The Miami Dolphins Offseason
2022 Dream Draft Pick: Brandon Smith
The Miami Dolphins first pick in the draft is 102nd in the very back end of Day 2 so they'll probably be looking for the best player available but with linebacker being the most pressing need to improve, getting a guy like Brandon Smith would be a phenomenal selection to cap off Day 2. He's exceptional athlete that can make an impact as a blitzer and potential in pass coverage and has the size to be versatile chess piece in their defense.
The To-Do List
Resign Gesicki, Ogbah, Wilkins before free Agency
The Miami Dolphins have over $60,000,000 in cap room coming into 2022 and have three players that need to get resigned in 2022 with those players being Mike Gesicki, Emmanuel Ogbah, and Christian Wilkins. These players in my opinion have bright future ahead of them and are foundational pieces of a potential playoff team if they get the quarterback position right.
The Miami are only a good quarterback away from potentially making the playoffs if they retain these players and their chances remain high to be a dark horse team in the playoff. The three players mentioned above are integral to their success and in my opinion, they can't leave any of them sniff the free agent market and with $64,000,00 to spend, they have the money to retain them easily and still add more pieces.
- Tight End Mike Gesicki: Mike Gesicki is a pro bowl level talent at the tight position that in my opinion has been hamstrung by bad quarterback play, bad offensive coordinating, and a bad offensive system that relies upon play action and heavy run scheme, something Miami can struggle with, and this offense probably takes a major step back if he ends up leaving in free agency. New head coach Mike McDaniels needs to retain him to have a chance at fixing this offense because Gesicki has been the foundation in the passing game, despite Jaylen Waddle arriving and showing out in 2021, and if they let him walk in free agency he'll get an monster pay day by a team with all the pieces to make him successful. He's probably the most likely player to get franchise tagged for the Dolphins as they try to retain him and go after a quarterback but even if he gets tagged, he's proven himself as a tight end to earn his big second contract.
- Edge Rusher Emmanuel Ogbah: Emmanuel Ogbah has quietly been a very good NFL edge rusher the last two years for the Miami Dolphins and should be recognized by the Dolphins as a foundational player. Ogbah has been a double-digit sack artist in his last two seasons in South Beach and deserves a good sized NFL contract and with Jaelan Phillips developing into a good pass rusher opposite him, it's even more important for Miami to keep him around. He's 28 yrs of age and his best years appear to still be ahead of him and signing to 3yr deal of around $12,000,000 per would probably retain him through his prime productive years. He's an important player for them and shouldn't find himself testing free agency anytime soon.
- Defensive Tackle Christian Wilkins: The most important player on this team in my opinion is Christian Wilkins who been everything Miami could ask for and more for a 13th overall pick in 2019 on the defensive. Christian Wilkins has been the bedrock and foundation for the Miami defense that has kept a bad offense alive for many of their games and while Wilkins isn't going to fill up the stat sheet, his presence in the middle allows all the other players on the team to do their jobs to the best of their ability. Wilkins might be on the final year of his rookie deal but they shouldn't even risk him leaving 2023 and should get him under contract now.
The Miami are only a good quarterback away from potentially making the playoffs if they retain these players and their chances remain high to be a dark horse team in the playoff. The three players mentioned above are integral to their success and in my opinion, they can't leave any of them sniff the free agent market and with $64,000,00 to spend, they have the money to retain them easily and still add more pieces.
Get rid of Tua
The Miami Dolphins, mainly Stephen Ross and the front office and not former head coach Brian Flores, made huge mistake in the 2020 NFL draft when they decided to go in the direction of one Tua Tagovailoa instead of Justin Herbert and this team has paid the price dearly as both Joe Burrow, #1 overall pick, and Justin Herbert have exceeded expectations from that draft and Tua has sadly fallen far short of expectations both due to injury and lacking skills overall as a player and the Dolphins have to be looking at potential replacements for him now and beyond. Tua Tagovailoa shouldn't been the 5th overall pick in the draft and would have been better served going to an organization that had pieces around him rather than Miami who simply has struggled the past decade at adding offensive talent for quarterbacks to play with. I was a believer in Tua coming out of college as I am man enough to admit that I was dead wrong. I was enticed by the laser accuracy and arm talent that I believed he had but his pieces receivers at Alabama made his average talent look elite. Tua has to get traded for the Dolphins to get rid of him and while I think he's not going to ever be an elite quarterback in his career, perhaps a fresh start with another organization could rejuvenate his career. They won't get much for him but in a bad quarterback class, they might have a hot market for him come the new league year.
Upgrade the offensive tackle: Draft or Free Agency
The Miami Dolphins offensive line has been terrible the last couple seasons ever since they traded away Laremy Tunsil and replacing him in 2022 has to be the highest priority for them this offseason. The free agent market for offense tackles isn't terrible and has some potential players that could certainly right the ship at the position and I think the perfect player to sign is the soon to be former Saints offensive tackle Terron Armstead whose coming off of a very good year despite a terrible quarterback situation and offense around him. Armstead is still one of the better offensive tackles in the NFL and who plays quarterback in Miami can expect the 3x pro selection to keep their blindside relatively clean. They have the #27th overall pick in the draft and probably could use another tackle their as well and if they were to draft a Daniel Faalele or a Trevor Penning, Miami Dolphins fans would be happy. They need to at least invest in the offensive line in order to see what they have in Tua Tagovailoa, assuming he's still there in 2022, and if they want any success in the near future they will need to solidify the production in the trenches.