Yesterday's Offseason Training Activity brings us a lot to talk about.  And yet again, Jason Taylor has found a way to make himself the top headline - and he wasn't even there.

As you all know, Tony Sparano told the media yesterday that's he's been informed Taylor will not be at any of the off-season activities and also does not plan on being in training camp once July rolls around.  Instead, he wants to be traded.  I don't want to continue to harp on this subject, but I did want to throw in my 2 cents.

And basically, my thoughts on this are pretty basic.  Jason Taylor is wrong here.  He's now a liar, having written in his ESPN blog that he'd be in Miami for all the mandatory practices as well as having said on the radio that after this dancing stuff was done that he'd be back in Miami, and I'm having a hard time trying to convince myself of anything other than that Taylor is just dead wrong here.  All he's doing now is tarnishing his reputation in South Florida.

Here's the bottom line: Taylor is under contract with the Miami Dolphins for 2 more seasons and for $16.5 million dollars.  If he decides not to show for camp in July, then he's breaching the contract and will be fined each day he is absent.  And now the question arises as to what the Dolphins should do about this situation.

And make no mistake about it, this is a big decision for the front office to make.  Giving in to Taylor's demands and trading him for less value than they originally were looking for will set a very bad precedent going forward.  Giving in and trading him for minimal value will just allow future Dolphin players to think they can get away with this same crap under this new regime.  Much like the Bengals are doing with Chad Johnson, the Dolphins must also stay strong and not give in to players who demand trades and threaten to hold out while awaiting their trade.  And it's my thinking that they need to hold their ground and not trade Taylor for anything less than a 2nd round pick, though I could also live with a 3rd rounder with something extra thrown in.

If the Dolphins can't find the right deal for Taylor, they need to just hold onto him, fine him for every day he misses, and wait for him to return during the regular season.  Should Taylor decide to retire, then that's fine.  He'll be the one missing out on $7+ million in 2008 and it will free up some room under the cap for the Dolphins to work with going forward. 

And no, I don't think they should just cave to Taylor because of how valuable he's been to this team in the past.  Yes, he's been a model citizen in this town for years.  He's an absolute fan favorite and a great person off the field, too.  But that gives him no right to do what he's doing.  This organization should in no way simply cater to Jason's demands.  All athletes need to understand that when they sign a long-term contract, they have to honor it. 

One final thought on this: no one player is above the team.  I'm a Miami Dolphins fan first and foremost and only care about what is best for the team, not for one individual player.

Now, let's get into some things about the players that are actually participating this offseason.  And to do so, you'll have to make the jump...

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It's Saturday, so it's time to break out another video.  Today I got two for you.  One features an old Dolphin and the other features one of the newest Dolphins.

First up is the new Dolphin.  Below is Akin Ayodele, reporting from the Playboy Golf Tournament for Jim Rome Is Burning:

So he seems like he's having a good time this off-season.  To be honest, I've always thought of him as a pretty good player.  But I never realized a) how big he is; and b) how outgoing he is.  He should get along well with a lot of the current players (Channing Crowder comes to mind right away).

Anyways, the 2nd video is after the jump...

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I recently got the chance to catch up with Dave Halprin of Blogging The Boys, SBN's Dallas Cowboys blog, to get his thoughts on Akin Ayodele.  After all, he's watched Akin more than any of us have over the past couple of seasons.  So who better to tell us a little bit about him than Dave. 

Below are his thoughts on Ayodele:

Akin Ayodele was a solid player for us but he wasn't very dynamic. He started at WILB for two years and was the kind of guy who made his 4-6 tackles in a game but never did anything that stood out after it was over. There were no big hits that fired up the defensive or caused turnovers, only occasionally did he make a play in the backfield of the opponent and his blitzing wasn't very effective.

