Guarding Optimism

Third-round pick Dallas Thomas is entering his third season bearing the heavy burden of “Miami Hopefuls” on his shoulders. Thomas is the lead dog at guard along with second-year man Billy Turner, fourth-round pick Jamil Douglas and free-agent utility men T/G Linkenback and G/C Mclendon.

With stellar talents on bookends and at the center (prayerfully Pouncey has fully recovered from his hip surgery), Miami’s guard play or lack thereof will be on full blast for the opposing teams’ defensive game-plan (with the caveat of obligatory testing of Albert’s injury when he returns). Average play at guard will receive a substantial benefit from the surrounding talent and should produce generally positive results, but good guard play could catapult this line and with it the whole team to a new level of success.

This isn’t a venture into Hyperbole for the sake of an article.

I have been called “fixated” with O-Line play – now as in the past, I boldly declare, “You are darn right!” Those beefy and bloodied “nobodies” that far too many disregards are in truth the lifeblood of a successful franchise. Without sounding trite to those who are saying “no-duh”: offensive progress, regardless of all-world talent at the skill positions, is dictated by the O-line play and its effects are felt even on the other side of the ball as it keeps the defense fresh by means of ball control. So beyond even the determination of scoring output, O-line play factors into fatigue (game and seasonal) which directly correlates to injuries as tired and weary players are more prone to getting injured. In short, they are the “bee-knees” for good times come game day.

Anyway, back to Miami’s situation at guard.

Dolphins run a Zone-Blocking scheme that focuses on teamwork, smarts, and agility more so than a Man-Blocking blocking scheme that requires mono e mono domination. Both men penciled in at starters, Thomas LG and Turner RG are both 6’5” 315 and fit the prerequisite body type. Their dimensions might be monstrous to us mortals, but for NFL guards it is tall and rangy. So while they might give up a little at the point of attack individually, their athletic build helps in and out of switches, achieve second level success, and acquire better blocking angles. As insane as it sounds, the rookie Douglas at 6’4” 304 is relatively small, sacrificing even more size for agility, and Linkenbach at 6’6” 325 and Mclendon at 6’3” 325 are of the stronger and slower variety. Yes, size and weight aren’t the ends all be all, talent and body composition are always a factor as well as which side of the center you are playing, but it’s safe to say that it’s at least a rough gauge.

Let’s pull out the microscope and take a closer look at the players themselves.

At their size, and with the length of their tenure in the league, Linkenbach (6 seasons, 36 starts) and Mclendon (4 seasons, 5 starts) is undoubtedly not the reincarnate of the 90’s Cowboy’s linemen blessed with both size and athleticism. While Linkenbach has solid experience, he allowed pressure every 18.8 snaps and Mclendon’s inability to hold his starting job for more than two games last season with Jacksonville puts little faith in any “wild card” hopes. So beyond some great football epiphany on their part, they figure to be swing-men, back-ups or cuts come to the season opener.

Douglas had an excellent college campaign at guard, two years ago. Last year, he transitioned to tackle and saw a decline in production which is one reason why he was a 4^th round pick. His big critique was in his deficiencies in both strength and “fire” that contributed to his failure in finishing plays and in dealing with the opponents’ bull-rush. This doesn’t bode well for his “arrival” as a starter this season – especially with the monsters who man the middle of AFCE defenses. Though blessed with surprising speed that enables him to excel at the second-level, you don’t start in the NFL unless you can handle the power! Douglas most likely will need a season or two of marination in Miami’s strength program to have a chance of success.

Turner was tagged last season as a player with an arrow pointing up. After a preseason injury sidelined him that arrow went sideways and he contributed all of 17 snaps for the season. Whether it’s cautious optimism or blatant pessimism (whichever you like), the fact that Turner never managed a single start despite a depleted line nags the heck out of me. Was it a physical or mental failing – or both? I haven’t the foggiest clue. Either way, a disconcerting question mark is attached to this penciled in a starter.

Then there is Dallas Thomas – the brunt of many a joke and complaint last season. Honestly, I disagreed with a lot of it. In contrast, Mike Pouncey playing guard and failing far worse rarely received similar criticism – aside from yours truly that is. Thomas in my opinion filled in admirably starting 2 games at LG, then 2 games at RG and finally wrapping up his season at T (there was also his fill in at LT for Albert when he went down). Let’s be clear Dallas can’t play tackle, but very few guards in the NFL would have fared any better. From what I saw there was enough aggressive play, agility, and determination for the hope that at the very least, he can find some success at LG.

Uncertainty surrounds the guard position and they won’t begin to be answered till we see live action, best pay per head reviews. Hickey said he was satisfied with the Dolphins’ depth at guard ‘heading into OTA’s’. This says a lot because he didn’t say ‘going into preseason’. It’s obvious he sees the same hole on the roster that we do. Finding the right men to fill that hole will be THE storyline this offseason. Go Fins!!!

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