Phins News Storm: Tunsil Trade? Team Revolt? & Fitz Starts!

M.J.

5 years ago

This wild Phins Preseason isn’t done bringing big news

There’s little point to spending a ton of time talking about the Phins 4th Preseason Game…

… with all the big Miami Dolphins news in the ether.

So, let’s touch on the Preseason… quickly… before we get to the juicy matters.

4th Preseason Game notables

QB Jake Rudock made an excellent statement on why the Phins should carry a 3rd QB
RB Mark Walton was either showcasing for a trade (Texans) or getting reps in before a suspension… either way he looked very good.
RBs Laird and Gaskin both looked like keepers, but while Gaskin has the speed edge, Laird has far more layers to his game.
C/G Kyle Fuller did solid and looks to be the LG backup (update: Fuller was cut and Phins traded for Vikes G Danny Isidora appears to fill that role)
DL Dewayne Hendrix continued to be a force.
WR Isaiah Ford keeps making plays… Can we keep him… even at the expense of Parker?
Same as above for WR Brice Butler (update Butler was cut)… to a slightly lesser degree.
TE Chris Myarick missed some blocks… but he was excellent as a pass-catcher.
T Jaryd Jones-Smith looked solid against the lower-tier competition.
T Zach Sterup wasn’t terrible… or good. Certainly isn’t even in a nearby dimension as Tunsil.
RG Calhoun started, again… Does this mean he isn’t starting Week 1? Rookie walls are real. Can we expect him to play a 20 Week season?

Okay, with that out of the way, onto the eye-candy news:

The Texans want Laremy Tunsil… badly. That’s obvious and a fact. All the rest of the news involving the trade is an unknown. But, for those who haven’t heard let’s do a quick recap.

Texans are willing to give LB/DE Clowny and their 2020 1st for Tunsil.
Phins want more than that for Tunsil.
Flores told Tunsil that there is no deal in place… ATM.
Tunsil said, ‘He couldn’t speak about it as it wasn’t his place.’
‘Reports from unnamed sources’ are Tunsil is so liked and the players understand how key he is to the team’s success in 2019 that there would be a legitimate team revolt if he were to be traded.
(update) Rumors are Clowney doesn’t want to play for the Phins regardless of a trade or not.

First, of course, for the right value, Tunsil should be traded.

Now, a fair question is what is that ‘right’ value… and if they get the ‘right value’ will they use it wisely?

Phins fans want the Dolphins to get on the right path… and as fast as possible. Getting multiple, high-valued picks and a quality player for one quality player is a prime way to get on the winning track fast.

But, there are problems with this that must be resolved in high-grade success or this will be a disaster. Even getting the extra value and quality talent won’t be enough if the Dolphins don’t find a solution at Left Tackle, Clowney is a ‘me player’, and Grier squanders the picks.

If they nail all these issues, then it will be a massive win for Miami.

Can they actually win on all these fronts?

The extra value in a trade isn’t worth sacrificing the 2019 Season and Flores’ talk of ‘winning culture’

Still, if Miami were to acquire another 1st Rounder:

They’d be in prime position to nail one of the top QBs next year.
Or if they love Rosen to stack talent around him.
Or trade back with one (or both) of the 1st Rounders and push a pile of picks into the future.

I’m of the mind that they should (and will) draft a Top QB whether they love Rosen or not.

The rookie QB would sit in 2020, Rosen would start and (hopefully) his value would rise and then he could be traded. Then in 2021, your 2020 QB pick would start and you’d have turned the late 2nd for Rosen into something greater via a trade to a QB starved team.

Getting a QB mill will generate plenty of prime value for the Phins.

Is this an easy formula? Nope, and especially nope if you trade Tunsil, bomb in 2019, and ‘lose’ the players trust. But, it’s doable for a quality regime… and an extra 1st Rounder in 2020 would be grease on the wheels.

The BIG problem: This trade would force Miami to be respectable this season to keep the players despite the loss of Tunsil.

Lions, tigers, and bears, oh, my.

Fitz and Rosen debate

As I said, I have the strong suspicion that Miami intends to draft a Top QB in 2020 no matter what. This makes sense given that Fitzpatrick is starting. Rosen is being rebuilt from the ground up. Every aspect of his game is being remodeled, leadership, demeanor, and team mentality. They are building up Rosen’s value up slowly… to both the Dolphins and other teams via trade.

They don’t want him to hit prime time and flop. Rosen, the Offensive Line, and the team, in general, need more time to teeth. Fitz is the old jalopy meant to take the early beatings

Consider Rosen’ contract:

$6.2 million over the next 3 years! That’s mindboggling for that talent level at that premier position. Miami has already won that trade… and they can sit on Rosen for three years without breaking a sweat.

Fitzpatrick will run the clunker till the time is right. A Porche is meant to race… not for a demolition derby.

Tunsil isn’t irreplaceable… but he is key

Laremy Tunsil is a great guy and likable guy with excellent talent who is crucial to the 2019 Season. It would take an amazing offer for me to even believe his trade will have a chance to end in a happy dance. He is a very good pass blocker… not so much at run blocking where he is average. His PFF grade of 79.5 is slightly diminished by his RB grade of 62.3, especially for a team that favors running the ball. And Miami envisions itself as a power football team. This and Tunsil’s perpetual nicks make him a very good player for the Phins… but not irreplaceable over the long term.

This regime and their fans want the ‘Glory Days’ back… that means a dynasty. The only way this franchise will ever achieve that (or even being a quality team) is by getting an equal or great value from key moves.

Taking advantage of the desperate Texans through a trade of Laremy Tunsil IS a high-risk move. You don’t need pay per head services like www.AcePerHead.com to see that keeping him is the safe bet. As they say though, ‘fortune favors the bold’… but so does disaster, too. This is the fork in the road that will define this regime’s nature. And if there IS a trade, how it turns out will define their capability… and whether or not they are the future in Miami.

Sweating bullets, Go Phins!!!

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