In case you were busy this weekend, here's what you might have missed regarding our Miami Dolphins.
DOLPHINS/COWBOYS RUMORS HEATING UP
Yesterday on ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown, Chris Mortensen reported that Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones is beginning to consider the possibilities of making a trade for the #1 overall pick. The following comes courtesy of ProFootballTalk:
... And it's clear that the Cowboys are going to have to find a way to enhance the two first-rounders that they can offer up for the No. 1 pick. Under the revised draft order, the Cowboys pick at No. 22 (from Cleveland) and at No. 28. Under the trade chart, the No. 22 overall pick is worth 780 points and the No. 28 selection is worth 660 points. The No. 1 selection has a value of 3,000 points; thus, the Cowboys would be a whopping 1,560 points short.
Though the trade chart arguably needs to be adjusted to reflect the fact that the enormous financial investment that is now required when using the top pick makes the prospects of a move up even more fraught with risk, the Fins could justify the 1,560-point gap by placing that value on Barber, who coupled with Ronnie Brown could give Miami a deadly one-two punch in the backfield.
So let's take this piece by piece. First off, I've said all along that trading the #1 pick for the Cowboys' 2 1st round picks (#22 and #28) plus some extra picks would be a bad move. And though I'm not 100% on board with this trade scenario, I am enticed enough by the inclusion of Marion Barber into the deal. That peaked my interest. I've always thought that Barber is a very underrated, versatile back and I feel he would compliment Ronnie Brown very well. And though Barber's long-term deal wouldn't come cheap by any means, he along with picks #22 and #28 would still be loss costly than the #1 pick. And that extra money could be spent addressing some needs in free agency. Also, this draft, though not top heavy, is rather deep, meaning instant impact players could be had late in the first round. Regardless, I still would prefer not to trade down that low.
What I wonder, if a trade like this was to come to fruition, would be what this would mean for the current backup running backs. Ricky Williams and Lorenzo Booker are both signed and Jesse Chatman is a free agent. I'd assume if Barber was to come to Miami, Chatman's days in Miami would be over. Then, more than likely, the Dolphins would keep 4 halfbacks on the roster, at least until Ronnie Brown proved he was 100% healthy. What I'm curious about, though, in an effort to get LoBo on the field as much as possible, is if Tony Sparano and company would look to line up Booker at wide receiver more often. Otherwise, buried behind both Brown and Barber, Lorenzo could very easily be forgotten about. But I guess we'll cross this bridge when we come to it.
Getting back to the rumor, there's one more interesting tidbit about it. And it was pointed out to me by "Alpha6" in an e-mail. This past week in Mobile at the Senior Bowl, Jeff Ireland made a comment about how the preparation and draft processes are the same, regardless if you have the 1st pick or the 22nd pick. Is it any coincidence he referenced one of the picks that the Cowboys own? This will feed into the belief that PFT points out about the Dolphins and Cowboys already having the framework in place for a trade, which is why Jerry Jones hasn't been kicking and screaming about Bill Parcells raiding Jones' coaching staff and front office. Hmmm...
CHAD JOHNSON WON'T GIVE UP
Even after Bengals' head coach Marvin Lewis came out and said they will not be trading Chad Johnson, "Ocho" himself just will not give up. As posted here by "Notorious," Johnson made yet another comment about how he wants to come to Miami and be a Dolphin:
I will make one disclaimer here. I, personally, didn't see this segment. But I talked to other fans who claim to have seen this segment on ESPN. Regardless, it's been rumored for some time that Chad wants out of Cincy and that Miami is one of his top choices, if not his #1 choice. The question then becomes what it would cost to get "Ocho Cinco" to South Beach. And I don't think anyone really knows at this point, especially because nobody knows what Chad is saying behind closed doors. If he plans on making a huge problem for the Bengals by complaining to the media and even holding out, then his cost would go down because the Bengals might get desperate to trade him. But if he pledges to be a good citizen and not make a big stink, the Bengals would be less anxious to trade him and his cost would increase greatly.
So what would I be willing to trade for Chad? I'm not sure. But I wouldn't trade any of the picks the Dolphins own or may own in the top 32 (meaning any 1st round picks as well as their first 2nd round pick). But anything after that is fair game, including the Dolphins' second 2nd round pick that they got for Chris Chambers. After all, if the Dolphins trade that 2nd round pick for Chad Johnson, they would essentially be trading Chambers for Johnson. Is that a trade you would make? I would in a heartbeat. Of course, it isn't likely the Dolphins would be able to get Chad for just that one pick. And we don't even know if Parcells and company have any interest in Johnson. He did say he doesn't want any "thugs," but I'm not sure Johnson classifies as a "thug." He's never had any issues off the field. The only knock on him is his mouth (in which he's usually harmless) and his showboating TD dances.
At this point, though, I would still say that Johnson ending up in aqua and orange is rather unlikely. But we can dream...