Saturday Dolphins Mailbag: Tua, Brady, Shula, Noah, and More

Part 1 of the latest SI Fan Nation All Dolphins mailbag:

From Rémi Lesot – A Canadian Dolphins Fan (@Rémi_Lesot):

Do you believe (like I do) Brady is ready to sign with the Dolphins if Tua suffers another season-ending injury?

Salut Rémi, without question, that’s what it smells like. Brady lives in Miami, so it’s an easy move for him to make if something were to happen to Tua and I think the chance to play with some of the offensive playmakers the Dolphins have would be hard for him to pass up.

From Flipper13 (@Flipper13):

With the success that the Chiefs and Niners have with Pro Bowl tight ends that are both great at blocking and receiving, do you think that the Fins will make a trade for a top-tier TE prior to August?

Hey Flipper, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of Travis Kelce being considered a great blocker, but even then understand that with Kelce and George Kittle, you’re talking about maybe the top two tight ends in the NFL. And those guys just don’t grow on trees. And also remember that the Dolphins aren’t swimming in cap space, so I honestly don’t see that kind of move happening.

From PhinsPhocus (@Phins_Phocus):

Pretend you are the GM and you only have 1 realistic move to improve the franchise either by the draft or trade. What would GM Poupart do?

Easy, I convince the Kansas City Chiefs to take a seventh-round pick in a trade for Patrick Mahomes. Oh, wait, you mean, something realistic? Yeah, that’s a tough one. Since I think the offensive line is the one position that worries me the most, I think I’d make a play for the best offensive lineman in free agency or trade up into the first round to take an offensive lineman.

From Mike Jones (@MikeJonesFla):

Appreciate the fine work you do. I think at 46 I finally figured out what I want to do for a living. Too late now. What's your opinion of Stephen Ross and are there signs he's closer to selling the team.

Mike WHO? Mike Jones! … Is that how it goes? Anyway, thanks for the kind words. My opinion of Ross as an owner is that he’s very eager to win and you have to appreciate his willingness to spend. His decisions haven’t always been on point and he's done some questionable things, and maybe he should have stayed in the background more. But, again, he’s never been afraid to spend. And I haven’t heard anything about him being closer to selling, understanding also that he’s 83.

From Dixon Tam (@DixonTam):

How tough were training camps run by Don Shula in comparison to what we see in the #NFL today? Would anything from back then be allowed today? And how bad was it for players having to run gassers in South Florida heat during July/August?

Hey Dixon, yeah, it was night and day, but also remember that coaches could get away with a lot more then because there were no restrictions in the CBA like there are now. So two-a-day practices were commonplace, sometimes three a day, and gassers were dreaded by practically every player who joined the Dolphins.

From Mark Rodriguez (@MarkRodSTL):

What's the difference between last season’s punter and the one we signed for this season?

Hey Mark, it depends on which Jake Bailey the Dolphins got. If they got the one from a few years back, Bailey is a punter with a big leg who also gets great hang time, which will help the coverage. The Bailey of last year, though, struggled because he had back issues. The guy he replaced, Thomas Morstead, did a pretty good job for the most part, but the Dolphins were poor in punt coverage and some of that falls on the punter.

From NY – Fins Up (@azomback34):

What does the symbol on the Expos hat mean? Been a huge baseball fan for many many years and never thought to ask. Part B: am I crazy to think that the Fins will use both their 2nd & 3rd RD picks on OL and forego drafting a TE? What you hear from Grier is what he wants you to.

For those who might not have seen the reply on Twitter about the Expos logo, if you look closely, you will see letters “e,” “m” and “b” represented and they stand for Expos, Montreal and baseball. On the Dolphins question, no, I don’t think they’re taking an O-lineman in the second and third rounds. One of those maybe, if not probably. But not both.

From Roch Savard (@ElRoca19):

With Tua's recent news (retirement for concussions) and concussion history, do you think the Dolphins will look for a plan B rather sooner than later?

