Bold Predictions For The Miami Dolphins - How Chris Clemons Will Do This Year

I will follow up the article yesterday about Chris Clemons with another of my bold predictions.

Clemons is a player with a lot of upside, and he should see a bunch of opportunities to make plays. He will do especially well early in the season, and the reason for that is included in my prediction below.

So, without further ado. Here it is:

Chris Clemons

1. Chris Clemons Will Have 6 Or More Interceptions

While these aren't extremely huge number, they are still pretty big numbers for a first-year starter. To do that he will have to continue to improve a lot, but I think he is capable of it.

He has already surprised a lot of people by how well he has played so far, so why wouldn't he continue to surprise during the season. He has probably gotten more experience and repetitions than any other FS in the NFL. I don't know that for sure, because there isn't a stat for it, but you would be hard pressed to find another FS who gets as many repetitions as Clemons does.

Another reason I think Clemons will get at least 6 picks is that a lot of offenses will try and throw the ball a lot against the Dolphins early in the season. They know that Miami wasn't good at covering the pass at all last year. So, they may try and throw a lot more than they normally would trying to beat the Miami Dolphins secondary.

That is where Clemons should be able to make his move. When the opposing quarterback throws the ball long Clemons will be ready to pounce and pick the ball right out of the air.

I know it sounds too simple for Clemons to just be able to come from out of nowhere and intercept the ball, but it is a pretty good possibility. Quarterbacks will be told to watch out for CBs Vontae Davis and Sean Smith because those two are the known threats in the Dolphins secondary.

Because of that, the quarterback will not be watching for Clemons. He can then surprise them with an interception.



That's my prediction for Chris Clemons. Let me know what you guys think of him.

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Miami Dolphins WR Brandon Marshall Wants To Play In The NBA: Cause For Concern Or Not Really A Problem?

Brandon Marshall

If you haven't already heard, Brandon Marshall said during an interview with ESPN that if the NFL had a lockout and the 2011-2012 season was canceled, he would play in the NBA.

Marshall is absolutely serious, and while I don't know if he would actually make a team this is still a cause for concern.

The fact that he would even consider leaving the Miami Dolphins is a huge concern to me. He should be thinking about football this year, but instead he is worried about what he will do if there isn't any football.

Instead of saying what he did when asked about next season, he should have said something along the lines of "I'm not concerned with next year, just this one".

Something like that, but instead he became a distraction to others and himself by talking about being in the NBA. He turned what could have been a simple question into a big story covered by everyone.

Maybe that kind of attention is something he loves, and normally I don't mind that as long as it doesn't hurt the team. But, something like this can hurt the team, and it can be a distraction.

I normally am a huge fan of Marshall, and this is really the first time I have ever said anything bad about him on my blog. I just wish that he would focus on just football with the season so close.

Miami is paying him good money to play football, and not to think about playing basketball. I just hope this doesn't affect his play.

Hopefully, he will never have the opportunity to play in the NBA, and whoever is involved in the possible lockout agrees to whatever terms necessary for a season next year.

Hopefully, Marshall isn't really distracted too much and is able to focus on the season at hand, because we need him to do well. Keep your fingers crossed Miami Dolphins fans.

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Miami Dolphins CB Will Allen Will Be Missed During Training Camp

News of the Miami Dolphins CB Will Allen's arthroscopic surgery has just recently surfaced, and while he will only miss training camp, he will be missed none the less.

The surgery was apparently a clean up from his surgery last fall.

I know that Allen isn't the starter at CB, but having him helped the starters a lot. He was added depth at the position, and depth made the competition better.

It motivated Sean Smith to perform better at the scrimmage after Allen was put in the 1st-string defense during the previous practice. Competition brings out the best in players, and losing Allen takes away some of the challenge.

Thankfully, Miami's other rookie CB Nolan Carroll is still there to add some competition. He has done really well and should keep the competition up, but not as much as Allen.

Just hope that Allen can recover as quickly as possible. We need him back to help keep up the competition.

Depth is the key, and competition will create a champion

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The Miami Dolphins New Defense Will Be Officially Introduced Saturday

Jared Odrick

The Miami Dolphins first preseason games is this Saturday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

It is also the debut of the new defense against another team that Defensive Coordinator Mike Nolan has installed in Miami.

