Sports Buzz

Reaction on Dolphins draft; Heat, UM/Jacory, Fins update

Before we get to Sunday's buzz column, a few items:

1) Knicks center Tyson Chandler said Monday morning that he's recovering from his flu and will play in Game 2 against the Heat. He said he felt like a "zombie" during Game 1. Knicks guard Baron Davis (back) said he's not feeling great but will play. 

2) Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin, recovering from April 2 knee surgery, said today it's a possibility he might return for Game 4 of the Heat-Knicks series.

3) Sunday afternoon note: UM quarterback Jacory Harris, who went undrafted, will audition for the Dolphins at their rookie min-camp this coming weekend. (He has not signed, but will audition). He will audition for the Arizona Cardinals the following week. The Kansas City Chiefs also have expressed interest in taking a look at him.

4) Tight end Nick Mandich, one of late/great Dolphins announcer Jim Mandich's three sons, also accepted an invitation to audition at the Dolphins rookie mini-camp next week.... The Dolphins on Sunday signed undrafted cornerbacks Kevyn Scott (Syracuse) and Trenton Hughes (Maryland). Scott went to St. Thomas Aquinas.

5) Besides the undrafted Canes listed below, others who reportedly joined teams Sunday include LaRon Byrd (Arizona), Micanor Regis (Falcons), JoJo Nicolas (Giants) and Jordan Futch (Buccaneers).

SUNDAY BUZZ COLUMN

Dolphins draft postscripts:

### The glass-half-full view from the past three days: Miami not only landed a (possible) longterm quarterback but two other prospects who some considered first-round talents (Jonathan Martin, Lamar Miller). What’s more, the Olivier Vernon pick drew plaudits among evaluators.

The glass-half-empty perspective? The Dolphins didn’t procure a sure-fire rotation-caliber receiver, though B.J. Cunningham’s production at Michigan State suggests he MIGHT be a No. 3 or No. 4. Also, concerns were raised about Martin’s strength. Plus, safety and right guard remain shaky.

NFL Network’s Mike Mayock thought a receiver would have been sensible in the third round, suggesting Rutgers’ Mohamed Sanu (115 catches last season) or Wisconsin’s Nick Toon. “They don’t have a No. 1 receiver,” Mayock said, making the point again in round four.

Instead, the Dolphins took Michael Egnew at 78; Mayock noted Missouri tight ends, like Egnew, are often “freakish tight ends that don’t block.” But “he really can run.”

ESPN’s Todd McShay said Egnew, whose receptions dropped from 90 to 50 in 2011, must “become more consistently productive, do a better job running routes and separating.” Pro Football Weekly's respected draft analysis said he has “no power” as a blocker and “shows little strength or creativity after the catch” but “can make difficult catches look easy.”

### Mayock said of Vernon: “Of all the [UM] underclassmen that came out – and I don’t think most of them should – Vernon is one I bang the table for. When he got back [from suspension], he played every step with passion. He’s a solid 4-3 defensive end.”

McShay called Vernon a “great pick. Production didn’t always match up, but he shows quickness off the line and has a chance to make an impact as a pass-rusher.” ESPN’s Mel Kiper said he’s also “decent against the run. Had he played a full year, maybe he could have been an early to mid second-round pick.”

### ESPN’s Jon Gruden and Mayock said Stanford’s Martin can move seamlessly from left to right tackle, but Kiper isn’t convinced, suggesting Mississippi’s Bobby Massie made more sense at 42.

Miami “was the worst pass protection team in football last year,” Gruden said. “Why not get three-year starter who took care of Andrew Luck’s blind side? He’s athletic” but “you would like to see more thump, more explosion.”

Said Kiper: “A finesse guy, needs more power.” Mayock said he’s a “first-round talent and will start” immediately but “consistency and toughness were some questions from scouts.” PFW noted Martin “was exposed by the speed of USC’s Nick Perry” and called him an “overhyped developmental project who needs to get stronger.”

