In a private moment during the 2017 season when his offense wasn’t quite performing as he wanted, coach Adam Gase referred to what general manager Chris Grier had done that offseason for one side of the football and suggested it could be done for the other.
“Next offseason we’ll have to fix the offense,” Gase said softly. “Chris fixed the defense this year. We can fix the offense next year.”
That previous offseason the Dolphins, at the direction of Grier, Gase and executive vice president Mike Tannenbaum, had “fixed” the defense by drafting three defensive players with their first three draft picks, signing linebacker Lawrence Timmons, safety T.J. McDonald and safety Nate Allen in free agency.
The Dolphins figured they had six new defensive starters when training camp began so the defense had been significantly addressed. And, no, it didn’t ultimately work as planned because the players added didn’t perform as hoped.
But here’s the point: Dolphins GM Chris Grier has a history of addressing problems in bunches.
He “fixed” the defense in 2017.
He addressed the offensive line last year, drafting three players, including two the first two rounds, and signing two in free agency.
He added three running backs in 2019 and four more in 2020.
He signed cornerback Byron Jones to what was at the time the highest free agency contract for a cornerback and then drafted another one, Noah Igbinoghene, in the first round.
in 2018 the Dolphins needed tight end help and Grier selected Mike Gesicki in the second round, and Durham Smythe in the fourth round.
So when Grier sees a need he doesn’t simply try to address it. He tries to obliterate it.
And that’s why this offseason the Dolphins will be addressing their offense like a NASCAR pit crew addressing a blown tire.
They’re going to be all over it.
Receivers ... plural.
Running backs ... plural.
A quarterback for sure to serve as the backup to Tua Tagovailoa. Maybe two if they trade for, well, you know.
Offensive line? Again?
Yes, because the Dolphins need to figure out what to do at center.
This doesn’t mean the Dolphins won’t add to the defense if the right opportunity — free agent or draft pick — presents. But the priority is likely to be about the No. 15 scoring offense ahead of the No. 6 scoring defense.
The more pressing attention will be on the offense, on which the team has $71 million in cap space allotted, more than the defense, on which Miami already has $86.5 million in cap space allotted.
And here’s the good news: It’s a good offseason to be in the market for offensive talent.
Because there are going to be opportunities to add offensive talent in free agency and a draft deep in offensive players.
Draft first:
“If you’re going to stay to strength, you’re going to see a lot of offensive talent selected early,” ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper said Monday.
Most mock drafts, Kiper’s included, has quarterbacks galore dominating the first round. Kiper has said he can see five going in the first nine selections when one allows for trades.
That glut of QBs might not sound all that important to the Dolphins other than in offering an opportunity to trade down.
But if the Dolphins are going to chase wide receiver help, which they definitely need, Kiper sees the quarterbacks being pushed up while better and better receivers are pushed down. It’s a grand opportunity for a team with, say, multiple picks in the first round.
Kiper sees some receivers taken early, then some defenders, then “there is a run on maybe some more offensive players, and with all the wide receivers ,we’re talking 30 to 35 wide receivers that have grades inside the first five rounds,” he said.
So it’s not just about Ja’Marr Chase or DeVonta Smith for the Dolphins.
It might also be about Alabama’s Jaylen Waddle, LSU’s Terrace Marshall, Florida’s Kadarius Toney, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman, or later on Purdue’s Rondale Moore, and Oklahamo State’s Tylan Wallace among several others.
Free agency will also offer wide receiver help and one veteran who caught Miami’s eye last year was Nelson Agholor, who spent his first five inconsistent seasons in Philadelphia before going to Las Vegans and catching 48 passes for 896 yards and eight touchdowns last season.
Agholor, who is 6-foot and 198 pounds, caught five passes for 155 yards and a touchdown in a December game against the Dolphins.
Because the salary cap is expected to drop from $198.2 million to perhaps $181 million and $185 million there could be bargains available in free agency. So a class that is expected to include JuJu Smith-Schuster, Will Fuller, Curtis Samuel and Marvin Jones won’t necessarily all be getting paid as they might wish.
The running back class in the draft is also deep with Dolphins fans focused on Alabama’s Najee Harris or Clemson’s Travis Etienne. One name in free agency to keep in mind, beyond Aaron Jones, are New England’s James White.
White, who attended St. Thomas Aquinas, is more a pass-catching threat but his ties to the New England Patriots and South Florida make him intriguing locally.
And while we’re on the subject of Patriots looming free agents, that team must make a decision on center David Andrews, who was a key part of the team’s championship days in previous years.
Andrews was injured part of last season and didn’t play as he has before so that and the new salary cap environment might create an opportunity for Miami to upgrade from center Ted Karras, who is also a looming free agent.
The Dolphins likely want a veteran center to help Tagovailoa set protections before the snap.
But it’s unlikely the Dolphins would get into a bidding duel for Andrews or any offensive lineman after Grier went so big on the line in 2020.
