The Most Important Thing To Watch During Miami Dolphins Training Camp Is...

Our Free Safeties.

I know you were expecting me to wait a while to fill in the blank and finish the sentence I started at the title, but I figured I would surprise you with a quick answer. Not that it makes a difference either way.

Enough of my talking about non Miami Dolphins related topics, here is more on our free safety predicament.

Our current free safety situation has been taking a backseat because of recent movement on the defensive line. So, while it will be interesting to watch how our defensive line does and who will be the starter at NT and DE, the FS will be the position you want to watch.

We know that whoever will be the starter on the defensive line will be capable enough to hold their own. That is what we don't know about our free safeties. We don't know if they are capable of holding their own.

The two likely candidates to start at FS are Reshad Jones and Chris Clemons. Both of them are good players, but they just do not seem good enough to be starters. Jones is a great tackler, but his coverage skills are lacking.

The Dolphins pass defense was pitiful last year, and it needed to be changed. One of Miami's main weaknesses last season was FS Gibril Wilson giving up to many big plays and missing too many tackles. Now that Wilson is gone, Miami will hopefully have somebody step up and show us the ability to hold their own.

I just wish that Miami would have tried to get another free safety in either the draft or free agency. They did get Reshad Jones late in the draft, but I still think they should have gone for somebody else.

The more depth you have in any position, the better your starter will be in that position. I just wish that Miami had more depth at FS. Like my saying goes:

Depth is the key, and competition will create a champion.

We need more depth at free safety. But, since we don't have it let's hope that either Reshad Jones or Chris Clemons can emerge as a capable starter. As long as they can do more good than bad I am fine with them. Let's hope they can.

So while the defensive line will definitely be an interesting situation to watch, it isn't the most important thing to watch. I just hope that the result of training camp will also be interesting to watch for Dolphins fans.

That's all for now. Can anyone think of another concern to watch that is more important than the FS?

Subscribe to DolphinShout

Blog Bonus: Comparing Darren Sharper to Gibril Wilson

Probably any Dolphins fan who followed them closely knows about Gibril Wilson. If you don't, well be thankful you didn't have to find out by watching it happen.

I can joke around about it now, but it was extremely frustrating during the season to watch. He just could never seem to make a tackle, and a few times he would miss a tackle that was broken for a big gain. His coverage skills were also mediocre at best. So, here is a little bonus comparison between him and Darren Sharper for people who view my blog.

2009 Interceptions:
Darren Sharper: 9
Gibril Wilson: 0

TD's returned in the last six years:
Sharper: 8 (3 last year)
Wilson: 0

Been to Pro Bowl?
Sharper: Yes
Wilson: No

Those are just some of the stats that show the difference between the two. You can be assured that if Miami gets Sharper, then they will get more interceptions, TD's returned, and a lot less TD's allowed. Sharper also got almost twice as many passes defensed as Wilson, with Sharper's 15 and Wilson's 8.

Trust me, we want Darren Sharper.

Share|

Miami Dolphins Safety Situation: Should they Bring in New Players?

The Miami Dolphins weakest point last year was definitely their pass defense. If you ask any Miami fan who payed attention to the Dolphins last year, they will probably say something similar to that.

So, it was obvious that during the off-season Miami had to make some changes and improve their secondary. What I'm wondering is: have the Dolphins done enough to be successful against the top passing defenses in the NFL? I honestly don't think they have.

Safety is where Miami needs the most help. The Miami Dolphins only drafted one safety in the 2010 NFL Draft, and that was Reshad Jones in the fifth round. It may be better than nothing, but it still isn't much.

I think that the Dolphins should be searching for a new safety in the free agent market. One of those free agent safeties is veteran Pro Bowl FS Darren Sharper who was on the New Orleans Saints last year. I know his contract is pretty expensive (not sure the exact figures), but he would definitely be an improvement over what we have right now. He would also be able to teach the younger safeties so they can step in when he retires.

From what I can tell, there are not any other good safeties available in the free agent market that would be worth the Dolphins signing. So, I really hope that they try and go for Sharper.

Please check out my blog: Dolphin Shout

Miami Dolphins

Check out my blog for a bonus comparison between Gibril Wilson and Darren Sharper, so you can see how much the potential improvements can be.

I post first on my blog and then add the post as an article to Bleacher Report later, so be sure to check it often so you can see the posts as soon as they come out.

Share|