Winners and Losers of Miami Dolphins' Offseason so Far
For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction.
Sir Isaac Newton was talking about physics, but he could have just as easily been talking about NFL offseason moves—if the NFL had existed back in the 17th and 18th centuries.
With each offseason move the Miami Dolphins made, they impacted their roster in one way or another. Some additions were good news for some players; other additions were bad news for other players.
Now that the Dolphins have begun the long journey from June minicamp to the regular season, now is as good a time as any to reassess who are the winners and losers heading into 2015.
Winner: Ryan Tannehill
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Quarterback Ryan Tannehill could be viewed as a winner if only for his shiny new contract extension, which gives him $21.5 million fully guaranteed, according to Over the Cap.
However, with a bevy of new weaponry at his disposal, Tannehill is a winner in more ways than one. Now, instead of an aging and undersized group of pass-catchers, Tannehill is surrounded by young and athletic fresh faces who can open up the playbook for the Dolphins offense in ways last year's group could not.
Gone are Mike Wallace, Brian Hartline and Brandon Gibson, who made way for the arrivals of former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kenny Stills and first-round draft pick DeVante Parker.
Stills' experience with Saints quarterback Drew Brees could be invaluable, as he can help impart some of Brees' wisdom on Tannehill. As for Parker, at 6'3" and 217 pounds, the Louisville product has the size the Dolphins have lacked on the outside, with an ability to run deep and make contested catches and win jump balls. He's the first receiver in that mold since Brandon Marshall left the fold.
And the Dolphins' offense figures to be much better off for it.
The Dolphins also added tight end Jordan Cameron to replace the departed Charles Clay, and with Cameron's superior size and athleticism, the offense shouldn't miss a beat as long as he quickly picks up the play.
Loser: Dallas Thomas
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Two years ago, the Dolphins were getting ready to field one of the worst offensive lines in team history. Ryan Tannehill was sacked a team-record 58 times. He has been sacked 104 times over the past two seasons, which is more than any other quarterback in the NFL.
Two years later, they have almost completely overhauled the group, which means moving on from some of their unsuccessful draft picks and free-agent signings. Dallas Thomas has managed to stick around, and the former Tennessee tackle could still earn a starting spot, but he will have to earn it.
The Dolphins selected Jamil Douglas in the fourth round of April's draft, and while a mid-round pick is not a lock to dethrone a former starter, Thomas hasn't exactly put a stranglehold on his job.
He has had two years to put such a claim on the job, but he was beaten out by Daryn Colledge in 2014 after spending much of his rookie season (2013) on the bench. Thomas allowed seven sacks at right tackle last season, according to Pro Football Focus, and although he didn't allow any sacks at guard, he simply hasn't shown the consistency to warrant a spot.
Douglas has the skill set to justify heavy consideration as a rookie starter on the offensive line, and unless Thomas has a strong offseason, he could be watching the games from the bench in 2015.
Winner: Cameron Wake
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Getting back to Newton's laws of motion for a minute, those rules may be even more visible in one particular instance on the defensive line. The Dolphins signed defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, one of the best players in the game at his position and a player who undoubtedly affects a team's strategy and game plan.
As a result, teams will have to give him the respect he deserves by shifting multiple blockers in his direction. That's the action.
The reaction is that there are then fewer blockers to go around for the rest of the pass-rushers. That's good news for Cameron Wake, who has been the source of much of the attention from opposing offensive lines in his time in Miami.
In his six-year NFL career, Wake has alternated seasons with 11 sacks or more—14 in 2010, 15 in 2012, 11.5 in 2014—but with Suh lining up next to him in 2015, Wake could reach the quarterback plenty of times.
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Loser: Rishard Matthews
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Wide receiver Rishard Matthews went from offseason winner to loser within a couple of months. With the departures of Wallace, Hartline and Gibson, the Dolphins appeared ready to give Matthews a bigger role than he's had in the past.
That appearance proved to be nothing more than an optical illusion once the Dolphins traded for Stills, signed free-agent Greg Jennings and drafted Parker in the first round.
