What To Make Of Miami’s Soap Opera After A Trade And Suspension
What To Make Of Miami’s Soap Opera After A Trade And Suspension
Is Anthony the ‘replacement’ for Timmons?
With Anthony’s addition, will Timmons be cut when his 4 game suspension in up
The Miami Dolphins ‘must see soap opera’ has continued without interruption from the filing of a missing persons report of team leader Lawrence Timmons to the announcement of his indefinite suspension.
But Adam Gase isn’t one for drama and has “two rules: be on time and play hard”. So a trade of a 5th Round pick for Saints Linebacker Stephone Anthony indicates Timmons is being ‘replaced’.
But can Anthony actually replace Timmons on the field?
First, let’s be clear, this is a downgrade of on-field talent and leadership. At this time, Anthony isn’t even in the same ball park as Timmons–and maybe never will be, despite Anthony’s pedigree.
Yet, this doesn’t mean that Anthony, Justin March-Lillard, Rey Maualuga, and Chase Allen can’t keep the defense righted by playing a role… if Timmons is ultimately released.
After a cursory film study, you see Anthony’s strength is down-hill play that has loads of speed, burst, aggression, and very good tackling technique. When he’s on, he’s very good. But…
…nuances of the game / technique issues pop up. If these perceived issues are legit, they would have been the focus of opposing team’s study, which likely led to him getting exposed and ultimately demoted. Sean Payton said he was often out of position and misread plays. Being on I.R. for most of second season in 2016 and suffering a high ankle sprain this year hasn’t helped his development.
Anthony won’t be expected to be the solution at LB in the short term
Below, in the first play, you see a technique issue in how he engages at the point of attack. This was his very first game, so you need to take it with a grain of salt. But in the second play Anthony was in Week 8, and this fundamental technique / recognition issue is curious. Anthony is playing zone and when the RB fakes an inside route, Anthony bites as if playing man coverage and is burned on the second move to the outside for a touchdown. Given that another LB is a foot away, it shows his instinct weren’t refined by keys, scheme understanding, or job assignment at this point.
The wildcard in all of this is Anthony’s LB coach Joe Vitt is Gase’s father in law. So that’s a big deal as far getting first hand account of Anthony’s day in and day out habits.
Maybe this could end well for both Anthony and the Dolphins. If Burke can correct his mental miscues, then maybe the Dolphins win big, because Anthony has all the physical tools to be successful.
Unfortunately, there is no assurance of this.
The bummer side of this is Timmons seems to be gone–and that will hurt the LB squad. Timmons isn’t potential, he CAN do it all: blitz, cover, tackle, and had experience up the yin yang. The fact is Timmons is a 10 year veteran, and before this Sunday, he had started 101 consecutive games in the NFL (ranked him, 10th among all active players), which is why Miami gave him a $12 million dollar (11 million guaranteed) 2 year deal this off-season.
Timmons, McMillian, and Hewitt are all Dolphins LB’s that have been letdowns in 2017
But what’s Gase’s recourse at this point?
Imagine Gase’s reaction when Saturday night Timmons was missing during room bed checks and then was reportedly found on Sunday at the airport waiting to board a flight to Pennsylvania.
Given the crazy eyes Gase has when he speaks about the situation, it doesn’t appears that he’ll be comfortable with Timmons anytime soon–if ever. But maybe as the situation comes to light, and if the circumstances warrant a second chance… maybe this isn’t the end of the road. Not likely, but maybe.
Miami will be hard pressed financially to part ways with Timmons. For one, cutting him is roughly a $4 million dollar cap hit. According to the NFL collective bargaining agreement Miami can fine and suspend a player up to 4 weeks for conduct detrimental to the team. This may end up being the path Gase ultimately decides as Timmons punishment, before his return. Either way, Miami needs to settle this case as soon as possible, so they can minimize the distractions and focus on the next game against the Jets, which pay per head solutions are favoring Miami by a current -5.5 points this upcoming Sunday.
At this point, you have to ask what drama is next? Me, I’m hoping for something boring like a beat down the New York Jest… Go Fins!!!