Miami will change their philosophy from a conservative mentality to a more aggressive one, and that will hopefully produce big plays defensively. Nolan has apparently preached during practices for the Dolphins to be more aggressive on defense, and we will see how it works out.

The Miami Dolphins defense is also dealing with a lot of new starting personnel on the defensive line and with the linebackers.

The Dolphins drafted DE Jared Odrick and LB Koa Misi in the draft this year, and they will probably make a big impact on defense. Odrick seems to be the one making the biggest impact, and you should expect to see him do very well this year.

Miami also added veteran LB Karlos Dansby, who should help lead the team and get them going in the right direction.

My favorite change so far, though, has been the Miami Dolphins attempting to use and develop LB Cameron Wake. Wake is an extremely athletic player who has an incredible ability to get to the quarterback and pile up sacks. His only problem before is he lacked in other skills like pass coverage, which is why the Dolphins didn't use him too much last year.

Well, hopefully he has developed his pass coverage so we can see him in more often, because he is an explosive player.

He will be the most interesting person to watch this offseason.

So, sit back and enjoy the game. Hopefully our new defense will make it even more enjoyable.

Thanks for reading my Miami Dolphins blog. Please leave a comment and let me know what you think about how our new defense will do.

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Don't Be Worried About The Miami Dolphins Offense After Saturday's Scrimmage

Photo courtesy of: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

There are some people that might be a little worried about the offense of the Miami Dolphins after Saturday's scrimmage, and let me just tell you to not be one of them.

At first glance it may seem like the performance was a bad sign, but that isn't really that bad. The Dolphins were just coming off of their first week of training camp. They haven't really worked with 11 men on the field since the end of last season.

You can't expect a team that has never worked together fully to be able to work together perfectly the first time. The offense just needs time to work together and to be in sync.

So, don't worry about our offense. They are going to be fine. They just need some tiem to work together.

That is what preseason is for. That is also a reason why I am opposed to taking away preseason games. If you give teams more time to work in the preseason, which is valuable for teams. I know it seems like I am going off topic, but I figured I would include that because I really oppose the extended schedule.

Back to Miami, though. One really good thing about the scrimmage was the defensive performance. The Dolphins defense did really well, and let's hope that carries over into the regular season because that was our biggest weakness last year.

I can't wait to see how they do with their new and improved.

So don't worry about the offense, and get excited about the defense. Everything will fall in to place soon enough.

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Miami Dolphins CB Sean Smith Was Struggling, But Now Appears To Be Doing Better

Sean Smith During Preseason Last Year

This post was originally going to be talking about CB Sean Smith, who some of you may know is my favorite player on the Miami Dolphins defense, not doing so well in the Miami Dolphins training camp.

Now, after Saturday's scrimmage I am much more excited to talk about his success today.

Smith was able to deflect the first practice of the scrimmage intended for Brandon Marshall today. That is great because Miami's coaches had him practicing with the second string Friday.

Smith had been going up against the newly acquired Dolphins receiver Brandon Marshall for most of training camp and had been beaten most of the time. Maybe the Miami staff was trying to spark him into playing better.

I don't know for sure, but hopefully it has worked.

Smith started all 16 games as a rookie last year. While that is a major accomplishment, he still has a ways to go if he wants to be one of the best, which I think he can be. He has the size to match up with most receivers, and if he is able to stay focused and continue to develop he will be one of the best.

I am hoping the Dolphins will have Sean back in at 1st string CB, because he is a really talented cornerback with a lot of potential, and I think Miami would do better to have him in.

Just my opinion, but I really believe he will help the Miami Dolphins succeed. The defense is coming along really well, and Smith will help it come better.

What do you guys think? How good can Smith be? Let me hear it.

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Miami Dolphins FS Decision: Should The Dolphins Continue To Give Chris Clemons More Reps Or Not?

Chris Clemons

If the Miami Dolphins want to have a solid player at the FS position this year, they will need to make sure their player gets a lot of repetitions in practice.

The only problem with that is that you don't want to give your player too many reps and risk injuring him.

That is the current dilemma the Miami Dolphins coaching staff faces with second year FS Chris Clemons. Clemons is the most likely candidate to start at FS this year, so the Dolphins coaches have given him more reps than any other player on the team.

238 to be exact.