Hey Roch, no, I don’t think the Dolphins will look for a Plan B until the time comes when they have to do it. That was kind of the signal when they decided to pick up Tua’s fifth-year option. They’re riding with him until it’s clear they need to find another solution.

From Jo3k3R (@FIN5_UP)

Name 5 players in this draft that could be Day 1 starters. Go Expos!

Love the Go Expos. Starters from Day 1: OLB Will Anderson, CB Devin Witherspoon, RB Bijan Robinson, DT Jalen Carter, TE Michael Mayer.

From Miguel Perez (@miguelbahamas):

What are some of the improvements you are looking for specifically from Coach McDaniel in year 2?

Hey Miguel, very simple: Getting the plays in quicker to avoid the delay penalties or the rushing to get the play off and sticking with the running game longer when it’s working and more in short-yardage situations.

From Mad doggo (@dogadoodle72):

Do you think John Fox can help fix Noah Igbonoghene? We all know the athleticism is there.

John Fox? I assume you mean Vic Fangio. The arrival of Fangio, but more importantly the implementation of more zone coverage gives me some hope that Igbinoghene can take a step forward in 2023, but I also would think it would be foolish to assume anything.

From Greasy Bob (@BobGreaseme):

Somehow Gibbs, Campbell, Washington and Jones are all there at 51 Who’s the most impactful year 1?

Howdy, Greasy Bob, if a running back is in the equation and you’re going for the immediate impact, that’s going to be the pick. Gibbs is going to be a stud from Day 1.

From Darrell (@dolphinscock2001):

Enjoy your work and really like your podcast with Omar. You guys are kind of strange bedfellows but your ying and his yang balance out nicely. Question is how do you plan to watch the draft? Party? Alone? Home? Public? Do you watch every pick or just catch the highlights?

Hey Darrell, party? The draft is work, so I’ll be watching every pick from the Dolphins facility on the second and third days of the draft unless they trade into the first round. But it’ll be work and we’ll be producing a lot of stories throughout the draft.

From Duke (via email):

Hi Alain, thank you very much for what you do… You are right down the middle with the good the bad and ugly with the ‘Phins. Been a fan since 1970 when Shula joined. Lots of good early, and pain lately. This time of year, it might be fun to get folks’ thoughts on the worst day in franchise history… I’ll give you mine. The day Jimmy Johnson was appointed coach. Pushed out Shula. I know, lots of counter arguments (drafted Jason Taylor (3rd round) and Zach Thomas (5th round)… but how about Yatil Green? How about Dave Wannstedt (also his legacy)? He arguably had the best Dolphins roster post-Johnson and now he’s coaching high school. Jimmy couldn’t win without the “triplets,” tried to turn Miami into a running team while Danny was still in the backfield. Outside of O.J. McDuffie, I think the receivers that year had a total of less than 10 total NFL receptions. Check it out. Last game for Jimmy and Dan, 62-7 loss to Jacksonville. If I recall, Jimmy had a personal loss that week… but talk about unprepared. The Dolphins still haven’t recovered from his time at the helm. Even Saban wasn’t as bad… OK… your turn.

Hey Duke, well, I’m going to take some issue with your assessment here, while at the same time not praising everything Jimmy Johnson did. What he did do was build a Super Bowl-caliber defense by drafting JT, Zach, Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain. Yes, he wanted to have more of a balanced offense even with Marino at quarterback, but understand that this was to take better advantage of his stud defense and also because, like it or not, Marino wasn’t the same in, say, 1998-99 as he was in 1993-94. And it was then-owner Wayne Huizenga who pushed out Shula, if you want to use that terminology. And Yatil Green tore ACLs his first two years; that's not on Johnson. The one part where I’m totally on board with you is dictating to Huizenga that Wannstedt succeed him as head coach because Wannstedt was a great defensive coordinator but not as good of a head coach. But, no, that wasn’t the worst day in Dolphins history for me. Off the top of my head, Ricky Williams bailing on the team on the eve of training camp in 2004 was worse. And I'm sure I'm forgetting about even more obvious things.