Second Year Dolphins Taking on Bigger Roles in 2013

Lamar Miller will have to fill the shoes of last year's leading rusher, Reggie Bush. (Photo: BlindSideFootball.com)

The 2012 NFL Draft was a success for the Miami Dolphins as the 'Fins found two starters in the first two rounds, including what they hope to be a franchise quarterback in Ryan Tannehill. This offseason, the Dolphins made significant upgrades with the addition of some key veterans. But for Miami to be a playoff team in 2013 they are going to need production from some of their younger guys, too, particularly on offense. This upcoming season should go a long way in telling how successful the draft of 2012 really was.

Tannehill, who went 7-9 as a starter in his 2012 rookie season, will, without a doubt, start at quarterback. Tannehill will look to improve on a 12 touchdown, 13 interception campaign and will get the brunt of the attention from the sports media and the fans for how he performs, but this will be a big season for tackle Jonathan Martin as well.

Drafted to play tackle opposite of Jake Long, Martin started all 16 games for Miami as a rookie in 2012. After Long's season-ending bicep injury late in the season, Martin took over at the left tackle position. Martin struggled early last season at right tackle and was less than stellar replacing Long.

Martin will likely play the left tackle position for Miami this season and be tasked with protecting Tannehill's blind side. Martin, who was criticized for being small for a NFL tackle, has said to have put on some weight. With a schedule that includes premier pass-rushing defensive ends Greg Hardy, Michael Johnson, John Abraham and Mario Williams twice, Martin will need to be up to challenge.

The success of the offense, however, is not dependent on just Martin and Tannehill making improvements, but little used players as rookies in 2012 are poised to take on bigger roles.

University of Miami product and second-year back Lamar Miller will split time with third-year man Daniel Thomas and could wind up being the feature back.

Miller carried the ball just 51 times in 2012, a little more than three-per-contest. His 4.9 yards-per-carry average however, was better than either Thomas' or last year's leading rusher, Reggie Bush. Miller did move up to the number two back towards the end of last season, but with Bush now in Detroit, Miller will have to replace much of Bush's production.

Similar to Bush in style, Miller could be a real contributor in the passing game as well as a guy who can give Miami big plays on the ground. While in college, Miller was even an excellent special teams player having returned kicks including one for a touchdown against Ohio State. While Bush was never an All-Pro, he had the best years of his career with Miami and averaged over 1,000 yards rushing in his two seasons with the Dolphins. Equaling Bush's production won't be that easy.

Failing to make any sort of splash at all in 2012 was rookie tight end and third round pick Michael Egnew. An excellent pass-catcher at Missouri, Egnew did not record a single reception in 2012, but may be forced into action in 2013.

After losing Anthony Fasano and his team-leading five touchdown catches to Kansas City, Miami is thin at tight end. Joe Philbin and Mike Sherman seem to like Charles Clay more in an h-back role as his production declined slightly in 2012. The Dolphins did acquire former New York Jets tight end Dustin Keller, but Keller battled injury last season and is coming off the worst year of his career. If Keller fails to stay healthy or produce as he did in 2010 and 2011, Egnew will have to step up.

Defensively, Olivier Vernon will have the opportunity to take over the defensive end slot opposite Cameron Wake or at the very least, find plenty of playing time in a reserve role.

Vernon proved to a valuable special teams player for the Dolphins in 2012 and even filled in some at outside linebacker. A physically gifted player, Vernon recorded 3.5 sacks as a rookie and is a better athlete than Jared Odrick, Miami's first round pick in 2010. Vernon will also battle rookie Dion Jordan, who was taken third overall by the Dolphins in this year's draft. Having already played a year in Kevin Coyle's system could prove to be advantageous for Vernon as well.

But unlike the offensive side of the ball where Miami will need production from Martin, Miller and perhaps Egnew, a breakout season for Vernon would be more of a luxury, but it is entirely possible.

While the Miami Dolphins are hopeful that key acquisitions like Mike Wallace and Philip Wheeler can help take them to the next level, increased production from a number of second-year guys will prove just as important this upcoming season.

Mike Ferguson is a staff writer at Dolphin Shout and the founder and editor of Outside the Redzone. Like Outside the Redzone on Facebook!

A Look at the Miami Dolphins Offensive Line

Patrick just did an analysis on the Miami Dolphins defensive front, so I am going to continue our series and take a look at the other side of the ball today. I am going to be taking a look at the offensive line, which was solid last year but nothing to speak of.