### All the analysts agree Miller was a great value pick in the fourth round, even though the Dolphins didn’t necessarily need a running back. McShay said Miller “is the most explosive runner in this draft. He’s not Chris Johnson, but he’s not that far away.” Said Mayock: “I love his ability with the ball in his hands, but I don’t think he can pass protect and I don’t think he’s any kind of short yardage guy. You don’t see him on the goal line, third down and short yardage and that’s a red flag.”

Kiper said Miller “plays like he’s 5-10, 185” even though “he’s 5-11, 215. He can take a pounding. He’s a big guy with game-breaking speed. The question is can he be multi-dimensional.”

FYI: Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland envisions Miller returning punts (he averaged 23.1 yards on seven returns in 2011, eight for 26.8 in 2010). He called him a "developmental back" who needs to become "a little more rugged" in better in pass protection.

Of taking two UM players (Vernon and Miller), Ireland said Al Golden -- who spoke at length to Ireland about UM's players -- "has been very good to me. I like the way he coaches his players. I believe in his program." "The ceiling" on Miller and Vernon "is endless."

Here’s what Pro Football Weekly’s draft analysis said on Miami’s other picks Saturday: Oregon linebacker Josh Kaddu is “lean, athletic, with good range, closing speed and pass-rush potential” but “can be exploited in the pass game.” And he “too often loses positioning in man coverage.”…

Sixth-round receiver Cunningham (79, 1306) “works the middle of the field and makes catches in traffic. Physical after the catch. Very good production. Most effective running slants and working inside and using his size to move the chains. [But] very small hands. Pedestrian speed. Struggles to separate vs. man coverage. Struggled vs. better cornerbacks and showed he can be contained: see Notre Dame, Nebraska, Michigan. Shut down vs. Nebraska’s Alfonso Dennard.”… 

Seventh-round receiver Rishard Matthews from Nevada (91 catches, 1364 yards in 2011) has "reliable hands and is productive after catch" and can also return points (13.3 average in 2011) but "lacks top end speed to blow by defenders or pull away from the pack. Has clear developmental value."

Texas defensive tackle Kheeston Randall has “very good size and length” but “poor hand use, marginal pass-rush value and limited upside.”

### PFW's analysis of some of Miami's post-draft signings:

Notre Dame running back Jonas Gray had 791 yards and a 6.9 per carry average in 11 games before tearing his ACL against Boston College. "Could turn out to be a surprise value pick if he can stay healthy and learn to protect the ball." He has seven fumbles in 200 career touches....

Texas A&M receiver Jeff Fuller (70 catches, 826 yards last year and one of Ryan Tannehill's targets in college) "struggles to separate vertically and drops have been too prevalent." At 6-4, he's a "a big, inconsistent, possession/red zone receiver whose stock tumbled during a disappointing, injury-plagued season when he too often appeared distracted."

Penn State receiver Derek Moye (40 catches, 654 yards) is "a possession receiver whose best chance to stick with come as a No. 4 or No. 5 receiver in a West Coast system."...

Missouri 6-2, 253-pound defensive end Jacquies Smith (five sacks, four passes batted down, four forced fumbles last season) is a "tweener speed rusher whose speed isn't special. Disappears for stretches."... Arkansas State safety Kelcie McCray (10 career highs) has "good speed and tackling ability."... Other undrafted free agents who say they're joining the Dolphins include Oregon State linebacker Cameron Collins, Portland State offensive tackle Dustin Waldron, Purdue safety Albert Evans, Pittsburgh defensive tackle Chas Alecxih, Temple guard Derek Dennis, Boise State defensive end Jarrell Root, BYU center Terence Brown, Utah defensive end Derrick Shelby and Arizona State linebacker Shelly Lyons. 

