Just by staying status quo, we are improved on the OL. Alberts return will get us to a pretty good running game (top 10) and a mediocre pass blocking team. If we have injuries, we will be once again...screwed.

There are high hopes for Billy Turner to start at RG but as of now, that's all they are....he had 0 snaps to prove anything last year.

Ja'Waun James returns to RT. He should NEVER play LT again, IMO. James allowed 6 sacks and 58 total pressures in 611 passing plays. That consists of QB hurries, hits and sacks. He led the NFL. It was a tall order for a rookie to switch positions in week 9 and man a position he has never played. This was a bad coaching decision, IMO.

I think Jason Fox should have slid into the LT spot. He ending up playing 57 snaps (2 games) at LT and 161 snaps at RT over the course of 4 1/2 games. He was not great but did not allow a sack.

Same goes for Dallas Thomas at any other position BUT RG. If he does not improve, he should be a backup.

At right tackle, James was pretty good in the running game but was a work in progress in the pass protection. He allowed 26 total pressures and 2 sacks. Not great but everyone could see he was decent for the most part. A definite upgrade from 2013. He seems to be the right kind of player. Good work ethic, smart, etc. He should be able to continue his development and become a solid RT. There is also a small chance he will regress or just not improve.

This is why I think it is important to draft someone who can play tackle or guard. (Sorry if I am beating this into the ground).

Is it possible to land someone like that in the 2nd round? Maybe. 4th round? Highly unlikely.

Tackle prospects who can play tackle or guard in a zone blocking scheme (and fit size/speed requirements).....

La'el Collins
Brandon Scherff
DJ Humphries
Cameron Erving (also center)

RT or LT prospects....

Ereck Flowers
Andrus Peat

RT, LT (or guard) prospects who may need seasoning.....

Jake Fisher
TJ Clemmings

Every one of those (above) players will be gone by pick 47.

2nd round guard only prospects.....

Ali Marpet, Tre Jackson, Laken Tomlinson

Jackson and Tomlinson don't really fit the Dolphins profile for linemen...6-4 to 6-6 and 315 lbs. They are 330+ but they did bring in Jackson (and Marpet) for a visit.

The rest are 3rd or later prospect by most accounts. We have no 3rd round pick.

The reasons we need a versatile lineman....

1. In case Albert misses the start of the season
2. In case Albert or James gets hurt.
3. In case James struggles

So we basically have to draft one in the first round or take a wild shot in the dark and hope we get lucky in round 4. The good news is we may be able to trade down 2-5 spots and still get one of those G/T prospects.

LT Albert
LG La'el Collins or Scherff
C Pouncey
RT Turner/Thomas
RT James/Collins

That line would do wonders for Tannehill, the deep passing game and our running game, IMO.

The FO has a very tough decision on their hands. Last night on PTD the majority decision was that if the top 3 WR's are gone and the choice is between one of those linemen or Trae Waynes, the best choice is Trae Waynes. Charles Davis believes you have to score points and he would take Breshad Perriman over Waynes if Devante Parker was gone.

I've always considered the O and D lines to be the foundation of a team. Without consistant talent and play from both, a team can't do much but win in flashes. The consistant, perennial playoff teams always have solid, deep lines. The old saying is right. The war is won in the trenches.

That being said, I have mixed feelings about using a first round pick on an OL. We have a passable squad now, nothing to write home about, but servicable for the year with Albert coming back(hopefully for week 1).

...passable UNTIL an injury strikes (and it will), then we are top 3 in the league for sacks allowed again. Sooner or later Tannehill is going to get hurt and then we are in for a long and boring season. He took some heavy hits over the last couple of years. Hits I have seen end seasons for a lot of QB's.

It depends on your evaluations and where you think you can find a gem or a hidden star. If you see two or three guys that can start day one....you think may be around at 47, then wait on the OL until then.

Dallas was 8-8 for 3 years with a franchise QB, RB & WR. It wasn't until they fixed the line that they won a play-off game. They didn't just fix it, they became elite by putting one last piece in place. We aren't far from that right now so why not finish it? We need to knock 20 sacks from last year off the total in 2015 (46 to 26).

IMO, the only shot we have of competing in our division is to solidify our lines. NY and Buf have two of the best d-lines around and being able to run the ball in crunch time is never a bad thing when you play Tom Brady. It could help us turn the corner considering we now have major pressure up the middle AND on the edge on defense.

