Miami Dolphins In Depth

Daniel Thomas is so far simply disappointing

On Monday I was standing on the sideline watching the Dolphins practice. On what is just a routine run play into the A-gap, Daniel Thomas took the handoff and this happened when there was no apparent hole:

The Dolphins running back took the handoff and turned his back to the line of scrimmage and backpedalled into the pile of offensive and defensive linemen facing the wrong direction.

I turned to Dolphins officials and said that play tells me all I need to know about Thomas as a running back. His instincts are wrong. Rather than lowering his head and pads and bullying his way into the line to create a hole or, at the very least, bouncing outside to salvage the play, he basically gave up on the play and protected himself.

Not what I would expect from the kid who is 6-1 and 228 pounds.

Not what I would expect from a second-round pick.

Not what I would expect from the player who is supposed to inherit the Miami running back spot after this year because Reggie Bush is in the final year of his contract.

Not what I would expect from an NFL running back.

That moment, in all its disappointment, came back to me when I watched Hard Knocks Tuesday. In the opening minutes of the show, amid all the players that are not getting the job done or getting cut or traded, we see Thomas called into coach Joe Philbin's office.

It wasn't so the coach could give the player a standing ovation. Seems Thomas was late to the team plane that carried the Dolphins to the Carolina game two weeks ago. And he apparently did not meet dress code requirements.

And then last week he was late to a weight lifting session.

"Last week you were late to the plane and you weren't in the proper dress code," Philbin tells Thomas. "Now, I come to find out you were 15 minutes late today. From where I sit I get concerned about that stuff. Obviously, you're going to get fined, but that's not the point. The point is I don't want to be fining anybody. I want guys that do what they're supposed to do and be where they're supposed to be and right now, two times in four days, that's not a good thing."

There's more:

"And I'm just telling you, this can't happen, that kind of stuff can't happen," Philbin adds. "I'm getting a little queasy about you. You got to take responsibility for your own career, what you're doing and when you're doing it. I don't want to come talk to you again. I want to see you out there and next time I want to talk to you on a positive thing, not this kind of stuff."

So what does all this mean?

Look, the Dolphins are fishing for bodies or draft picks or anything that can possibly help them rise from the mire that currently threatens to sink them to the bottom of the AFC East standings once the season begins.

The Detroit Lions, meanwhile, are searching for running backs. And so it's only logical that the Lions might be looking at Miami's supposedly well-stocked running back stable and think maybe Bush might be available for a receiver or draft pick.

And if I'm the Dolphins, I would love to be able to consider the option. Except that the heir to the job can't be on time and isn't exactly producing on the field and isn't exactly following in the tradition of Larry Csonka, either.

So what can the Dolphins do but hold on to Bush, right?

Well, you might say, they can offer Thomas. That's a fine idea except Thomas hasn't done anything of high regard in this league and his tardiness was now on national TV. Also, the head coach said on national TV that he's starting to feel "queasy" about the guy. Yeah, that's going to bring a bigtime dividend in trade from Detroit  ... or anybody.

It's just disappointing. That's all I can say. Disappointing.

Chris Cooley available as a tight end upgrade

The Redskins released tight end Chris Cooley today.

He is 30 years old. He is a former three-time Pro Bowl player. He said at his departure press conference, "I can still play at a high level." Oh, and catches the football.

ESPN's Adam Schefter just said teams such as Oakland, the New York Jets and Dolphins need tight end help and could use Cooley.

To me, he would be an upgrade for Miami's tight end corps. He would be help for Ryan Tannehill. Moreoever, this is what I wrote last week when I first heard of the possibility Cooley might become available.

That's all I have to say.

Discuss ...

Dolphins coach Joe Philbin: It's on the players

The Dolphins returned to an old tradition today, once again gathering in front of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, to signal the unoffical start to regular-season kickoff functions. In previous years Dolphins coaches got in front of luncheon attendees and told them the Dolphins were Super Bowl contenders or playoff contenders or just plain had a chance to be special.

What did Joe Philbin tell the business community today?

In part, he made it clear the success or failure his teams is on players rather than coaches.

"Players are 90 percent of the equation, coaches are 10 percent," Philbin said, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

It is clear listening to Philbin these past couple of weeks and months, he doesn't think much of schemes or strategies being the difference between champions and chumps. He gives the credit for success on the field to the talent on the field. And, it should be noted, he puts much of the blame for failure on the field to the talent on the field.

This is an interesting view of things only because the reason Philbin is Miami's coach today is because Dolphins ownership and, to a large degree the personnel department, believed the Dolphins were a sufficiently talented team that needed only minor tweaking and improving. Ownership and the personnel department saw this team as one that could take a new step forward if a better coach  milked the grand potential out of the roster.

In other words, the folks that hired Philbin believed a coaching change would drastically improve Miami's results.

Yet Philbin seems to think a coach can only determine 10 percent of a team's fortunes.

Neither view is wrong. But it does give pause that the views are so opposing. 

Tannehill playing Wednesday ... but should he?

Joe Philbin and his staff usually sit together two days before a preseason game and map out the playing time for every player in the coming game.

When he spoke to the media Monday evening, Philbin had not yet conducted that meeting so he wasn't aware how much his quarterbacks would play. But he did know this much about starter Ryan Tannehill:

"He’s going to play a little bit,” Philbin said.

That's fine but the question needs to be asked:

How much is to be gained by playing Tannehill a little bit when the rookie will not have the benefit of having his blind side protected by left tackle Jake Long.

Long, you see, will miss the Dallas game after suffering a knee injury in practice Monday. He could miss between 1-3 weeks. So he could be ready for the regular-season opener but he's not suiting up against the Cowboys.

And that being the case, is risking Tannehill's health worth the handful of downs he's likely to get in a game that doesn't count? Or do the Dolphins believe so strongly that the rookie needs as many snaps as possible as to risk getting him injured (more than usual)?

Regardless of the answer, the hope is the Dolphins consider what is at stake. The hope is they weigh playing Tannehill a few downs to get him experience versus exposing him to injury because he's out there without his best blindside protector.