MORE FINS CHATTER

### If the Dolphins change their mind and decide to add another veteran receiver, available options include include Houston’s Jacoby Jones (likely would be cut if the Texans can’t trade him) and free agents Plaxico Burress, Patrick Crayton, Braylon Edwards, Roy Williams, T.J. Houshmanzadeh, Mark Clayton, Greg Camarillo, Bernard Berrian. Donald Driver would be an option if the Packers release him; they have been non-committal.

Besides Brian Hartline and Davone Bess, Miami's other receivers are Legedu Naanee, Clyde Gates, Marlon Moore, Roberto Wallace, Cunningham and Matthews.  "I have confidence in the players I have on the roster," Ireland said of receiver. "We have some young players that are ascending."

### Dolphins fans can drive themselves nuts by ruminating over Ryan Tannehill’s 2011 numbers. Consider: He was 53rd among major college quarterbacks in completion percentage at 61.6, though it would have been 68.1 if half of the 79 dropped passes were caught. He was 67th in yards per attempt at 7.1, worse than FIU’s Wesley Carroll and well behind UM’s Jacory Harris (20th).

He had the 56th-best rating, worse than any drafted QB except Ryan Lindley, and threw the sixth-most picks (15).

What’s more, on balls thrown 20 yards or more, Tannehill was just 16 for 58 (37.7 yards per catch), compared with 19 for 44 (33.7) for Brandon Weeden, who had the benefit of Justin Blackmon. ESPN’s KC Joyner noted Tannehill was sharp from short range, completing 76 percent of passes thrown 10 yards or less, with 13 touchdowns and one pick, but had more picks (six) than touchdowns (five) on balls thrown 11 to 19 yards.

But besides his size and arm strength, here are positives we keep hearing: His knack for making plays on the run (“pretty impressed” by that, Washington’s Mike Shanahan told us. “He’s got good feet. I watched every throw”); his intelligence (“I see vision, I see progression reading,” Charley Casserly told us); and his toughness (among the first qualities mentioned by general managers Scott Pioli of the Chiefs and John Schneider of Seattle).

### Owner Steven Ross said it would be fine with him if Tannehill doesn’t play a down in 2012, meaning he won't pressure the staff… Though Kiper has been calling Joe Philbin a quarterback guru, Philbin admitted he wasn’t involved much in developing Aaron Rodgers. As Rich Gannon says, Philbin is an "offensive line guy" (like Tony Sparano, but more cerebral and less of a yeller)….

### The irony of Philip Merling’s release is some of last year’s coaches expressed frustration with his lack of passion, shaky work habits and limited production, but Ireland wanted to keep him. Ireland finally came around last week.

HEAT, MARLINS, UM CHATTER

### LeBron James was understated after his Game 1 masterpiece Saturday, saying, "It was an efficient game for myself. I'm not going to always be as efficient as I was tonight." Consider: His 71.4 percent shooting against the Knicks in Game 1 (10 for 14) was his highest in 93 postseason games, and his 32 points marked the 41st time he has scored at least 30 in the playoffs. What's more, his 28.1 scoring average is fifth highest in NBA postseason history, behind only Michael Jordan (33.4), Allen Iverson, Jerry West and Tracy McGrady.

### Mike Miller shot 3 for 10 on Shane Battier 2 for 8 in Game 1, but that does not remotely tell the story. Battier was on the floor for all of the 24-2 stampede to end the second quarter and Miller was on the floor for all but two points of that. Both hit big threes in that run, and both played stout defense. Battier had six boards and a blocked shot, Miller four rebounds and a steal. "It's a treat to have [Battier]," James said. As Dwyane Wade said, "What I think was great is Shane took some pressure off LeBron by being able to guard Carmelo Anthony a lot."

### Impending free agent Steve Nash, 38, said, “I love what [the Heat] is doing” and “I would definitely listen to them” but “I have no clue” about where he will play next season. “I’m in no rush... Winning and being competitive and being part of a good environment, those are at the top" of factors important to him.

If Nash – who finished second in the league in assists (10.7) and led all guards in shooting percentage (53.6) – leaves Phoenix to play for a championship contender, the most plausible options are Miami and the Lakers, who both have only a $3 million exception. The Knicks would be, too, but need their $5 million exception to re-sign Jeremy Lin.

