Early Predictions for Miami Dolphins' 2015 Training Camp Battles
With the 2015 season right around the corner, the spotlight turns to the many training camp battles that will take place across the Miami Dolphins roster. These battles will shape the outcome of the Dolphins' season, for better or worse.
There are some positions where the starters are already cast in stone. The starting defensive ends will be Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon; the starting offensive tackles will be Branden Albert and Ja'Wuan James. But what about at cornerback, defensive tackle, running back, guard and linebacker?
There are significant question marks at each of those positions, whether it's pertaining to the starters or the backups. Fortunately for the Dolphins, their coaching staff has the next three-plus months to get their stuff together and make decisions on these key roster battles. Unfortunately, the decisions are never easy.
Guard
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Despite what Brian Fantana would have you believe, 60 percent of the time does not work every time.
The Dolphins have three-fifths of a starting offensive line, between their two tackles (Branden Albert and Ja'Wuan James) and their center (Mike Pouncey), but the two guard spots are still up for grabs.
Between Dallas Thomas, Billy Turner and rookie Jamil Douglas, the Dolphins have several potential starting options to pair on the inside of the offensive line. Douglas may be a rookie, but he has the skill set to plug-and-play in the Dolphins' zone-blocking scheme, with the quickness and open-field blocking ability that head coach Joe Philbin needs from a guard—and has needed since he joined the Dolphins in 2012.
Douglas will have to earn his keep in a competition with Thomas and Turner, two college tackles who have made the switch to guard since entering the NFL in 2013 and 2014, respectively. That being said, Douglas looks like the best fit of the three, so he should be a front-runner for one spot. Thomas and Turner should be duking it out for the other spot.
Thomas has been given a chance to start in the past, but has not played well enough to justify continued opportunities. If he can outperform Turner in training camp, he should be the winner. For now, though, Turner looks like the better option of the two.
Winners: Jamil Douglas, Billy Turner
Cornerback
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In this battle, it's Brent Grimes and a cloud of dust. It remains very uncertain who will emerge from the Dolphins' competition at cornerback, with so many possibilities and so few opportunities: Jamar Taylor, Will Davis, Walt Aikens, Brice McCain, Zack Bowman, Bobby McCain and Tony Lippett will compete.
Only two of those six players will walk away from the competition with significant playing time in their future.
Taylor was a second-round pick in 2013, and with two years in the league, the Dolphins front office seems determined to push him into his best offseason yet. The Dolphins already added four cornerbacks this offseason: two free agents (Bowman and Brice McCain) and two rookie draft picks (Bobby McCain and Lippett).
Taylor has more potential than most of the cornerbacks the Dolphins have added this offseason, but he still has to show an ability to realize that full potential. He played only 299 snaps last year and allowed 67.3 percent completions and a 93.6 passer rating on throws into his coverage. That won't cut it if he wants to win a starting job.
One spot already belongs to Grimes. The slot position is Brice McCain's to lose. The final boundary spot is where the competition will get hot, and if Taylor has a solid summer workout program, he could cool off the battle in a hurry.
Winners: Brent Grimes, Jamar Taylor, Brice McCain
Defensive Tackle
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When you pay someone $60 million in guaranteed money, you'd better know for sure that he will be starting every game and playing almost every snap. There's no fear of that not being the case with Ndamukong Suh, so you can go ahead and carve him into stone as one of the starting defensive tackles.
It's the other spot that's still surrounded in more question marks than Edward Nygma.
Will it be Jordan Phillips, the 2015 second-round draft pick out of Oklahoma? Will it be Earl Mitchell, the sixth-year pro who signed with the Dolphins just last year?
To this stage in his career, Mitchell has never been more than a rotational player. He maxed out at 553 snaps in the 2013 season with the Houston Texans, and he earned only 543 snaps for the Dolphins in 2014.
On the other hand, Phillips has much to learn, and CBS Sports' Rob Rang indicates that Phillips "is not yet the sum of his parts" and that a problematic back threatens to shorten his career.
The truth is that neither Phillips nor Mitchell is going to play a vast majority of the snaps; whichever one is not the starter will get his fair share of opportunities coming off the bench. Undrafted rookie Ellis McCarthy also offers plenty of upside and should factor into the rotation as well, although primarily as a run-stuffer. For now, though, the rookie with more upside should be considered the leader.
Winner: Jordan Phillips
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Linebacker
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Sometimes, there's addition. Other times, there's addition by subtraction.
The Dolphins have gutted their roster at several positions, but the one position where they made the most cuts and the fewest (noteworthy) additions is at linebacker. If that's not a sign that the Dolphins coaching staff has confidence in their current roster, then money does indeed grow on trees and pigs do indeed fly.
Dannell Ellerbe and Philip Wheeler are gone, and Dion Jordan is suspended. That leaves Koa Misi, Jelani Jenkins and Chris McCain as the most likely starters at the linebacker position. That being said, that doesn't mean it shouldn't be open season for the three starting spots.
One starting spot is stitched up, but it's unclear which spot that will be. Misi is capable of lining up almost anywhere the Dolphins would ask him to; he played 3-4 outside linebacker under Tony Sparano and then 4-3 strong-side linebacker in 2012 and 2013 under Philbin before moving to the middle in 2014.
The Dolphins could ask him to play any number of spots, depending on how the rest of the camp battles shake out. Kelvin Sheppard could factor into the mix, but he's been primarily a thumping 4-3 inside linebacker throughout his short career; Chris McCain will also be in the mix, but he would most closely approximate Dion Jordan's versatile outside linebacker/defensive end role in the Dolphins' 4-3.
The reason the word "noteworthy" is in parentheses above is because the Dolphins added three undrafted free agents to the roster, and between Neville Hewitt, Jeff Luc and Mike Hull, there's probably going to be at least one unheralded linebacker making plays for the Dolphins defense in 2015.
For now, though, the front-runners at the linebacker position are clear.
Winners: Jelani Jenkins (WLB), Koa Misi (MLB), Chris McCain (OLB)
Running Back
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The competition at running back is similar to some of the other competitions on the Dolphins roster. The top spot is pretty much nailed down by veteran Lamar Miller. Although rookie running back Jay Ajayi might make a run for it (no pun intended) during training camp, Miller knows the system and has performed well in it.
With Miller and Ajayi clearly installed as the top two running backs on the depth chart, the question then becomes: Who backs them up? Damien Williams, Mike Gillislee and LaMichael James all share a similar skill set to Miller with their ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, get into open spaces and turn on the burners.
Williams was the third-leading back on the team in rush attempts and rushing yards last year, but with only 36 carries for 122 yards (3.4 YPA), the Dolphins have hardly invested in Williams' development. James offers the most upside of the three with regard to special teams, with 23 career punt returns for 251 yards (10.9 YPR) and 26 kick returns for 738 yards (28.4 yards per return).
The Dolphins will probably carry four running backs, which could be bad news for Gillislee.
Winners: Damien Williams, LaMichael James
Unless otherwise noted, all advanced statistics obtained via Pro Football Focus.
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