Smith didn't play a down in regular season competition last year, but has been praised by JJ in the off-season for his aggressiveness.

The new offensive scheme will feature far fewer shotgun formations and 4 wide receiver sets. Tight end Troy Drayton can expect to be on the field a lot more, especially in third down situations, where the Dolphins will no longer automatically go to an obvious passing set. Also, the starting running back will play a lot more as the third down back, thus reducing the need for a designated third down back.

** Yatil Green is 90% Healthy

According to this morning's Miami Herald, Yatil Green's recovery is on track and he's back to 90% of his original strength and speed. He is expected to be back running at full speed in time for the first mini-camp of the year.

** Two Pre-Season Games Scheduled for National TV

Two of the Dolphins' pre-season games were announced yesterday, due to their appearance on national TV. They will play at 8 p.m. on Aug. 13 versus visiting Tampa Bay and at 4 p.m. on Aug. 23 at San Francisco. The Tampa Bay game will be on ESPN and the Aug 23rd game will appear on Fox.

My Comments:

Gilbert is getting an outrageous amount of money and is not worth the price. I originally thought that Gilbert might be worth the $6 million per year price tag and perhaps even a first round draft pick, but now that the price has gone up to $7 million a year, the Dolphins are smart to drop out of the race for his services.

Bob Ackles said yesterday that this isn't free agency - "it's an auction".

Of course, the deal could still be screwed up if Carolina and Washington can't come to some agreement on a compensation package for Gilbert, but it's hard to imagine that the Panthers will balk at giving up 2 or 3 draft picks after they've spent $7 million a year for Gilbert.

It's completely ridiculous that a player like Gilbert is getting more money than a guy like John Randle. After all, who would you rather have on your team?

On the position changes, it was pretty predictable that Brent Smith would move to left guard. JJ has been pretty much broadcasting that move since the beginning of free agency. If Smith is as aggressive as JJ says he is, then the move is a good idea. However, Smith still hasn't played a single down in regular season competition and it remains to be seen if he will be able to unseat Jeff Buckey for the starting spot.

Jerris McPhail has been a real on-again, off-again player for the team. His best game was last year against the Bears when he had 2 touchdowns, including his 71 yard touchdown run from scrimmage. But he has also completely disappeared in some games and has been known to drop a few passes in critical situations.

Basically, this is McPhail's last chance to prove he belongs on the team. He knows it, too. With his speed, he could be a very dangerous receiver if he can learn to catch the ball. However, if he keeps dropping the ball as often as he did last year, then he won't make it through the end of this season.

The reports on Yatil Green have been mixed ever since he had his surgery last summer. At first, it was reported that he had been healing much faster than expected and could have even played a little last year. Lately, however, his recovery seems to either have slowed or was not as fast as was initially reported. He is running hard in rehabilitation, but he is clearly not back to full speed yet. It will be interesting to see what happens to him in the first mini-camp.

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Curt Fennell, curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
     
   

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Curt Fennell
curt@phins.com
DOLFAN in New England