On the other hand he was usually where he was supposed to be on his assignments and in combination with Bradie James controlled the middle of the field well against the run. Both years it seemed to me that he was better early in the season but as the games rolled on into November and December he became less effective. He's an athletic guy who can move but he didn't particularly impress in terms of shedding blocks. If the Dolphins run the 3-4 defense under Parcells/Sparano that we ran in Dallas two years ago (a two gap scheme), he will have to take on blocks from guards a lot.

I never had any major complaint about Ayodele on defense; he was never the guy who I thought was terrible or blew the game for us. But he was never the guy who I thought helped us win the game or did anything special. All in all, an average player but not a playmaker.

That works for me.  I'm not expecting Ayodele to be a play-making ILB in this 3-4 defense.  All I'm looking for him to do is be consistent and stop the run.  At this point, the Dolphins just need players who will be in position to make plays and then actually make the play.  Ayodele strikes me as a player who will be effective against the run, and that's all I'll be asking out of him.

As it stands now, Ayodele will enter camp in a battle with Channing Crowder and Reggie Torbor to be one of Miami's 2 starting interior linebackers.  In the end, though, I'd expect Ayodele and Crowder to win the starting jobs.

Again, a big thanks to Dave for his time.  For more Cowboys insight, head over to Blogging The Boys.

I'm a little late to the party with this one.  While I was out tonight, I received a surprising text message that read "Dolphins acquire Akin Ayodele and Anthony Fasano."  And to my delight, the text wasn't a joke.

Various sources, including ESPN , the Palm Beach Post , and NFL.com are reporting that the Dolphins have indeed acquired LB Akin Ayodele and TE Anthony Fasano from the Cowboys in exchange for Miami's 4th round pick.

Ayodele, who will be 29 in September, spent his first 4 seasons in Jacksonville.  He won the starting job midway through his rookie season and really excelled from there on out while in Jacksonville, averaging 87 tackles, 2 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles in his 4 years there.  He then went on to Dallas, where he didn't make as much of an impact as I thought he would.  But at 6'2, 250, Ayodele has the speed that Bill Parcells is known to covet from his middle linebackers.  He's a player I've always liked, dating back to his Jacksonville days (I actually almost bought his Jaguar jersey a few years back).  Nothing he does will jump out at you when you see him play, but he's, more often than not, around the ball.  And he's a solid tackler.  He's likely to come in and compete with Channing Crowder and Reggie Torbor for one of those 2 inside linebacker starting spots in Miami's 3-4 defense.  And if I had to put money on it, I'd say Torbor is the odd man out.

Fasano, a fellow New Jersey guy, is only 24 and comes to Miami with boatloads of potential.  He was a highly touted tight end prospect coming out of Notre Dame in 2006 when the Cowboys spent a 2nd round pick on him.  However, Jason Witten has been a star in this league, forcing Fasano to have to be a #2 tight end in his 2 seasons in Dallas.  In those 2 seasons, Fasano has just 28 receptions for 269 yards and one touchdown.  However, I really don't doubt that he can come here to Miami and start at tight end come opening day.

Some are quick to call Fasano a bust, but I don't think that's fair only because he really never got a shot to be the starting tight end.  And there aren't many tight ends in this league who could beat out Jason Witten for the starting job.  But Fasano is a player who is not afraid to go over the middle and make tough catches and does have reliable hands.  Scout.com , in their draft preview from 2006, list Fasano strengths as "courage," "elusiveness with catch," and "hands and concentration."  They had his weakness listed as "blocking ability" and "strength."  They also add this:

Well rounded tight end who needs to develop more strength to improve his blocking skills. Courageous receiver not afraid to lay out to make the difficult catch.

Personally, I think this trade is a great one for the Dolphins.  It allows them to now focus on their attention on bigger needs instead of trying to find a capable starting inside linebacker and tight end.  And for only a 4th round pick, it's a very "low risk, high reward" kind of transaction.

Now I can't wait to see what draft weekend has in store for us.

Remember to check back with us tomorrow as discuss the NFL draft's first day.

And for a Cowboys' perspective on this deal, head over to Blogging The Boys .