Perhaps the most fascinating thing about this past week was the reaction I received on Twitter to the first half of the "Dolphins Draft Busts" series that began on Monday. I may have actually ruined some fans' lives this week by highlighting these disasters.
And the worst is yet to come. Next week will feature the top five busts of all-time. Enjoy!
To kick off this week's "five," I wanted to discuss an interesting point raised by agent Drew Rosenhaus this week regarding how the lockout impacts the Miami Dolphins. I haven't spoken much about the lockout here - mainly because the entire situation is ridiculous. But Drew's comments are worthy of taking a few moments to highlight.
1. The current NFL lockout might actually cripple the Dolphins more so than any other team in the league. At least, that's the argument that Drew Rosenhaus made this week during his weekly segment on WQAM's Joe Rose Show. As Omar Kelly points out, Drew's thoughts shouldn't be brushed off too easily, pointing out how Rosenhaus has an affection for this Dolphins organization.
The points Rosenhaus makes are quite simple. With the restrictions in place because of the lockout, the Dolphins can't fill their holes in free agency PRIOR to the draft as they normally would. This impacts every team, of course. But the Dolphins have become one of the most active teams in free agency (and trades) the past couple of years.
The Dolphins are also in the market for a new quarterback. But the lockout is preventing the team from shopping around, seeing which veterans might be available via a trade.
Perhaps most importantly, though, is the fact that the Dolphins have a new offensive coordinator - but are unable to begin installing the new offense that Brian Daboll will be running in Miami because of the coaching staff's inability to have any contact with their players.
Rosenhaus then goes on to paint the owners as the culprits of this mess (as expected, since he is, after all, an agent). But Drew's thoughts about the impact of this labor mess is certainly valid - and troublesome to say the least.
But even more troublesome is the realization that the Dolphins didn't just suddenly find themselves in a situation with so many holes on their roster. It's a situation that this front office has put the team in. And that, everyone, is the real problem.
2. Stop the insane fantasy right now - it's not going to happen. Carson Palmer is not going to be a Miami Dolphin in 2011. So don't let the rumored interest Miami might have in the Cincinnati quarterback - as stirred up by Armando Salguero - fool you. There are two major hurdles (Cincinnati's unwillingness to trade him as well as what a team would have to give the Bengals in return) and I don't think either of them can even come close to being cleared (and this is not counting the obvious current hurdle - that the lockout prevents two teams from even talking about a possible trade).
As NFL.com's Vic Carucci points out, Palmer is "going nowhere." The Bengals are not going to trade him. This is nothing more than a "manufactured" story. Those are Carucci's words - not mine.
And as official Bengals blogger Geoff Hobson writes, "if they think it’s going to take Dan Marino’s suggested third-round pick, they should take a drug test. Mike Brown giving up Palmer for only a third-rounder? Never happen. Brown giving up Palmer period? Maybe less than never."
3. The Dolphins will be working out the local draft prospects on Friday at the team's facility. It's always fun to read about the private workout that the team holds for these kids. And you have to wonder if the Dolphins will have some interest in one of the two University of Miami running backs.
4. It's amusing how fans - and the media - are overreacting to the 0-6 start of the Boston Red Sox. The season is 162 games long, people. It's only 3 percent complete and already the media is asking if it's time to panic. This 0-6 start is essentially the mathematical equivalent to a team losing at halftime of their week one NFL game. Even us Dolphin fans at least wait until the first game is over before panicking.
5. In case you already forgot what day today is, let's allow Rebecca Black remind us all. Here you go!
So "yesterday was Thursday, Thursday. Today it is Friday, Friday. We so excited. Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday comes afterwards."
I'm glad we cleared that up.