The Miami Dolphins were one of the more active teams in free agency as they signed five new players (wide receivers Mike Wallace and Brandon Gibson, linebackers Dannell Ellerbe and Philip Wheeler and tight end Dustin Keller) while also re-signing wide receiver Brian Hartline, backup quarterback Matt Moore and safety Chris Clemons. The Dolphins also lost four former starters (tackle Jake Long, running back Reggie Bush, cornerback Sean Smith and tight end Anthony Fasano) in free agency, as well.
There has obviously been a lot of roster turnover for the Dolphins and it has only been six days since NFL free agency began. So, with that said, the following is what the 2013 Miami Dolphins depth chart looks like as of now using current players after all of the aforementioned changes to the team.
OFFENSE (29 players)
QB:Ryan Tannehill, Matt Moore, Pat Devlin RB: Lamar Miller, Daniel Thomas, Marcus Thigpen, Jonas Gray FB: Jorvorskie Lane
WR1: Mike Wallace, Davone Bess, Armon Binns, Jeff Fuller
WR2: Brian Hartline, Brandon Gibson, Rishard Matthews, Brian Tyms
TE: Dustin Keller, Charles Clay, Michael Egnew, Kyle Miller LT: Jonathan Martin, Jeff Adams LG: Richie Incognito, Josh Samuda C: Mike Pouncey RG: John Jerry, Chandler Burden RT: Will Yeatman, Andrew McDonald
DEFENSE (26 players)
DE: Cameron Wake, Derrick Shelby DT: Paul Soliai, Kheeston Randall DT: Randy Starks, Chas Alecxih DE: Jared Odrick, Olivier Vernon SLB: Koa Misi, Jason Trusnik, Jonathan Freeny MLB: Dannell Ellerbe, Austin Spitler WLB: Philip Wheeler, Josh Kaddu, Lee Robinson CB: Richard Marshall, R.J. Stanford, Julian Posey
CB: Dimitri Patterson, Nolan Carroll, De’Andre Presley S: Reshad Jones, Jimmy Wilson S: Chris Clemons, Kelcie McCray
SPECIAL TEAMS (3 players)
K: Dan Carpenter P: Brandon Fields LS: John Denney
The Miami Dolphins would ideally like to add a pass rusher and a playmaking safety but their two major needs at this time are at offensive tackle and cornerback.
The team has options at tackle with players already on the roster. With Jake Long moving on, they will likely shift Jonathan Martin to the blindside full time. They can then try backup Will Yeatman at right tackle or shift John Jerry there and get a right guard in free agency or the draft. Their best option is probably to sign a veteran right tackle like Eric Winston, though.
There are a lot of veteran cornerbacks available on the free agent market but the Dolphins have not shown much interest, even after losing starter Sean Smith to free agency. This leads me to believe that the Dolphins will look to add at least one cornerback in the first three rounds in next month’s NFL Draft. Florida State’s Xavier Rhodes could be the Dolphins pick at #12.
Finally, there are at least a few veterans that may be on the roster bubble. One of those players could be wide receiver Davone Bess after the recent additions at the position. Even more likely to be on the way out is cornerback Dimitri Patterson who has a cap hit of $4.6 million. Patterson can be released without the Dolphins having to carry any dead money moving forward.
Like it has been said many times before, teams win in the NFL by building through the draft. While the team’s activity in free agency has been met by mostly cheers from Dolphins fans, what the Miami Dolphins do in the NFL Draft is even more important as it will setup the team for 2013 and beyond.
