With the first regular season only days away, the Dolphins have just released their first Depth chart for the 2015 regular season. There were only a few changes from the depth chart that was released during the preseason.
Jamil Douglas the Rookie from Arizona State is listed as the starting right guard, which signifies that he beat out second year player Billy Turner for the job. It will be interesting to see how Douglas holds up in his first game in the NFL, but from what the coaches are telling me, he has a very professional demeanor and nothing has been too big for him to handle so far. That would be a huge score if Douglas can pan out to be an every day starter.
At the linebacking position, Kelvin Sheppard has earned the starting middle linebacker position, which means Koa Misi has been switched back to his more natural outside linebacker position. Most football gambling fans would agree that this was a smart decision, because it allows the coaches to get their 3 best linebackers on the field, the third being Jelani Jenkins.
In the secondary, Brice McCain is listed as the starting cornerback opposite of Brent Grimes. However if it was not for Jamar Taylor’s quad injury, then Taylor would have most likely been the starter. McCain is a feisty player and should immediately add some toughness to the Dolphins secondary. The other change in the secondary was also due to an injury; Walt Aikens is taking over at Safety for the injured Louis Delmas. Aikens has a lot of length and speed, so it will be interesting to see how he plays and how comfortably he looks in the back end of the defense.
The other significant changes were in the special teams unit with the two Rookies Matt Darr and Andrew Franks taking over the punting and kicking duties, and LaMichael James being awarded the punt returning and kickoff returning duties. The Dolphins have definitely taken a risk with the rookie kickers. But don’t be surprised if it works out, because they both have young, big legs, and with a little coaching they can be very good. James will be taking over the returning duties for Landry, which is good for Landry, because he is going to be a key part of the offense. Now that Landry does not have to worry about special teams, I believe it will help him focus better and cut down on his fumbling issues.
Are the Miami Dolphins news gurus on board with these changes?
Still think the OL is going to bite us in the ass, and Im not sold on our LB corp, and now having subs play at the S and CB positions…makes the Skins game much closer call.
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Still think the OL is going to bite us in the ass, and Im not sold on our LB corp, and now having subs play at the S and CB positions…makes the Skins game much closer call.