### Here's where some undrafted Canes players signed Saturday night: Chase Ford (Eagles), Marcus Forston (Patriots), Adewale Ojomo (Giants), Harland Gunn (Cowboys), Tyler Horn (Falcons).... Undrafted Gators quarterback John Brantley and receiver Deonte Thompson signed with Baltimore.

### When Heath Bell made clear he didn’t appreciate a Marlins trainer questioning his workout routine – “apparently our trainer says I work too hard” - it wasn’t a shock. Two players and three prominent agents in the past year criticized the Marlins’ trainers to us, questioning their ability to diagnose and treat injuries, among other issues. One agent said he would be leery about sending pitchers here because of the training staff. Unhappy players persuaded management to promote a third trainer (Dustin Luepker) from Double A this spring.

Ireland, Philbin assess Day 2 of draft; Knicks brimming with confidence vs. Heat

Here's what Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland and coach Joe Philbin had to say after Day 2 of the draft late Friday night. For nuggets on the Heat-Knicks playoff series, click on the last post.

 

JEFF IRELAND:

(On Olivier Vernon) – “Obviously we took Olivier Vernon from the University of Miami, a junior, who came out early. We feel real good about him we call him a pressure player, were going to see him play kind of a hybrid position potentially both end positions and we see him having a role in nickel situations as a pass rusher. We had him over here a couple of weeks ago and got the chance to really get to know the kid at one of our Miami workouts, and he really impressed our coaching staff, and myself in particular, as an athlete and a person. (He’s) really strong handed and very athletic. From a personal character standpoint he was very upfront about some of his past and I felt really good about having him join our team.”

 

(On Michael Egnew) – “Michael Egnew, the tight end out of Missouri, was a three or four year starter and team captain who caught 147 balls I think. He is very athletic and a very good pass-catching tight end. I saw him at the Senior Bowl and had some time to visit with him there, and he really impressed us at the Senior Bowl because he started playing a tight end position. At Missouri he was really detached most of the time, and I got to see him put his hand in the dirt and come off and hit someone as a tight end, so he has some versatility we fell like and he’s someone who we are very interested in working with.”

 

(On the trend of using multiple tight ends in the NFL) – “I like the vision that we’re getting a guy that can run down the middle of the field, that’s something that Joe (Philbin) and I have talked about in particular. I like athletic tight ends, those guys make plays in this league and Joe has had some experience with some athletic tight ends and so there was a vision that came together in the draft room with this player (Egnew). A couple of weeks ago we sat down and started watching the kid, but we feel like he fits what we are trying to get accomplished.”

 

(On the Dolphins pre-draft interest in Olivier Vernon) – “I really didn’t know much about him until I went to the University of Miami Pro Day and my scouts told me to take a look at this guy and pay attention to him. My exposure to the player wasn’t as high on Vernon until he came in here, my scouts saying ‘we love him, we love him’ but my exposure really started getting more concentrated after I saw him at the University of Miami Pro Day and he came here. That’s when I really started studying him from this year and last year and our coaches got involved with it, so it became very clear to me that this was a guy that we should consider.”

 

(On Olivier Vernon performance at the collegiate level) – “You know missing six games this year and really only starting three (games) didn’t really have a great amount of production, but we trust our eyes and we trust what we see. We had a good conversation with (Miami Head) Coach Golden. He believes in him, and he’s one of our kind of guys, you know we talk in the same language that way, and I saw what he (Golden) sees in him to, so he’s a guy I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a big year, and a big career also.”

 

(On how the trade with the San Diego Chargers came together) – “We just had the two together and I really wanted to see if I could parlay something in, just to get an extra pick sometime tomorrow, so it was pretty simple. We wanted to take the pressure player first and felt like we might be able to move down a couple of spots and pick up Michael (Egnew).”