Right now my projected starters for the Dolphins line are:

| LT Jonathan Martin | LG Dallas Thomas | C Mike Pouncey | RG Richie Incognito | RT Tyson Clabo |

Now what I'm going to do is take a look at each guy and who could potentially compete with them for the spot.

Left Tackle - Jonathan Martin

Jonathan Martin

Martin only played four games last season as a left tackle filling in for the injured Jake Long. He was not very impressive at that spot, but a large part of that is due to him being underweight. He claims that he has gained 15 pounds this offseason, which is an encouraging sign. All signs are pointing to him starting at left tackle this year.

The guy who I could see as potential competition to Martin would be versatile rookie lineman Dallas Thomas. I am expecting Thomas to be the starting left guard, but Miami wants him to learn guard and tackle on the left side, so he could potentially beat out Martin for the job.

Left Guard - Dallas Thomas

Miami drafted Thomas out of Tennessee in the third round (77th overall) of this year's draft. Thomas is a very versatile offensive lineman. He is capable of playing tackle, but he is better suited to play guard. The Dolphins want him on the left side, and they have been working him at both tackle and guard. I expect Martin to take the left tackle job, though, so that leaves the guard spot for Thomas.

Dallas Thomas in Tennessee

Thomas, like Martin last year, is a little on the light side. He could stand to gain a little weight, and I fully expect that Miami will work on bulking him up this offseason. He is an excellent pass protector and should be able to block for Ryan Tannehill very nicely. His run blocking isn't quite as excellent, but he is still very good at it.

Potential competition for Thomas would be Richie Incognito and John Jerry, depending on who doesn't win the right guard spot. Incognito was the starting left guard for Miami last year, but the Dolphins desire to have Thomas on the left side makes me think that they'll move Incognito to the right. Jerry was the starter on the right side, and if he doesn't win the competition against Incognito then we could see him competing with Thomas on the left.

Center - Mike Pouncey

Pouncey is 100% safe at center after last year's Pro Bowl-worthy season. He will be the starter and we can expect him to be an anchor on the offensive line.

Nothing to see here. Move along

Right Guard - Richie Incognito

Richie Incognito

This is where it gets a little more interesting. John Jerry was Miami's starting right guard last season after he was finally able to get his weight under control, but Richie Incognito will probably be replaced by Dallas Thomas so he will be looking for a new job on the right side. I think that Incognito will be able to win out. Richie is an important part of the team and, in my opinion, is the better lineman, so it makes more sense to have him starting.

Like I said above, whoever loses out on this job will likely be competing for the spot at left guard as well, but unfortunately for John Jerry, it looks like Incognito and Thomas will have the starting jobs at the start of the season. Jerry makes for excellent depth, though.

Another possible competitor is Lance Louis from the Chicago Bears. Louis was awful as a tackle for the Bears, but he is a good guard. He will add competition to the line.

Right Tackle - Tyson Clabo

The Dolphins needed another tackle, so after the draft they signed free agent veteran Tyson Clabo out of Atlanta. Clabo is a very solid all-around tackle who was cut from the Falcons for cap reasons. He is a little on the old side, though, at 31 years old, but he should fill in nicely and give Miami time to find a replacement in the next year or two. Like Pouncey, Clabo is pretty much a lock to be the starter.

Tyson Clabo

So there you have it. I am very optimistic about our offensive line this season. The biggest question mark is Jonathan Martin, but I have confidence that he will be able to play well. He will have had an offseason to bulk up, and he will be able to play on the left side from the start.

Thanks for stopping by. What do you guys think about our offensive line? Let me know below. Email me at paul@dolphinshout.com. I'm also on twitter @PaulDSmythe.

A Review & Preview of the Miami Dolphin Front Seven

In the first of a series of articles, the writers at Dolphinshout will analyze changes in key areas of the Miami Dolphin football team. This installment focuses on the defensive front seven.

The responsibility of the front seven begins most notably with pass rushing. In today’s NFL, money goes to the players that pass the ball, protect the passer, catch the ball, rush the passer and cover the receivers. The front seven is the main force in rushing the passer, but must also shut down the running, while covering the middle of the field.

The pass rush is where the players on the front seven earn their reputation. The Miami defensive backs take the blame for the lack of big plays on the defense, but balls fluttering in the air are easy pickings compared to perfect passes thrown in rhythm. Pressuring the QB disrupts the passing game and takes the pressure off the coverage unit. The QB has a much better chance of completing passes the longer he has to survey the field.

