Sunday Dolphins Mailbag: Tindall, Trill, Wilkins, and More
Part 2 of the latest SI Fan Nation All Dolphins mailbag:
From Jeff Margaretten (@thephinphan):
I noticed that 90 players at OTAs had 90 different uniform numbers. The 10 missing were 12,13,39, five OL numbers and 99 &54. Are there plans brewing to finally retire Taylor and Thomas jerseys soon?
Hey Jeff, I have written about this very topic before, making the point that it makes no sense not to retire the JT and Zach numbers since nobody has worn them since they each retired. But I have heard absolutely nothing being in the works in terms of jersey number retirements, even though this would be a good year to go it with Zach going into the Hall of Fame this summer.
From Max Lopez No DM please. (@themaxlopez):
New to this, but here goes. Any news on Trill Williams playing safety assuming his recovery is on schedule?
Hey Max, welcome aboard. Head coach Mike McDaniel told the media this week that Williams indeed will be cross-training at safety, though he stopped short of calling it a position change. Either way, I’m very intrigued to see what Williams can do in 2023.
From Dixon Tam (@DixonTam):
In all your years of covering the #Dolphins, what is the best game you've ever covered? What made it so special?
Hey Dixon, off the top of my head, there are two that stand out, and that’s the 2000 playoff win against the Colts and the 2018 “Miracle in Miami.” The playoff game was awesome because it was back and forth and had the late heroics to tie the game and then win it in overtime after Mike Vanderjagt missed a field goal attempt. The “Miracle in Miami” was just wild with that crazy finish, even though it made my job difficult in having to rewrite the top after Kenyan Drake’s touchdown.
From Andy Bichara (@stoic5132):
Do you think that Channing Tindall is ready to contribute on defense this year? He didn't play a lot in college, so it was expected that he would take some time to develop.
Hey Andy, yeah, Assistant GM Marvin Allen told me when I asked about Tindall that the Dolphins expected him to take a bit of time to develop, but at this point I’m hesitant to make any bold predictions about him. Let’s just say I wouldn’t exactly plan on him putting up big defensive numbers next season.
From Diego Snchez (@DiegoSnchez):
Which TE do you think will end up with more catches and yards by the end of the season?
Hey Diego, let me start by saying that I don’t expect any of them to have big numbers, but I have to believe it’ll be Durham Smythe who will the most catches and receiving yards.
From FZB (@fzb3346):
Am I the only one that thinks that Austin Jackson is going to be the starter at RT and have a solid year? What say you?
I say I’m tempted to agree with you, especially after seeing Jackson at the OTA this past week and how we obviously worked on his body. The truth is he never got the chance to show what he could do last year because of the ankle injuries and I do think he’ll be fine as the starting right tackle. And I’m not saying that because I really like Jackson as a guy and really want him to do well.
From Jeff (via email):
Hello Alain! While I do imagine that this option is far off the landscape of possibility, it is an intriguing one. Patrick Queen came up as a name of a potential trade target for teams following the decline by the Ravens of his 5th year option. When it comes to LB Development, call me biased, but I do imagine that the Steelers and the Ravens have often had some pretty talented names in the backfields. Do you think that is the missing piece that the Dolphins need for the next 4+ seasons in the LB ranks or would you personally prefer to hold off and draft for that ILB Mike position?
Hey Jeff, hmm, that’s an interesting one. And immediately you have to ask yourself why the Ravens didn’t pick up the fifth-year option and it comes down to consistency (or lack thereof), though the fact Baltimore had to give Roquan Smith a big contract probably played a role in it. I don’t think I’m at the point yet where I’d suggest that Queen would be the missing piece because I think that David Long Jr. could be just as good as ILB, if not better.
From William (via email):
Hey Allen, are there some concerns with the front office that Christian Wilkins does not fit the new defensive scheme?
Hey William, that’s a very good question, but certainly not one the Dolphins ever would discuss or let slip. The truth is that Fangio’s scheme does count on the defensive linemen to provide more in terms of pass rush or just push up front, and that would be the one thing that’s been missing from Wilkins’ game thus far in the NFL. But the fact that he doesn’t have a contract extension just yet also might be explained by the fact that Wilkins could be after big money after seeing other young DTs — Jeffery Simmons, Dexter Lawrence, to name two — getting paid this offseason.
From Brian Z (via email):
What do you see as the floor and the ceiling for Jaelan Phillips? For this upcoming season, I feel he has Pro Bowl and maybe even All-Pro potential. For his career, I think his floor is Pro Bowl player. Pro Bowl is the the floor if his career is off-railed due to injuries. For a ceiling, I think he has the potential to get multiple 10+ sack seasons, 7 Pro Bowls, 2 All-Pros and maybe even be a fringe HOF vote getter. I see a lot of Jason Taylor when I watch him play and really want to see him shine this season. I hope he gets the lack of double teams and the chance to square up with the lesser tackles since the opposition will focus on Ogbah, Wilkins, Chubb, Baker etc. Maybe someone outside of Miami will actually see how great he is. Do you think Wilson is a luxury the Dolphins no longer need? If you were to trade him, what do you think would be the best trade route for the Dolphins? To me, Detroit seems to be a good fit since they still need WR depth. How about if Detroit offered up Matt Nelson straight up for Wilson? Would you do that trade? Chris Grier mentioned he wanted to do what is best for Wilson, so probably better he starts the season in Detroit rather than sitting the entire season in Miami. We get a starting-caliber RT, and Lions get starting-caliber WR. Seems like a win/win. Just my 2 cents.
Hi there, CPF, I agree with you that there’s a lot to like about Phillips, starting with a great work ethic. I’m not sure I share your optimism, however, when it comes to his ceiling because I don’t see the same kind of natural athletic ability as JT possessed. He's to me way more a product of hard work and determination than pure natural ability. I’m almost of the belief that what we’ve gotten from Phillips the past two seasons is what we’re going to get. And that’s perfectly fine, I’m just not convinced that he’ll ever come close to JT territory. As for Cedrick Wilson, the Dolphins are not going to be able to trade him because of the $5 million guarantee this year in his contract unless they pick up some of that tab.
From Daniel Kucera (via email):
I did some homework and found out that De’Von Achane is really Jakeem Grant trying to bump up his NFL pension by playing one more season. Why are we doing this again?
Hey Daniel, I take it your objection is that Achane is too small? I get it the potential issue there, but let’s give Achane a shot to show what he can do in the NFL first, right? Grant turned out to be the best returner in Dolphins history, so he wasn’t really so bad after all. He just never made a dent on offense, in part because of inconsistent hands. We don’t know about that part when it comes to Achane yet.
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Alain Poupart has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989. You can follow him on Twitter at @PoupartNFL. Feel free to submit questions every week for the All Dolphins mailbag via Twitter or via email at fnalldolphins@yahoo.com.