…there could be another story line out of the LA game if you read the stats …Landry was Cutler’s target almost 50 % of the times he ran a route …think about that …the Jets will
…Gase was playing to what he has …a weak OL pass defense and a QB who tends to hold the ball too long looking downfield …so he games it by repeatedly calling the short routes to Landry, getting the ball out of Cutler’s hands quickly …or handing it off to Ajayi …either way he’s covering his weakest points …imnsho of course
…note that LA didn’t go after the Gs as I thought they might …they have a very good pass rush but stayed outside most of the game …and got beat by the play calls not giving them enough time to pressure Cutler effectively …I could learn to like Gase
Well, now you see how the 3-4 puts less onus on G’s. 🙂 It’s difficult for G’s to be attacked in the 3-4 without over committing your LB’s (you need to bring 2 ). You can also do it by shifting the front, but it’s more complicated and can leave a LB isolated on a T, so you can’t live on those plays. In a 4-3 where you just blitz one LB at the A or B gap be. They tried to do it, but it’s one reason why having Fasano is a big deal. On the playing I’m remembering, Fasano came all the way across the formation and neutralized Ingram on a shifted front for the 3-4. This week you’ll see the G’s get tested more because the Jets D talent is in the DL not the LB/ DE. I’m concerned with Pouncey because his POT strength will be tested, but still it won’t be like when they face a 4-3. Muhammad Wilkerson and Leonard Williams at defensive end, savvy vet Steve McLendon in the middle will be a load to deal with, but they have been gashed so far in both games…
…there is no such thing as a vanilla 3-4 or 4-3 …our OL weak points are at G …we have three legitimate 1st rounders at T and C …if any defense wants to pressure Cutler, common sense says they scheme to attack the weak points, not our strength …yes, the base 3-4 makes it harder to do that …but that’s what good DCs get the big bucks for …or not …on Sunday, they kept pounding the Ts and it got them almost nowhere …but for a couple Tunsil miscues, they rarely got to our QB
…that’s on the LAC DC …no imagination …stick with his pro-bowl DEs man to man on our OTs …strength vs strength …and how did that work for him? …a couple series, ok …but he never really changed the scheme when in was evident that wasn’t working …swapping sides isn’t a scheme change, the entire game the point of attack was on the outside …dumb as a rock …there will be a new LAC DC next year …and it won’t be because he got promoted to HC, ala Josephs
Vanilla means base… better coaches and talent diverge from Vanilla more than lesser coaches and talent. If you see the Jets, they line up in pinch a lot in the 3-4 because of their high interior talent, although base 3-4 has the DE’s in 3 tech, the Jets add spice in this pinch the tech is 2 / 0 / 2… that changes everything as far as blocking assignments. Every 3-4 changes the techniques and does shifts, but the better more talented do it more and put more pressure on the interior. When you line up in 4-3 the Dt’s are most of the time in 2, or more rarely 3 tech in base, though they can shade with in 1 tech and the other in 3 tech and so on. Base 3-4 with 2 DT’s in 2 tech force G’s to deal with big Dt’s in unfavorable angles. The center can help, but one G will be one-on-one. When you have two good DT’s this puts pressure on the guards who are often the less talented on the line. Now the De’s are often smaller and the T’s are often higher talent grades than the interior, so this makes the G’ the weak link. This is why 4-3 stresses the G’s more than 3-4… of course there are variables, but generally speaking this is the rational. The one caveat for the 3-4 is when a team has a monster NT / NG… then things change.
After going over Jets film, and taking into account their DL talent and scheme, I amended my thoughts on G’s– at least for this game. Your take ruminated in my head. And while generally speaking, I think G’s do play a lesser role at times that lesser role isn’t so less. Check the article from Jimmy, I played a good part in it.
Timmons is a HUGE let down, I don’t see the others that way, injuries/bad play, etc. are out of their control, they didn’t let the team down by choice, unlike Timmons. IMO, Timmons is gone, but gone on Miami’s terms (meaning when). According to other outlets Miami can get majority if not all of the money back or relief (salary cap) due to the nature = AWOL. No matter what the reason Timmons had, you don’t leave your team, team mates, coaches, Gase hanging on game day. What professional does that (very, very few ever)? A simple phone call may not have avoided the suspension, but may have kept him on the team. Not now, how can Gase trust him, how can Gase expect his team mates to trust him?
