What an odd and unexpected divisional playoff weekend, huh? But the good thing is that with the victories by both the Eagles and Cardinals, the Dolphins draft position has moved up a spot from 26th overall to 25th.
Anyways, here are some things you might have missed this weekend:
ARMANDO TALKING ASOMUGHA AND RONNIE
Odds are you probably didn't know that the Herald's Armando Salguero hosted a "live blog" last Friday night. Exciting, right?
Well, not exactly. But there were two little nuggets that he threw out there that are of some relevance and worth talking about. The first is about Raiders' CB Nnamdi Asomugha, the game's top corner and a potential free agent if the Raiders don't "franchise tag" him. He's also the only free agent that I'd want the Dolphins to break the bank for this year. Apparently, Tony Sparano has similar feelings for Nnamdi. Says Salguero:
I KNOW Tony Sparano totally loves Nnamdi Asomugha, the Raiders CB. If he makes it to free agency, I can see the Dolphins talking to him.
Oh god, I could only wish. Here's the deal with Asomugha. He literally takes away half of the field for opposing quarterbacks. Of course, to get him to Miami (if he did make it to free agency), it would likely take a deal in th neighborhood of 6 years and $65 to $70 million. To me, that'd be well worth it.
Moving on, Salguero also touches on a topic that I'm surprised hasn't gotten more play from Dolphin fans. Ronnie Brown will be entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2009. The question becomes how the Dolphins will handle Ronnie's impending 2010 free agency. Here's what Armando says about it:
I think the Dolphins will handle the Brown re-sign situation with the same strategy they handle Ricky and the UFAs this year. They will wait and see what happens while offering a low-ball contract that benefits them.
If Brown jumps at the deal, great. If he does not, they will bide their time.
I'm not sure taking the "wait and see" approach is a good idea with Brown. Assuming the Dolphins improve their offensive line, it's conceivable that Ronnie, who will be even more removed from his '07 knee surgery, will have a huge season. And then the Dolphins would potentially have to deal with other teams being interested in Ronnie.
From everythng I've seen out of Ronnie, I'd be ready to make him a very fair contract extension this off-season - not a "low-ball" contract. Ronnie's an elite talent - even if his production has been limited so far. So I say get his contract done before the '09 season.
HENNE LEARNING A LOT FROM PENNINGTON
Sure we've all debated a lot already about how the Dolphins should handle their QB situation this offseason and next season. But Chad Henne doesn't seem to be bothered by Tony Sparano's decision to enter '09 with Chad Pennington at the helm. In fact, Henne understands that he has an opportunity to learn a lot from Pennington - and has done so already. Says Henne:
"Every quarterback is waiting for their chance. I'm anxious,'' Henne said. "Chad is a tremendous quarterback, but I'm going to keep competing each day. I'll keep pressing him every day. Obviously, I don't want to wait too long. But it's a tremendous opportunity to learn the first couple of years and not get thrown under the bus.''
Though he didn't throw a pass in a game after the Week 2 blowout loss to Arizona, Henne said he improved his ``anticipation of throws, getting the ball out a lot quicker and identifying defenses. I've learned a tremendous amount from Chad, the way he carries himself as a leader.''
Putting aside how you feel the Dolphins should handle the QB situation from this point on, it's music to all Dolphin fans' ears to hear how much Henne has learned from Pennington. Whenever Henne does get his opportunity, he's going to be that much better off now thanks to Pennington.
And now everyone can get back to that heated "CP or Henne" debate that's been raging.