Adam Gase Not Discouraged by Dolphins Departures
- Dolphins rookie head coach Adam Gase has watched as a trio of talented young players (Olivier Vernon, Lamar Miller, Rishard Matthews) left Miami this offseason. Still, he understands the roster turnover is part of the job. “That’s the struggle, that’s the tough part about being, at least for myself being in Year 1, there’s nothing that I was able to do as far as moving forward,” he told ESPN.com’s James Walker. “We were in that situation. We had three good players that were wanted by other teams. Obviously we would have loved to keep them but it was too late. Once they hit the market, it was going to be a challenge to keep them on our roster.”
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Dolphins Eyeing Vernon Hargraves III?
- Picking at No. 13, the Dolphins are very interested in Vernon Hargraves III, a Florida spokesperson told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. With the exception of newly acquired Byron Maxwell, Miami’s cornerback contingent consists of second-, third- or fourth-year players, with Jamar Taylor heading the group.
Ryan Smith To Visit Dolphins
- In total, Smith has six workouts and five visits on his docket, Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post writes. In addition to the clubs listed above, Smith has private workouts with the Cardinals, Jets, Panthers, Patriots, and Ravens. On top of that, he has visits lined up with the Raiders, Steelers, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Vikings. At the combine, Smith turned heads when he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.47 seconds.
Dolphins Exploring Trade Market For RBs
Having missed out on several running back targets already this month, the Dolphins continue to explore every option for adding a player to their backfield. A league source tells Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald that the Dolphins’ search for a running back has led them to the trade market, where they’ve had conversations with multiple teams about a possible deal.
Salguero’s source did not specify particular teams the Dolphins have spoken to, or players they’ve inquired about, but it doesn’t appear any deal is imminent anyway.
The Dolphins saw Lamar Miller depart in free agency, signing a four-year deal with the Texans. Miami then attempted to land restricted free agent C.J. Anderson, but the Broncos ultimately decided to match Anderson’s four-year, $18MM offer sheet from the Fins, who were also in the running for Chris Johnson before he opted to re-sign with the Cardinals.
The Dolphins like incumbent running back Jay Ajayi, a 2015 fifth-rounder, but have been seeking a complementary back in order to avoid the Boise State product having to carry too significant a load.
While a trade is one option for Miami, the team could also return to the free agent market. Salguero mentions Arian Foster as one possibility, but he’s far from the only option — LeGarrette Blount, Ronnie Hillman, Steven Ridley, and Tim Hightower, among others, remain unsigned.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Dolphins Have "Heavy Interest" In Florida CB Vernon Hargreaves III
- Florida cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III says the Dolphins “have shown heavy interest” in him, tweets Jesse Re Simonton of the Miami Herald. Hargreaves, a surefire first-round pick, has a meeting with Miami scheduled for today.
Dolphins Sign Kraig Urbik
3:29pm: Urbik’s deal with the Dolphins is now official, the team has announced (via Twitter).
2:00pm: The Dolphins and Urbik have agreed to terms, tweets Rand Getlin of the NFL Network.
12:14am: The Dolphins are bringing free agent guard Kraig Urbik to team headquarters in Davie and plan on signing him to a contract if everything – including medical tests – goes well, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
Urbik, 30, was selected by the Steelers in the third round of the 2009 draft, but never appeared in a regular season game for Pittsburgh and was waived a little over a year after being drafted. Upon landing with the Bills in 2010, Urbik got the opportunity to see the field, and spent the next six seasons in Buffalo, starting 57 of the 84 games he played for the club.
In 2015, Urbik started four games for the Bills but was relegated primarily to reserve duty. With free agent signee Richie Incognito and 2015 third-rounder John Miller manning the guard spots, Urbik became somewhat expendable in Buffalo, particularly with the team needing to create every bit of cap space it could. He was released at the start of March.
Because Urbik was cut prior to the free agent period, he won’t count toward the compensatory draft pick formula if Miami signs him. For the Dolphins, Urbik would be the second veteran free agent added to the mix at guard. The team also signed former Bears left tackle Jermon Bushrod, intending to move him inside.
Out of 81 qualified guards in 2015, the Dolphins’ two starters – Dallas Thomas and Billy Turner – both ranked in the bottom 15 based on Pro Football Focus’ grades, so it’s no surprise that the team has made it a priority this offseason to add players capable of potentially beating out Thomas and Turner for starting jobs.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Dolphins Rumors: Gase, Ajayi, Williams
This offseason, the Dolphins whiffed multiple times on running back targets. The Dolphins saw Lamar Miller depart in free agency, signing a four-year deal with the Texans. Miami then attempted to land restricted free agent C.J. Anderson, but the Broncos ultimately decided to match Anderson’s four-year, $18MM offer sheet from the Fins. And, just days ago, they saw Chris Johnson re-sign with the Cardinals, despite having made the more lucrative offer of the two teams.
What’s the plan now? The only certainty is that rising sophomore Jay Ajayi will play a significant role, coach Adam Gase told reporters on Tuesday morning.
“We’re looking to have more than one guy. Jay is going to be a big part of what we’re going to do,” Gase said (Twitter link via Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald).
Here are the highlights from Gase’s chat with reporters:
- In addition to Ajayi, the Dolphins could add running backs through the draft and the later stages of free agency, Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald tweets.
- When asked about new addition Mario Williams, Gase said “we’re going to see a different guy” than what Williams showed in Buffalo last year (link via Salguero).
- Gase acknowledged that the Dolphins need more depth at cornerback (link via Beasley), though it’s not easy to find talent at that position.
- Gase said he was fine with the Eagles trade since it netted them two starting players and will still allow them to grab a third starter at No. 13 overall (Twitter link via James Walker of ESPN.com).
- Gase said he has a lot of trust in defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. Meanwhile, Gase will be heavily involved with play calling on offense (link via Walker). That means offensive coordinator Clyde Christensen might have less control than your average OC. Gase also said that he is very involved in personnel (link via Salguero).
- When asked if the Dolphins are rebuilding, Gase replied, “I don’t see us as a rebuilding team,” (link via Salguero).
Andre Branch Looking Forward To Fresh Start
- Defensive end Andre Branch is looking forward to a “new beginning” in Miami that will see him become part of a Dolphins‘ defensive line featuring players like Ndamukong Suh, Mario Williams, and Cameron Wake. As James Walker of ESPN.com details, Branch is expected to fill the hole vacated by Derrick Shelby, who signed with the Falcons.
Dolphins To Workout Cornerback, Running Back
- Florida International cornerback Richard Leonard and Kansas running back De’Andre Mann will work out for the Dolphins, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.
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Dolphins Nearly Landed CJ2K; Hire Jim Washburn
- Prior to re-signing with Arizona on Thursday, running back Chris Johnson met with the Dolphins, and he says they made it tough for him to stay with the Cardinals. “The visit went real great. It was a real, real close decision,” he told Alex Marvez and Gil Brandt of SiriusXM. “I liked everything they had going on there. But my heart was with Arizona” (Twitter links).
- The Dolphins have hired Jim Washburn as a senior defensive assistant/pass-rush specialist, a league source tells Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). The Dolphins are Washburn’s fourth NFL employer since he broke into the league as Tennessee’s defensive line coach in 1999. He was Detroit’s assistant D-line coach from 2013-15.