It is an unfortunate circumstance, but now it is time to move on. Miami has traded for a “Mike” LBer, and with any luck Anthony can return to his rookie form. Anthony finished his rookie season with 112 tackles, one sack, one interception, and two forced fumbles. He had two scores, both coming against the Carolina Panthers, and led all rookies in tackles. Anthony was also named to the Pro Football Writers Association all-rookie team. For whatever reason he was moved from the “Mike” position to a different LBer position. I’m not sure why, I’mnot pretending to know why, I am not familiar with the player. It does kinda sound similar to Kiko’s situation while in Philly.
With any luck, this trade could unfold similar to the Kiko trade. A once productive player not producing for one reason or another (out of position, injured, coaching, etc.). I do find it interesting that Anthony’s position coach (Vitt), also Gase’s Father-In-Law, may have recommended Anthony, at least you can believe that Gase discussed Anthony with his Father-In-Law, in which I can’t imagine Vitt feeding Gase a line of Bull to receive maximum compensation. Some times a player needs a fresh start, a change of scenery, a different philosophy, ala Kiko! Everything happens for a reason, and maybe, just maybe the football Gods are leveling the playing for us Fins, because we all know they were not to nice to us Fins during the pre-season (injuries, Irma, now Timmons). Either way Timmons will be missed. Then again, you can’t miss what you never had…..
…one more point here …everyone seems to be looking at Anthony as a direct reaction to the Timmons fiasco …could be, the timing certainly works …but Anthony is a MLB and isn’t likely to replace Timmons at OLB…its more likely that Maualuga and Hull aren’t getting the job done and Gase/Burke are looking for an answer to that problem …the timing was just a coincidence …my take, worth what it cost you
You’re right Gase said this had been in the works for a while and it was going to happen. Timmons just made the deal happen sooner rather than later… and maybe for a bit higher pick. Rey has been a waste so far and I think he might get cut when Timmons returns. Hull is solid except on Pass coverage.
…we’ll see how Anthony works out …assuming Gase did his homework, (and having his father-in-law as the guy’s current coach couldn’t have hurt) we can hope this is another Kiko situation where we get a late 1st round talent for a 5th round pick …we’re due for a break
…its evident that Hull can’t really pass defend …and Maualuga is just not there …yet, if ever …Anthony stepping in at MLB and getting it done could be a huge plus on a defense that needs to improve its pass defense while sustaining its much improved run stop
…I’m hoping to see Gase air it out in NY, give Ajayi and Landry a bit of an early bye …test the waters with Cutler and Parker …say a 60/40 pass/run split with Drake getting half the runs …its his 2nd year and its time we see if he was worth the pick or is just a relief hitter …and it would be sweet to see Cutler go 40+ to Parker or Stills a few times …the talent is there if the OL can give the plays the time to develop …anything but the dink ‘n dunk we saw in LA …but then of course, its the Jets and the game plan can go to pieces in a hurry if we’re looking past them
“A simple phone call may not have avoided the suspension, but may have kept him on the team. Not now, how can Gase trust him, how can Gase expect his team mates to trust him?”
This is the biggest head scratcher, unless there is some HUGE extenuating circumstance. How does a guy risk millions, and his record, and his reputation without some rationale unless he is irrational. At this point he has shown himself to be reliable… very reliable. But as you said, he has shattered the trust and was a key focus on how this Defense was schemed and built. I do think he’ll be back. Gase has softened and his teammates all say they want him back. Not sure if I agree, but the rad through this is very, very rough. Cut him and he goes to the Pats or another team Miami plays and the Dolphin will be reduced on defense till 2018. I just don’t know. Very weird, very complicated, very 2017 Dolphins.
…he will be back and it will be soon …they will find a reason and he will lose a lot of money, his leadership role, and be in a closely supervised program of some type …may even be a revised contract taking the team off the hook for his guarantee and cap hit if it happens again …but he’s too good on the field (when he gets there) to just dump
…its a business decision, and unlike Philbust, Gase won’t let his business sense override his moral outrage …Gase has to make his point and he will, but in the end, Timmons didn’t commit a crime or a media driven social outrage …Timmons will be back sooner than later …the FO/PR types are working overtime on the story-line to come
I agree… they are slow rolling it to see how much they can get back for the heart ache. He is too valuable… and you know how football is. You got talent you get breaks–lots of them.