It is great that they are working him and giving him as much experience as possible, but I am not sure how much longer they want to push him this hard. An injury is the last thing Miami needs at Free Safety.

Tony Sparano and Mike Nolan will have enough trouble using what little they have at the position. Imagine taking away one of the potential starters and having to start preparing another player.

I am not saying that the Dolphins need to stop giving Clemons reps, and I am also not saying that they should reduce his reps.

I honestly don't know how well he is holding up. Maybe he is doing fine and isn't really affected by all of the work he is doing. We can't be sure. The only people that know that are Clemons and the people in the Dolphins organization.

So hope that Clemons doesn't get hurt, but also gets all of the practice he needs.

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Greg Camarillo Suffers Minor Injury, And Adds On To The List Of Miami Dolphins Injuries

The Miami Dolphins have already had a few injuries this training camp, and it only started a week ago.

I don't know about you guys, but I am scared to read about Miami's training camp everyday for fear that there will be news of Miami losing a big time player.

Thankfully, all of the injuries sustained so far are either very minor, or were to players that Miami could live without. I'm not saying that the injuries to A.J. Edds and Kory Sheets don't affect the team, I'm just saying that the team is not a whole lot worse off without them.

And news out of training camp is that Greg Camarillo has a minor groin injury. Hopefully he will be back soon because I like Camarillo, and I want to see him catch everything that is thrown at him.

Injuries are frustrating for everyone, so cross your fingers and hope that no other Dolphins have a serious injury during training camp. They will be a lot more fun to watch if they can avoid them.

Thanks for reading, and please be sure to check back tomorrow morning. I have another post scheduled for then.

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The Miami Dolphins Randy Starks Move Is High Risk, High Reward

Randy Starks making a tackle

I was reading an article on Miami Dolphins DE/NT Randy Starks yesterday, and it got me thinking.

The Dolphins are being very, very risky by going against what most people consider common football knowledge. They are putting in somebody smaller at the Nose Tackle position than most teams would even dream of doing.

It is a risky move, and it could either spell out huge success and possibly the creation of a new way that teams view Nose Tackles, or it could be a huge disaster and make the Dolphins staff look really bad.

Think about it. Miami took one of their most successful defenders last year, Randy Starks, and moved him to a position he had never played before in the NFL. The expression goes: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

So, why would Miami move a very successful defensive end to the nose tackle position where he has never been and is considered too small by normal standards?

Here is an answer for you right from the mouth of Randy Starks courtesy of the Miami Herald:

"Some of those bigger guys might not be as strong so they need the extra weight to hold the point. They need to be 320 or 340 pounds. I can be 305 and still be effective."

For those of you that don't know, the point is the very middle of the line, basically right across from where the center snaps the ball.

It is a good thing that Starks is confident in his abilities. I do think this will end up being a good move.

The only problem I see with it is Starks will most likely take a hit in statistics. Nose Tackles don't have as good of stats as other defensive lineman because their main job is to occupy as many blockers as they can so other defensive players can get through the line.

But, that is only a problem if Starks makes it. Hopefully, he will understand that the team needs him there and take the hit in stats to help the team win.

Let's hope this risk pays off, because I would love to see a new revolution at the Nose Tackle position. It think it would make the NFL more fun to watch because you will have more explosive NTs in the game. It would make defense even more fun to watch.

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Jake Long Is A Beast, Which Is Why Cameron Wake Beating Him Is A Really Good Sign

Cameron Wake

Most of you probably know Jake Long, the Miami Dolphins Left Tackle.

You should also know that Jake Long is a beast, and he has rarely been beaten in training camp this year. If you read any training camp reports on Long, you will see that he just doesn't get beat very often.

He has been in the Pro Bowl in his only two seasons in the NFL, and that is why I was so surprised when I read about Cameron Wake beating Jake Long three times in a row during training camp.

Wake has been doing well so far in camp, which is evidenced by the training camp performance.

When he was in last season he showed flashes of greatness when he did play, which wasn't too much. Hopefully he will be in as a starter this season, because he could be dangerous to opposing quarterbacks and running backs.

Head Coach Tony Sparano has been saying good things about Wake so far and praising how few mental errors he has been making.

Hopefully that can carry on to the season when we need him now more than ever at the LB spot. We will see how he does during training camp.

I will be sure to keep you guys posted.

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