Miami's options for replacing Bell all bad
They lost the hardest hitter in their secondary. They lost a quiet leader. They lost a physical presence. And now the Dolphins must replace Yeremiah Bell with ...
Travares Tillman, who failed at the position last year?
Jason Allen, who didn't have a chance to fail at the position because he couldn't learn the position?
Donovin Darius, who's been cut by two teams in three months?
Travis Daniels, who's never really played the position and is a starting cornerback until Andre' Goodman's shoulder finally recovers?
Nope, the Dolphins don't have too many good options for replacing one of the few young, ascending players on their defense. So this is going to have to be a moment where Miami picks the best of several bad options.
The team will work out Darius today to see if, at 32 years old, he still has some gas in the tank. To see if he can still run following multiple season-ending injuries the past couple of years. To see if he remembers any of Dom Capers system from the time the Miami defensive coordinator was Jacksonville's D-coordinator from 1999-2000.
The fact Darius is on the radar screen speaks to Miami's poor in-house choices.
Allen? He failed at safety last season because he didn't know the calls well enough to make them fast enough and then actually play them without getting burned. So the team ended that experiment this year by turning him into a cornerback ... who still isn't good enough to get on the field.
Tillman? He is a solid special teams player but was exposed last year as a starter. Remember that tight end running untouched for a TD in the Pittsburgh game? Where was he? Remember the interception that slipped through his hands in the Green Bay game?
That one went seemingly through Tillman and straight into a Green Bay receiver's hands for a game-deciding TD. At Houston? Tillman was always around the ball, but never really made the play. Tillman's inability to win onfield matchups was the reason Bell was put into the starting lineup in the first place.
And then there's Daniels. That experiment might work if the Dolphins had a full complement of cornerbacks. If Goodman was healthy, if Allen was good, if, if, if. But Miami's hands seem tied on this front at least for several more weeks.
Sooo ... We shall see in the coming days how the Dolphins make the best of some really bad options.
Your thoughts?
Travares Tillman, who failed at the position last year?
Jason Allen, who didn't have a chance to fail at the position because he couldn't learn the position?
Donovin Darius, who's been cut by two teams in three months?
Travis Daniels, who's never really played the position and is a starting cornerback until Andre' Goodman's shoulder finally recovers?
Nope, the Dolphins don't have too many good options for replacing one of the few young, ascending players on their defense. So this is going to have to be a moment where Miami picks the best of several bad options.
The team will work out Darius today to see if, at 32 years old, he still has some gas in the tank. To see if he can still run following multiple season-ending injuries the past couple of years. To see if he remembers any of Dom Capers system from the time the Miami defensive coordinator was Jacksonville's D-coordinator from 1999-2000.
The fact Darius is on the radar screen speaks to Miami's poor in-house choices.
Allen? He failed at safety last season because he didn't know the calls well enough to make them fast enough and then actually play them without getting burned. So the team ended that experiment this year by turning him into a cornerback ... who still isn't good enough to get on the field.
Tillman? He is a solid special teams player but was exposed last year as a starter. Remember that tight end running untouched for a TD in the Pittsburgh game? Where was he? Remember the interception that slipped through his hands in the Green Bay game?
That one went seemingly through Tillman and straight into a Green Bay receiver's hands for a game-deciding TD. At Houston? Tillman was always around the ball, but never really made the play. Tillman's inability to win onfield matchups was the reason Bell was put into the starting lineup in the first place.
And then there's Daniels. That experiment might work if the Dolphins had a full complement of cornerbacks. If Goodman was healthy, if Allen was good, if, if, if. But Miami's hands seem tied on this front at least for several more weeks.
Sooo ... We shall see in the coming days how the Dolphins make the best of some really bad options.
Your thoughts?
posted by Armando Salguero at 9:25 AM
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26 Comments:
Love the blog, Armando. One suggestion: you really need someone to proof your stuff. "Whose" should have been "who's" and I've seen several other mistakes recently. But again, thank you for the frequent, interesting updates.
If it wasn't for "BAD LUCK" we would have no luck at all!! We should cut Tavares Tillman he's not even an option, the guy is not even wiling to step up to the plate and fill in!!! Instead he talking bout
"That's a situation I probably won't be in," Tillman said. "I really don't think they'll ask me to be in that role because that's not the type of player I am. They'll probably slide someone else down in there."
THATS BULL$#@* !!!! When given the opportunity to prove yourself you have to jump at it!! And by his statement we already know he's not ready!!!! Every guy out there is one play away from being the starter and he has the chance to make the play and he's already giving up!!!! Cut'em loose get Donovin in there at least we know he has heart and will give it his all until he gets hurt!!!
A couple things...
I pray Darius has something left, because what's on our current roster won't cut it.
Proof read a blog? It's a blog, this isn't the area that Pulitzer winning writing is going to occur.
Brady will tear us to shreds. But he would have even with Bell. I wonder if San Diego needs another fan?
Darius can still play. Jacksonville drafted Nelson and the Raiders have Huff. Those are both 1st round picks making a ton of $$ and Darius was the odd man out both times.