…there could be another story line out of the LA game if you read the stats …Landry was Cutler’s target almost 50 % of the times he ran a route …think about that …the Jets will
…Gase was playing to what he has …a weak OL pass defense and a QB who tends to hold the ball too long looking downfield …so he games it by repeatedly calling the short routes to Landry, getting the ball out of Cutler’s hands quickly …or handing it off to Ajayi …either way he’s covering his weakest points …imnsho of course
…note that LA didn’t go after the Gs as I thought they might …they have a very good pass rush but stayed outside most of the game …and got beat by the play calls not giving them enough time to pressure Cutler effectively …I could learn to like Gase
…DC Burke, not so much
Well, now you see how the 3-4 puts less onus on G’s. 🙂 It’s difficult for G’s to be attacked in the 3-4 without over committing your LB’s (you need to bring 2 ). You can also do it by shifting the front, but it’s more complicated and can leave a LB isolated on a T, so you can’t live on those plays. In a 4-3 where you just blitz one LB at the A or B gap be. They tried to do it, but it’s one reason why having Fasano is a big deal. On the playing I’m remembering, Fasano came all the way across the formation and neutralized Ingram on a shifted front for the 3-4. This week you’ll see the G’s get tested more because the Jets D talent is in the DL not the LB/ DE. I’m concerned with Pouncey because his POT strength will be tested, but still it won’t be like when they face a 4-3. Muhammad Wilkerson and Leonard Williams at defensive end, savvy vet Steve McLendon in the middle will be a load to deal with, but they have been gashed so far in both games…
…there is no such thing as a vanilla 3-4 or 4-3 …our OL weak points are at G …we have three legitimate 1st rounders at T and C …if any defense wants to pressure Cutler, common sense says they scheme to attack the weak points, not our strength …yes, the base 3-4 makes it harder to do that …but that’s what good DCs get the big bucks for …or not …on Sunday, they kept pounding the Ts and it got them almost nowhere …but for a couple Tunsil miscues, they rarely got to our QB
…that’s on the LAC DC …no imagination …stick with his pro-bowl DEs man to man on our OTs …strength vs strength …and how did that work for him? …a couple series, ok …but he never really changed the scheme when in was evident that wasn’t working …swapping sides isn’t a scheme change, the entire game the point of attack was on the outside …dumb as a rock …there will be a new LAC DC next year …and it won’t be because he got promoted to HC, ala Josephs
Vanilla means base… better coaches and talent diverge from Vanilla more than lesser coaches and talent. If you see the Jets, they line up in pinch a lot in the 3-4 because of their high interior talent, although base 3-4 has the DE’s in 3 tech, the Jets add spice in this pinch the tech is 2 / 0 / 2… that changes everything as far as blocking assignments. Every 3-4 changes the techniques and does shifts, but the better more talented do it more and put more pressure on the interior. When you line up in 4-3 the Dt’s are most of the time in 2, or more rarely 3 tech in base, though they can shade with in 1 tech and the other in 3 tech and so on. Base 3-4 with 2 DT’s in 2 tech force G’s to deal with big Dt’s in unfavorable angles. The center can help, but one G will be one-on-one. When you have two good DT’s this puts pressure on the guards who are often the less talented on the line. Now the De’s are often smaller and the T’s are often higher talent grades than the interior, so this makes the G’ the weak link. This is why 4-3 stresses the G’s more than 3-4… of course there are variables, but generally speaking this is the rational. The one caveat for the 3-4 is when a team has a monster NT / NG… then things change.
After going over Jets film, and taking into account their DL talent and scheme, I amended my thoughts on G’s– at least for this game. Your take ruminated in my head. And while generally speaking, I think G’s do play a lesser role at times that lesser role isn’t so less. Check the article from Jimmy, I played a good part in it.
Timmons is a HUGE let down, I don’t see the others that way, injuries/bad play, etc. are out of their control, they didn’t let the team down by choice, unlike Timmons. IMO, Timmons is gone, but gone on Miami’s terms (meaning when). According to other outlets Miami can get majority if not all of the money back or relief (salary cap) due to the nature = AWOL. No matter what the reason Timmons had, you don’t leave your team, team mates, coaches, Gase hanging on game day. What professional does that (very, very few ever)? A simple phone call may not have avoided the suspension, but may have kept him on the team. Not now, how can Gase trust him, how can Gase expect his team mates to trust him?