The brain trust of the Miami Dolphins is well aware the DBs are not solely to blame for the team’s inability to create turnovers. Moving from a base 3-4 to a base 4-3 defense, changes the roles of several players in the component most experts believe is the overall best unit on the team. There is talent left from the Sparano regime, but Kevin Coyle’s defense attacks differently from the scheme coached by Mike Nolan.

The pressure is now applied mainly by the defensive ends where it previously came from the outside linebackers. Where there was a primary nose tackle in a 3-4, there are two tackles in the 4-3. The following illustration shows the difference in the two alignments side by side.

The dolphins will interchange these two formations in a hybrid defense; the base scheme is pictured on the right. Under coach Coyle, the Miami defense changes from the left picture to the right picture. In this simplistic interpretation, a defensive lineman replaces a linebacker.

The change does not seem drastic, but the type of players required for the scheme to work presents issues when transforming to the new the system. Paul Soliai manned the nose tackle position in the 3-4, but he is now joined by Randy Starks at the under tackle position. The NFL game is evolving from common five and seven step QB drops replaced by 3 step drops in a rapid-fire up-tempo sling fest.

In this modern passing game, the QB releases the ball so quickly, the outside linebackers in the 3-4 are mitigated by the release time of the football. Here is a look at the same illustration with the arcs of the pass rushers added in red.

Notice the distance required to get the passer in a 3-4 versus the distance in a 4-3. As the game evolves to a quicker tempo, the pass rushers have to find ways to get to the QB fast. Lining up closer is one obvious advantage as the red lines indicate. There is an added benefit in the 4-3 by having two tackles coming up the middle. Any pass rush coming around the end is going to have issues reaching the passer in the 3-step drop.

Bringing pressure up the middle can disrupt the timing of the up-tempo offense. The 3-step drop with only a single nose tackle is much easier than a 3-step drop with two tackles. Fortunately, Miami has two players already on the team capable of playing the positions, Soliai and Starks, but there needs to be rotational players to rest the starters. For that the Dolphins will need Jared Odrick to bulk up. A heavier Odrick cannot man the DE position in a 4-3, because he does not have pure pass rusher speed.

The Dolphins began reshaping last year by drafting DE Olivier Vernon but the process was not complete until they jumped up to the number three spot in the draft to add Dion Jordan. With Cameron Wake at RDE, the addition of Jordan on the left side will strike fear in QBs and the Miami defensive line has now made the complete transition to the new defensive scheme.

Soliai, Starks and Odrick at the tackles with Wake, Jordan and Vernon at the ends, are as solid a group as there is in the NFL. Keeston Randall, Vaughn Martin and Dereck Shelby will fight it out with a large group of rookies for the final two or perhaps three DL roster spots.

The linebackers feature free agents Danell Ellerbe and Philip Wheeler joining Koa Misi in a change from four linebackers to three. By releasing Karlos Dansby and Kevin Burnett, the Dolphins cut ties with two older free agent linebackers but the need for more change is still evident when looking closely at the alignment.

The areas circled in red demonstrate how the roles of the OLBs change from one scheme to the other. The simple diagram shows why Dansby and Burnett are no longer with the Dolphins. The need for speed becomes obvious when shown graphically. The OLBs in the 4-3 have twice as much ground to cover and the two aging veterans were a mismatch for the defense.

Both OLBs needed to be replaced with more speedy players and the dolphins are probably not done, but will wait for next off-season to tweak in the LB corps. Dion Jordan and Cameron Wake will be used in hybrid type roles leaving the LB corps manned by more special teams’ demons than by actual starting caliber LBs.

The Names Jason Trusnik, Austin Spitler and Josh Kaddu don’t inspire thoughts of greatness and hoping a host of rookies led by Jelani Jenkins will sure up the LB corps is wishful thinking. The Linebackers may be the weakest unit on the team. The free agent acquisitions are still unknowns, but there is a lot riding on the two new players stepping up in a big way.

In conclusion, the defensive front seven is a unit with impressive talent on the line, backed by an unknown group of linebackers. The line will hold its own and the linebackers should be sufficient without being spectacular. The group will be outstanding if Ellerbe and Wheeler make the leap from spot starters to true every down players. The group could go the other direction if these two players fail to step up.

As go Ellerbe and Wheeler, so goes the front seven…