JoeFootball Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...passable UNTIL an injury strikes (and it will),
> then we are top 3 in the league for sacks allowed
> again. Sooner or later Tannehill is going to get
> hurt and then we are in for a long and boring
> season. He took some heavy hits over the last
> couple of years. Hits I have seen end seasons for
> a lot of QB's.
>
> It depends on your evaluations and where you think
> you can find a gem or a hidden star. If you see
> two or three guys that can start day one....you
> think may be around at 47, then wait on the OL
> until then.
>
> Dallas was 8-8 for 3 years with a franchise QB, RB
> & WR. It wasn't until they fixed the line that
> they won a play-off game. They didn't just fix it,
> they became elite by putting one last piece in
> place. We aren't far from that right now so why
> not finish it? We need to knock 20 sacks from last
> year off the total in 2015 (46 to 26).
>
> IMO, the only shot we have of competing in our
> division is to solidify our lines. NY and Buf have
> two of the best d-lines around and being able to
> run the ball in crunch time is never a bad thing
> when you play Tom Brady. It could help us turn the
> corner considering we now have major pressure up
> the middle AND on the edge on defense.

********************************************************

You are correct, Joe..."UNTIL an injury strikes."

I have seen many posts that say our OL is good enough. I don't see it. Our tackles are good, as long as Albert is able to come back and play at the level he did prior to his knee. James is good enough on the right side. Pouncey is set at center.

Our guard situation is not even close to being solved. The guys coming back have proven absolutely nothing, and the guys Miami has brought in so far (and signed) are camp fodder.

So, we have three out of the five offensive line positions set. If Miami doesn't solidify the guards, as you said, Joe, RT may not make it through the season.

JoeFootball Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Ja'Waun James returns to RT. He should NEVER play
> LT again, IMO. James allowed 6 sacks and 58 total
> pressures in 611 passing plays. That consists of
> QB hurries, hits and sacks. He led the NFL. It was
> a tall order for a rookie to switch positions in
> week 9 and man a position he has never played.
> This was a bad coaching decision, IMO.


Philbin and his crew have made a lot of bad coaching decisions when it comes to who to play and where to play them. Dallas Thomas sucked, yet Philbin kept playing him. There were other O-Linemen on the roster that probably would have been an improvement over Thomas, but the coaching staff were too stubborn to even give them a try.

IMO, it won't matter who gets added to the team; as long as Philbin is in charge they are going nowhere!

gofins60 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> JoeFootball Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Ja'Waun James returns to RT. He should NEVER
> play
> > LT again, IMO. James allowed 6 sacks and 58
> total
> > pressures in 611 passing plays. That consists
> of
> > QB hurries, hits and sacks. He led the NFL. It
> was
> > a tall order for a rookie to switch positions
> in
> > week 9 and man a position he has never played.
> > This was a bad coaching decision, IMO.
>
>
> Philbin and his crew have made a lot of bad
> coaching decisions when it comes to who to play
> and where to play them. Dallas Thomas sucked, yet
> Philbin kept playing him. There were other
> O-Linemen on the roster that probably would have
> been an improvement over Thomas, but the coaching
> staff were too stubborn to even give them a try.
>
> IMO, it won't matter who gets added to the team;
> as long as Philbin is in charge they are going
> nowhere!

Opinions like this basically make me discount any further posts you make. It doesn't matter if we add elite talent, we will fail because of philbin? Are you serious?

Listen Chicken Little, I get passionate about the Phins and pissed off when they do poorly, but that's probably one of the most ignorant opinions I've read on this board in the six years I've been here.

I refuse to put down the stick and I refuse to stop pounding.

But it WAS for the benefit of Odenn who has not been around in a while.

Agreed. We have to add some help at OG, whether it's through the draft, free agency, or both. Gambling on Dallas Thomas and Billy Turner is like playing with fire while standing in a kiddie pool full of gasoline, holding a golf club overhead, during a lightning storm, poised on the edge of a sheer precipice with a 30,000 ft drop to a valley full of jagged rocks, shards of broken glass, a ton of old rusty nails, and a pack of hungry alligators.

La'el Collins (or Scherff) at 14 and a WR (Agholor) in round two would have a huge impact on this team, IMO.

Chyren, maybe I wasn't concise in what I was trying to say. There is no doubt Philbin has cost this team games. I agree with that sentiment. However, in a general statement, to say that it doesn't matter what talent improvements we make, we won't be a better team because of the head coach is illogical and just plain wrong. I'm speaking more in a general sense than in terms of just the dolphins. I see a team as an equation. Front office plus coaches plus players equals product. If you increase the equation in any of those three areas, the product improves.

I agree with what you say, Odenn. But if there are decisions, like Philbin deciding to throw passes when we need to run to get in field goal range in order to go into overtime and then leaving the kicker just on the outer edge of his ability to kick and then losing the game because of it........................

basically what I'm saying is that Philbin could probably take the 1972 Dolphin team and not only spoil the perfect season but we might have been in danger of NOT making the playoffs at all.

The dude needs to be gone. Only Ross's personal liking of him has kept him on so far.

Definitely duct tape.

I confess to the offense of beating the dead horse but plead not guilty as to the hijacking charge.