 

(On Egnew being a converted receiver and reaction to those who say his blocking is more getting in the way of teammates) – “I beg to differ with that. What you saw at the Senior Bowl was a guy putting his hand in the dirt and firing off and hitting some people. That scheme in Missouri is not a physical power scheme and you don’t really see him put his hand in the dirt there. So it’s hard to project when a guy’s out in space. He’ll get on you, out in space, but he’s blocking smaller guys. What you really see and you like about him is his run after catch. He’s a physical, 250-pound man that’s moving pretty fast. You see the physicality in that regard. At the Senior Bowl he impressed us that way. The willingness is absolutely there.”

 

JOE PHILBIN

(On Jonathan Martin and all three picks, but especially Martin) – “I really like the guy (Jonathan Martin, T, Stanford University). When I first watched him, right before the combine, before we went to the combine, what got my attention was his hand usage. I thought his timing on his punch – the things we teach in pass protection, with the punch and the use of the hands – the timing is the key, and I thought it was exceptional. I think his feet are very good. He’s got good length in his arms. I’m excited about him. I really liked him when I first watched him. He’s a guy that’s good in a workout but his film is as good as his workout. It’s tough sometimes because you watch these guys and you get intrigued a little bit about how they run the forty or the three-cone and some of those other things, but I thought his film married up well to his workout numbers. He’s smart, obviously, he’s a high character guy, and I’m excited about him. I think he’s a very, very good prospect.”

 

(On if he’s happy with the way Jeff Ireland and the scouts have done in the second round) – “I think Jeff and his scouts have done a great job, of course. Absolutely. It’s a team effort. These guys, they work their tails off. I came from a place where people feel like it’s a very good draft room there…these guys work their tails off. They’re very thorough, very detailed, I mean, Jeff’s got more cross-checkers – it’s impressive to watch those guys work and he listens to the coaches. Everybody chips in, but he makes the decisions. I think it’s been a good process, a very good process. Hopefully, and I believe we have, we’ve added some good, quality players.”

 

(On how much involvement he sees himself having in developing Martin) – “Not a lot. Again, as I said last night, and I firmly believe this, I’ll say it again, the position coach is the lifeblood of the football program here. I believed that when I was a position coach, I believed that when I was an offensive coordinator and I believe it as the head coach. Jim Turner is our offensive line coach. I’ve got tremendous faith and confidence in him, or I wouldn’t have hired him. We all sit together in a room before we step out onto the field. We all agree on what the protection schemes are going to be. We all agree on what the fundamentals of the position are going to be. I don’t see myself being involved in that at all. Chris Mosley is our assistant offensive line coach. You hire people to do a job and you expect them to do their job. That’s how it’s going to be run. Steve Ross isn’t coaching the football team; he hired me to coach the football team. Those guys will be able to do a great job with Jonathan Martin.”

 

(On how difficult the switch from the left side to the right side will be for Martin)  - “I don’t know.  We’ll find out, we’ll get here this weekend and will putz around with his stance and who knows.  We’ll see.  Some guys make it like that (snapping fingers) Steve (Wine), it’s not a problem. Other guys it takes a little bit while, the transitions a little bit tougher so we’ll start working with him.  We’re going work with him on. I don’t know if he’s going to get 100 percent of his reps on the right side anyway.  We haven’t begun our discussions of that on the depth chart but I know you can never have enough tackles who can protect the quarterback and we feel very good about what we’ve seen on tape in terms of his ability to protect the quarterback.  It’s not perfect but I’m excited about it.”