It is an unfortunate circumstance, but now it is time to move on. Miami has traded for a “Mike” LBer, and with any luck Anthony can return to his rookie form. Anthony finished his rookie season with 112 tackles, one sack, one interception, and two forced fumbles. He had two scores, both coming against the Carolina Panthers, and led all rookies in tackles. Anthony was also named to the Pro Football Writers Association all-rookie team. For whatever reason he was moved from the “Mike” position to a different LBer position. I’m not sure why, I’mnot pretending to know why, I am not familiar with the player. It does kinda sound similar to Kiko’s situation while in Philly.
With any luck, this trade could unfold similar to the Kiko trade. A once productive player not producing for one reason or another (out of position, injured, coaching, etc.). I do find it interesting that Anthony’s position coach (Vitt), also Gase’s Father-In-Law, may have recommended Anthony, at least you can believe that Gase discussed Anthony with his Father-In-Law, in which I can’t imagine Vitt feeding Gase a line of Bull to receive maximum compensation. Some times a player needs a fresh start, a change of scenery, a different philosophy, ala Kiko! Everything happens for a reason, and maybe, just maybe the football Gods are leveling the playing for us Fins, because we all know they were not to nice to us Fins during the pre-season (injuries, Irma, now Timmons). Either way Timmons will be missed. Then again, you can’t miss what you never had…..
Fins Up ^^^^^^^
…you nailed it Dun, imnsho, hook line and sinker
…one more point here …everyone seems to be looking at Anthony as a direct reaction to the Timmons fiasco …could be, the timing certainly works …but Anthony is a MLB and isn’t likely to replace Timmons at OLB…its more likely that Maualuga and Hull aren’t getting the job done and Gase/Burke are looking for an answer to that problem …the timing was just a coincidence …my take, worth what it cost you
You’re right Gase said this had been in the works for a while and it was going to happen. Timmons just made the deal happen sooner rather than later… and maybe for a bit higher pick. Rey has been a waste so far and I think he might get cut when Timmons returns. Hull is solid except on Pass coverage.
…we’ll see how Anthony works out …assuming Gase did his homework, (and having his father-in-law as the guy’s current coach couldn’t have hurt) we can hope this is another Kiko situation where we get a late 1st round talent for a 5th round pick …we’re due for a break
…its evident that Hull can’t really pass defend …and Maualuga is just not there …yet, if ever …Anthony stepping in at MLB and getting it done could be a huge plus on a defense that needs to improve its pass defense while sustaining its much improved run stop
…I’m hoping to see Gase air it out in NY, give Ajayi and Landry a bit of an early bye …test the waters with Cutler and Parker …say a 60/40 pass/run split with Drake getting half the runs …its his 2nd year and its time we see if he was worth the pick or is just a relief hitter …and it would be sweet to see Cutler go 40+ to Parker or Stills a few times …the talent is there if the OL can give the plays the time to develop …anything but the dink ‘n dunk we saw in LA …but then of course, its the Jets and the game plan can go to pieces in a hurry if we’re looking past them
“A simple phone call may not have avoided the suspension, but may have kept him on the team. Not now, how can Gase trust him, how can Gase expect his team mates to trust him?”
This is the biggest head scratcher, unless there is some HUGE extenuating circumstance. How does a guy risk millions, and his record, and his reputation without some rationale unless he is irrational. At this point he has shown himself to be reliable… very reliable. But as you said, he has shattered the trust and was a key focus on how this Defense was schemed and built. I do think he’ll be back. Gase has softened and his teammates all say they want him back. Not sure if I agree, but the rad through this is very, very rough. Cut him and he goes to the Pats or another team Miami plays and the Dolphin will be reduced on defense till 2018. I just don’t know. Very weird, very complicated, very 2017 Dolphins.
…he will be back and it will be soon …they will find a reason and he will lose a lot of money, his leadership role, and be in a closely supervised program of some type …may even be a revised contract taking the team off the hook for his guarantee and cap hit if it happens again …but he’s too good on the field (when he gets there) to just dump
…its a business decision, and unlike Philbust, Gase won’t let his business sense override his moral outrage …Gase has to make his point and he will, but in the end, Timmons didn’t commit a crime or a media driven social outrage …Timmons will be back sooner than later …the FO/PR types are working overtime on the story-line to come
I agree… they are slow rolling it to see how much they can get back for the heart ache. He is too valuable… and you know how football is. You got talent you get breaks–lots of them.