His being cut isn't a sign that he's done. It means that he was expendable on 2 teams with good defenses and young safeties making big money.
I like Bell,he was the best DB we had.
Isn't it time for Jason Allen to earn his keep? I'd suggest they move him back to Safety and give him a week or two of practice to settle in. Thereafter, I'd start him. They need to find out if this guy is just a bad practice player or a total bust. Either way, he makes too much to just keep on special teams.
So Mando makes one grammar error and we rip him? He's the best the Herald's got and that makes him the best we got.
I'll take funny, sarcastic, informative and entertaining over grammatically correct every time.
One - They had a shot at Asante Samuels
Two - Off Topic but needs to be addressed. The running game (one 11 yard run asside) averaged 2 yards per carry and only contributed 3 first downs. Ricky Williams is now eligible to apply for reinstatement - they need to reach out to him and get him on the field. Ronnie is a bust and everyone knows it and is afraid to say it out loud. He should have been a third round pick at best. Cobb has a lot more fire in him, I'd like to see him take the field against starters to see if he is for real. At any rate he has good luck and is a heads up baller.
mando,
hate your politics; love your blog.
I listened to you last night on Rogers' show. I even tried to call in but after 25 re-dials and 25 busy signal, I gave up. How did all the knuckleheads get through?
To be honest, the Dolphins thinness in their front 7 concerns me more than their shallow secondary. The last two season the defense has been predicated on applying enough pressure up front to compensate for the inadequacies in the secondary.
The front seven, as you observed, looked old and overmatched. And Paul Soliai and Chase Page don't give the line the depth they had last year with Kevin Carter/Roth, Jeff Zgonia, David Bowens, and Dan Wilkinson.
My bad, I missed the blog on Williams not being able to be reinstated until Oct.
They are bumming, without the O-line making holes I don't think these two can make it happen on their own like Ricky, so really we are bumming.
Maybe they can convert a wide reciever to a DB- corner there were some speedy ones cut in preseason.
We could have a top five draft pick next year. Mcfadden!
Actually Armando, I think the defense is not the same that capers ran in 99-00. From my understanding, its still Saban's defense, but Capers 'simplified' it a little bit.
Tom, shame, shame. Go ahead, I'm sure the Chargers can use another fair-weather fan. We've got Brady's number and they know it. A real fan doesn't give up on his team after one overtime loss. The D got shredded because the stars didn't play much in the pre-season, so they weren't prepared physically, and because Bell got hurt. Darius will be an excellent addition. I would say keep the faith seeing how you're from a good town, but no. The Dolphins need better fans. Goodbye. Enjoy your bandwagon seat with San Diego.
Whoever wrote this article is an idiot and knows nothen about the Dolphins! Jason Allen got his shot at Free Safety. Not at Strong Safety. Instead of constantly ripping young players, how about supporting them! If not please quit your job and get into landscaping!
I know I read somewhere that the Dolphins make their safeties learn both spots. So their free safety can play strong and vice versa.
That's the reason on the team's website depth chart they don't list free or strong safety they just lift both as safeties.
So whoever wrote that last comment should check the facts before ripping anyone.
ARMANDO
Why haven't you or any of your fellow reporters questioned Cameron about not trying to win with the 1 minute left Sunday?
I am from Boston, but a dolphins fan for nearly 30 years. He'd get his head ripped off up here.
Not one reporter has called Cam out, OR EVEN QUESTIONED HIM. That is ridiculous. That is such soft reporting. Reporters ask the tough question last, right? Well, ask it!!!
Saw your piece today...Geez, do they serve orange Kool-Aid at the press conferences, or are all you reporters so used to losing that you see positives in everything???
Red Auerbach once said "Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser..."
There are about four people on this site who have been begging you to tell them why the Herald's reporters haven't asked Cam about the last mintute play-calling. Are you going to continue to ignore them?
Tom@Jax said...
Brady will tear us to shreds. But he would have even with Bell. I wonder if San Diego needs another fan?
Tom shut the hell up you patriot loving jackass. tom brady picks teams apart when they have a god damn spy videotaping the defensive coordinators of the opposing team and telling brady through his head set what the defense is doing. patriot fans you can all suck my balls and you all know you wouldn't win shit if you didn't cheat. i hope they sign darious cause he's still better than what we have and the season (no matter what patriots fans say) isn't over yet.
I think its time to suffer with the inexperience of Jason Allen and get him in there week after week until he learns to get the job done. No more pussy-footing with the guy. Something tells me the kid will respond. I don't know why. Maybe its just a hunch, but this holding him back and switching him around has all ready damaged him. Let him play because that's what will let him learn. Even at the expense of the mistakes. Nuff said. Peace.
Not good... Not surprising when you read the history on Bell I lifted from the SS... Bell shredded his knee playing pickup basketball during his senior season at Eastern Kentucky, then sat out his rookie season with a foot injury. In 2004, he fractured his leg.