 

(On if Martin is the one you expects the most production from the picks so far ) - “Not necessarily, not necessarily.  Again you go through this process when you evaluate players even from our perspective as coaches and certainly Jeff talked about the vision that we have for certain players, which is important, before you select them on your ball club because you want to know how, at least you think how you’re going to utilize them.  But again, until you really get your hands around these guys it’s really hard to sit here and say, ‘Yeah I think this guy’s going to step forward and do this, and this guy’s going to step forward and do that’.  I don’t know what the Giants thought Victor Cruz was going to catch 85 passes, I don’t know the exact number, so hopefully they all, they all may have chance to contribute and make an impact.  Who that is and how quickly and how much, as I told the team yesterday at the end of our mini-camp, that’s kind of the fun part about this business and this profession and you know you don’t exactly know all the answers.  You do your best and you study the film and you trust your eyes at a certain point in time but we’ll see how that all shakes out.”

 

(On if Jermichael Finley the type of prototype of what you see in this offense for the tight end) - “I think you have to again, coaches putting guys in the position to be successful.  So if we asked Jermichael Finley to block the defensive end every single play and ran right the ball right to his place side leg, chances are we weren’t going to have a ton of success. So what we did was we attempted to utilize him the best way we could and (Michael) Egnew, I’m excited about the kid.  He’s a big skilled player.  We like to attack the middle of the field.  He’s going to be a good player in the red zone.  That’s an area where I thought these guys here in Miami did a lot of nice things last year.  They’re staff did.  They struggled a little bit in the red zone and this is a guy that I think can help us in the red zone and I think you can use him, he’s certainly been comfortable playing outside the box.  In a slot and even as a wider receiver like throwing screens through him.  They’ve run reverses with him.  I’m not sure the first day we’re going to run a reverse to him to be honest with you (laughing).  But, and I think he’s going be, Jeff mentioned, he’s a willing blocker.  It’s a little bit of a brave new world for him but he’s got ability.  He can bend.  If you can bend and you’re willing then you got a chance.”

 

(On what did you see out of Olivier Vernon that stood out) - “I think he’s strong.  I think he’s has some kind natural strength, Omar (Kelly) I don’t even know what his bench press, I couldn’t tell you and I really don’t even care.  But when he came here and worked out, he’s got some strength, some pop, some snap in his body that again sometimes that’s hard to coach.  You can watch guys and you can see guys bench press at the combine, but when you see guys move and play football you can tell some guys have some natural snap to their body.  They have good leverage.  They have good bend and good power.  He’s got big hands.  He’s 21-years old.  I like this strength.  I like the way he worked and I think he’s got great potential.”

 

JEFF IRELAND:

(On how do you feel about the first two days of the draft so far) - “I don’t know what kind of answer you feel like I’m going to give you (laughing). I feel great about it. A lot of work goes into this you don’t anyways get exactly what you want. When you’re sitting here with four picks, you would like to have four first-rounders. But you know that’s not going to happen, so we feel great about the four players that we’ve added to our roster. Again, like I told you, it’s a projection business. Some guys are going to contribute quickly, some guys are going to take some time to develop. We have a developmental program in place and firmly believe that with our coaching staff and the vision that their head coach has, these guys are going to become good players and so I feel very good about it.” 

 

(On how are you going to address tomorrow) - “Well, our draft board still has players on the board. We feel very good about some of those guys. We’re going to try to be patient in some cases and be aggressive in other occasions. Certainly, we have a couple of other things that we want to try to address. We’ll see how the board marries to the need.” 

 

(On seeing all the DL taking off the board, how much patience did you have) - “Again, I don’t know how patient I was. I was probably nervous. I really liked this kid. You did see kind of a trend going with pressure players and pass rushers. I’m not saying this guy is only a pressure player because this guy can play the run too. That’s what I like about him. He’s a developmental player. Certainly, needs some work and needs some more experience obviously to him. It’s hard. Sometimes you try to move up, you try to move down and sometimes you can’t. You just have to stay there and take the pick, but in this case we felt like some of his production may have kept him from going a little higher to be honest with you.” 

 

(On what went into the decision of not addressing the need at WR, was it just following the board) - “Yes, basically following the board.” 

 

(On having a high grade on Jonathan Martin, was it a first round grade) - “No, I’m not going to go there. I just don’t think it’s fair. We felt like we got the proper value where we took him, absolutely.”