Final Thoughts on the Dolphins and NFL Honors

The Miami Dolphins came away with a prize at the annual NFL Honors show for the third time in four years, though it again wasn't one of the significant awards.

In fact, this one was the least significant with all due respect to Christian Wilkins, who earned the Bud Light Celly of the Year for his celebration after he scored a touchdown on a short reception against the New York Jets in Week 15.

Christian Wilkins wins the @budlight #BudLightCelly of the Year! #NFLHonors @cwilkins42 pic.twitter.com/ftzWR2EX8O
— NFL (@NFL) February 11, 2022

Now, it obviously was very cool watching a big man doing the worm and a little break dancing in the end zone after leaping into the stands, though the prolonged celebration did force the Dolphins to hurry up to line up for the extra point so as to not get a delay penalty.

Since we mentioned it, the Dolphins were recognized for having the Play of the Year in both 2018 and 2019, first with the "Miracle in Miami" and then with "Mountaineer Shot."

All that said, we'll cut Wilkins some slack, particularly since that touchdown celebration was far from the big story with him in 2021 because that was his massive improvement in his third season, to the point where he's become a foundational piece for the Dolphins defense.

To that end, the Dolphins have to decide before May 3 whether to pick up the fifth-year option on Wilkins' rookie contract and it would seem very likely it's going to happen. We're not so sure that was the case before the 2021 season.

WADDLE AND THE ROOKIE AWARD

That wide receiver Jaylen Waddle didn't win the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award was no surprise because Ja'Marr Chase was a slam dunk, but we have to say we were puzzled by the voting.

Remember that the AP awards are handed out from a vote of 50 media members who selected just one winner for each category.

So Chase got 42 of the 50 votes, which was no surprise, but then Patriots QB Mac Jones was the runner-up with five votes, followed by Chiefs center Creed Humphrey with two votes and Chargers tackle Rashawn Slater with one.

Notice somebody missing from that list?

Yeah, the guy who set an NFL rookie record with 104 catches, which ranked eighth in the league in 2021, and who was named team MVP.

Jones was an interesting choice here for the five voters who selected him because he was a middle-of-the-pack quarterback (15th in passer rating), though he was the starter for a team that made the playoffs.

What added to the strangeness of the whole thing was that Waddle was announced as one of the three finalists for the award along with Chase and Jones.

This brings us to our last point about Waddle, and it comes from new head coach Mike McDaniel when he was asked about his excitement level over working with the wide receiver.

"Look up the yards after catch we had in San Francisco," he replied. "That should tell you how excited I am.”

The 49ers averaged 6.5 yards after the catch in 2021, and that figure ranked first in the NFL. The NFL leader in average yards after catch among wide receivers was Deebo Samuel, who, yes, played for the 49ers.

The Dolphins, meanwhile, were tied for 30th with an average of 4.3 yards after the catch, and their leading wide receiver in that category was Waddle, who was tied for 89th among all NFL players at 4.22.

ZACH THOMAS AND THE HALL OF FAME SNUB

To understand how it was that Zach Thomas was made to wait at least another year before getting into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is to understand the process.

Simply put, with some exceptions, everybody has to wait their turn.

And just like Dolphins fans are upset today that Thomas was not among the five modern-era inductees revealed Thursday night, understand that those same feelings were there for Saints and Panthers fans who waited a long time to see Sam Mills get inducted, or for Jaguars fans who waited a long time to see Tony Boselli get inducted, or for Packers fans who waited a long time for LeRoy Butler to get his turn.

That doesn't necessarily make it right, but it's just the way it is.

And, unfortunately, Thomas isn't seen as a slam dunk by the 49 Hall of Fame voters, consisting of one voter representing each team and 17 at-large voters.

On resume alone, it's easy to argue that Thomas should have gotten the nod ahead of Mills based on his seven All-Pro selections (first five team, two second) compared to Mills' three or his seven Pro Bowls to Mills' five or his 10 seasons in the top 10 in total tackles compared to Mills' two.

But this was Mills' final year of eligibility as a modern-era candidate, and that might have made the difference in the final analysis.

It's not going to be easy for Thomas to get inducted next year, either, because the list of first-year-eligible Hall of Fame candidates includes Darrelle Revis, Joe Thomas, Dwight Freeney and James Harrison.

One final thought on Thomas, and this is in answer to some Dolphins fans claiming a bias against the team, let's not forget that Jason Taylor was elected in his first year of eligibility.

And this speaks to the unscientific method of Hall of Fame election procedures because we would challenge anybody who watched the Dolphins from the late 1990s until Taylor and Thomas left the team to convince us there was a huge difference between the two in terms of their contributions to the defense.

The reality is that Taylor made more impact plays, though that's a lot easier to do as an edge defender than a middle linebacker, and maybe there's a bias against Thomas because he just didn't look the part of a dominant NFL linebacker — like, say, a Brian Urlacher, whose career stats resemble those of Thomas but who was a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

However you slice it, Zach Thomas should be in the Hall of Fame. It says here it will be in the Hall of Fame. It actually might not happen next year either. But it will happen.