These are the things that make you realize how poorly we have drafted since Jimmy Johnson. We have issues with our starters at certain positions and to think there is absolutely no depth behind them is frightening. It highlights the mess that Cameron has walked into.
Back to the immediate issue... I think we will see a two player type replacement with Darius if he's healthy playing in run situations and Travis Daniels playing in passing situations.
I agree with whoever said that Tillman's comment about the role not fitting him is BS. How does splinters in your ass fit into your role. Tillman's words just make me want to vent.
I would love to see us competitive again, I've been a Dolphin fan my entire life but we just don't have enough talent on this team. It's going to take a couple of really good drafts and some luck like a sixth round Brady.
Don Shula spoiled us. We thought it was our rite of passage to be in the playoffs every year. Well guess what, we should face the reality of the situation as a team, as a coaching staff, as management and as fans, we have to rebuild this football team.
The harshness of that falls on players like Zack and Jason who deserve better, but they are not going to get it here. The owner and the management of this team including the coaches should do the responsible thing and trade these players.
I know this may sound crazy to a lot of you but why waste the last few years of these guys' career on a team that is going nowhere. Why not allow them the shot at playing for a decent team while stocking draft picks and building for the future. There are too many fingers in the dike already.
I'm sick to freaking death of year after year being painted a pretty picture only to see it become a forgery. The truth is the owner and the management do not have to balls to declare that they are going to rebuild the team and trade the players who have draft value, take the fall and start over.
I know I'm on a rant and I apologize, but I'm over it. We should have seen this writing on the wall when Vernon Carey limped off the field in the preseason. We have no talent beyond a few players. The only way to get talent is to build through the draft. The only way to get high impact draft slots is to suck. So if we're going to suck anyway then let's suck with a plan not a freaking snow job.
Sorry folks, I hope I didn't offend anyone.
Old doom and gloom Armando...do you ever write a positive piece about the dolphins?
Miami is the same old garbage in a new package. Get rid of some players. Start using new ones. What can be worse than keep loosing ?
Get Darius... it is our best chance of getting a heart in the line
Give a last chance to Jason Allen.
Give a last chance to Ronnie.
Get Ricky Williams ... he is by far, the best running we;ve got. (aside from everythin else...)
Use Patrick Cobbs... he has proven to be good...
Use Ted Ginn ... he is supposed to be used intensively
Just some thoughts, Cam, but your are the coach and we are the fans... we'll go with you
I completely agree with the thought that maybe it is time to pull a Troy Brown, from the Patriots. The old adage is that if they can catch the ball, they are Wide receivers, if not, Cornerbacks, or safeties. I could see Chambers as a Safety. He is big enough, and he makes the really tough catches. Most of the chances he would get as a safety would be tough ones. Seriously, though, I empathize with the gentlemen on the rant, and in ways I agree, but, to be honest, I wouldn't want to see JT, or Zach on any other team. No matter how we rebuild, we will need people with their experience, and drive. I believe Beck will do the job, starting next year. I liked how he won two of our preseason games with time running out, and got us within inches of tieing another. He has shown good leadership, and acuracy, and will get the chance to get in there late this year, once we are officially out of it. Ginn should add needed speed in our receiving core, and if Hagan can get in the lineup he should make a decent posession receiver. I hate that we let Wes Welker walk. He's a winner, and we will ALWAYS need winners on this team.
The saga of Jason Allen tells you how bad Saban was as a coach/talent evaluator. Considering that Saban was supposed to be a DB guru (his supposed greatest strength), he shouldn't have needed to draft a DB in the 1st round. Instead, he should have been able to find a 'sleeper' DB in the later rounds (much like the Pats did with a couple of their starting DB's) to fill the role Saban needed. To drive this point about Saban even further, remember that Saban PERSONALLY evaluated all of the DB's at the scouting combine in the year that Allen was drafted ... and he chose Allen!!! What a complete and utter F'in moron Saban was/is (at least he had the good sense to realize that he was an f'in moron and would be found out sooner than later ... so he skipped town ahead of the possy).
And Saban ... if you really thought that there wasn't a player at 16 who filled a position of need, you obviously weren't looking at Mangold ... starting C for the Jets and a future Pro Bowler. Guess Saban figured that the 'fins didn't need any help on the O-line last year. What a joke.
I think Louis Oliver is available. He and Darius are about the same age I think.
Dear Jason Taylor,
You were on the biggest scumbag's show of ALL TIMES today.
I hope this letter finds you well. You were speaking to satan today. satan only tries to confuse you and put doubt in your mind.
In Jesus's name, cast away satan and do what's truly in your heart. What's in your heart is getting better as a team. What's in your teamates heart is winning. Distance yourself from the evil forces that you dealt with today and charge ahead.
In Jesus's name, satan, we rebuke you. Go Dolphins. Go Taylor. Stop that feeling of doubt and rise. RISE!
Dan LebeRetard will burn in hell! Go the other direction.
God Bless!
Truth
Maybe they should move Tuff Harris into the line-up. He defended very well in the pre-season. Maybe they feel he just isn't ready yet.
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