Matthews has taken advantage of some of his opportunities in practice, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald, but there have been reports over the years that Matthews and the Dolphins' coaching staff have never gotten along. Any chances Matthews has right now will probably be the height of his opportunities for a while if Stills, Jarvis Landry, Parker and Jennings have anything to say about it.
Matthews has had some time to prove himself, but those minutes appear to be dwindling as the Dolphins add more and more talent at the wide receiver spot.
Winner: Jelani Jenkins
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There aren't many greater votes of confidence a team can give a player than to move on from the starter at their position without finding a true replacement. That typically signals an opportunity for a bigger role for a former backup.
That's the case for linebacker Jelani Jenkins, who got his first opportunity as a starter in the Dolphins defense last year when Dannell Ellerbe went down with a season-ending injury in Week 1. From that point, Jenkins started 14 games at linebacker and played a whopping 912 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.
Jenkins was not only asked to play a bigger role in terms of the volume of his playing time but also in his responsibilities; he was often the one calling the signals for the Dolphins defense, making checks at the line of scrimmage and helping to get his teammates set up in the right spot.
It appears he will be asked to resume that tremendous responsibility in 2015.
Loser: Jamar Taylor
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By most accounts, including that of Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, third-year cornerback Jamar Taylor remains a favorite to start in the Dolphins secondary at the cornerback spot opposite Brent Grimes.
Why, then, would Taylor be classified as a loser?
Simple: The Dolphins have put him on notice that if he doesn't take the next step in becoming a reliable starting cornerback, he could be replaced at the snap of a finger. With the additions of Zackary Bowman, Brice McCain and Bobby McCain, as well as the return of young veterans Will Davis and Walt Aikens, the Dolphins have more than enough backup options who could step in if Taylor doesn't step up.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tyalor has yielded completions on 37 of the 53 throws into his coverage (69.8 percent) since entering the NFL in 2013. He'll have to do better than that in 2015 if he wants to maintain his role as a starter.
Winner: Jamil Douglas
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With Branden Albert and Ja'Wuan James at the tackle spots and Mike Pouncey solidified as the starting center, the Dolphins are about 60 percent of the way to a complete offensive line. But unlike what Brian Fantana might tell you, 60 percent of the time does not work every time.
The Dolphins knew that, which is why they drafted Arizona State guard Jamil Douglas. The 6'4", 304-pound guard has all the skills the Dolphins need and didn't have in terms of a perfect fit for their zone-blocking scheme. He can block out in space, he can combo-block and has the athleticism to make up for his lack of pure power.
The Dolphins could feasibly insert Douglas into the starting lineup as a rookie, which would not bode well for veterans Dallas Thomas and Billy Turner, who would both be competing for the other starting spot. There's also the possibility the Dolphins would want to bring Douglas along slowly so as to not stunt his growth by throwing him into the fire too soon.
Only time will tell, but Douglas' skill set may make him the best fit at guard on the Dolphins' roster.
Loser: Lamar Miller
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How could Lamar Miller, who was the Dolphins' bell cow just last year, be considered a "loser" just six months after finishing with 216 carries for 1,099 rushing yards and eight touchdowns?
The answer is quite simple. The selection of Boise State rookie running back Jay Ajayi in the fifth round of April's draft has given pause to the idea that Miller will automatically be in the running to put up similar or better numbers than the ones he posted in 2014.
In fact, Knowshon Moreno's knee injury precipitated Miller's heavy involvement on offense and is arguably the only real reason he earned that kind of opportunity in the first place. The Dolphins may have simply been covering their bases with the selection of Ajayi, but it doesn't help Miller's case that scouts, including NFL.com's Lance Zierlein, regard Ajayi as a complete back who doesn't need a complementary back to take any of the responsibility away from him.
We should probably see a timeshare in the backfield between Miller and Ajayi, and while that may help both backs stay fresher for longer, it may not help Miller earn a nice pay day following a contract year in 2015.
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