Friday Dolphins Mailbag: Streaky Team, O-line, Tua/Teddy, and More

Part 1 of the pre-Patriots game SI Fan Nation All Dolphins mailbag:

From Earl (via email):

Hello Alain, now with the concussion possibility sitting like a dark cloud over Tua without seeming to show symptoms but having a bad second half, it sounds like Tua may have to sit the rest of the year or maybe reconsider his career choice due to latent symptoms cropping up. The Dolphins had a TE with a concussion history that had to retire. What are the possibilities of that being the case here? Whatever happened to the test helmets they tested in camp? Are they close to full-time use?

Hey Earl, lot to unpack here. I cannot speculate on the idea of Tua retiring because every case is different, though it probably would be wrong to dismiss the possibility entirely. I have heard nothing about the idea of the imminent use of the Guardian caps in the regular season, though it wouldn’t surprise if it ended up being a thing sooner rather than later.

From Lucas Aleman (via email):

Do you think we should make a run at Brady if we miss the playoffs? What are the salary cap implications?

Hey Lucas, Brady will be a free agent next offseason, so the salary cap implications will depend on what kind of contract he demands. Regardless, the Dolphins will have work to do with their cap. As to whether it’s right move, that’s a different question and a good one. Going with Brady pretty much would mean closing the door on Tua and only makes sense if you feel you have a Super Bowl team with Brady. And it also requires Brady to want to come here, which is not as much of a slam dunk now after the reported falling out between owner Stephen Ross and minority owner Bruce Beal.

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From Big Ern McDolphin (@dana_buice):

Hey my friend, going back to last year this Dolphins team has been full of streaks. They had 7 game losing streak and 7 games winning streak. This year same thing year 3 wins, 4 loses, 5 wins, etc. The quality of opponent doesn’t seem to matter. Why do you think that is?

Hey Dana, well, I would take issue about the quality of opponents not mattering. Remember that during the seven-game winning streak of 2021, the Dolphins beat Mike Glennon, Tyrod Taylor, Zach Wilson, Ian Book and a badly fading Cam Newton. And during the 2022 five-game winning streak, they beat nothing but teams that currently have a losing record (PIT, DET, CHI, CLE and HOU). So right now the one common denominator actually is that the Dolphins take care of lesser opponents but struggle to deal with better opponents (2-5 in 2021 and in 2022). Which tells you that they've been a pretty good team but not an upper-echelon team.

From Bick Whitener (@bickwhitener):

What is your anticipated OL for the Patriots game? Lots of moving parts right now. Thank you for what you do. Happy Holidays.

There are a lot of moving parts and then some injury question marks, starting with Terron Armstead. Let’s assume he can tough it again and play, so I’d say the O-line would be from left to right Armstead, Liam Eichenberg, Connor Williams, Robert Hunt and Brandon Shell.

From Coach Kenny Simpson (@fbcoachsimplson):

Over/under 10 screens run by the Patriots?

Hey Coach, it’s looking like Marcus Jones won’t be able to go for the Patriots, and he’s their best guy with whom to run those screens. So it would have been close or over before, but now I’ll take the under.

From Chris Bustin (@ChrisBustin13):

Hey, Alain. I have a question about this week’s playoff-clinching scenario. I feel like a Seahawks home victory against the Jets is a little bit more likely than the Dolphins winning on the road against the Patriots. (I know that both need to happen.) Do you agree? Thanks!

Going by point spreads, you’re right because the Dolphins are 2.5-point underdogs and the Jets are 1.5-point favorites. I happen to see both of those games as toss-ups.

From Karen Dube (@karmablitzhard):

Bonjour Alain … how does Armstead do with his ENTIRE body issues protecting Teddy & can Teddy get the ball to some play makers aka Hill, Waddle, Gesicki(!!!) & our WRs?

Hey Karen, Armstead has shown all year the ability to play through injuries and in his bad luck it’s been fortunate that there hasn’t been a major, major injury. As for Teddy, I wrote earlier this week that I don’t think the drop-off is terribly significant — and I’ll point you to the Minnesota game (when Armstead was NOT in the lineup) as evidence.

From Craig M (@Dolfan2334):

Keys to a Dolphins win Sunday, Alain? I’d suggest run the ball & stop the run & win the turnover battle. Curious your thoughts. Joyeux Noel!

Hey Craig, sure, that’s a good formula, but couldn’t we say that for every single solitary game? To me, I’d boil it down more simply to winning the turnover battle.

From Ohio Jon (@thejonrambo80):

Even with the defensive struggles, do you think facing a limited quarterback like Mac Jones will allow Boyer to get more creative/aggressive with his schemes?

Hey Jon, it’s a good point you make because Mac Jones isn’t going to hurt you with his scrambling ability and the Pats also don’t have big-play wide receivers, so the risk involved in blitzing him is much smaller than, say, against Justin Herbert, Josh Allen or Aaron Rodgers.

From Firalstar (@ScottHarder8):

Do we actually run the ball more with Teddy getting the start?

Hey Scott, the argument could be made that the Dolphins should have been running the ball more, period, regardless of who the QB is. I don’t buy into the notion that the offense needs to change with Bridgewater at QB.

From mr. mojo risin’ (@dennisgriffin7):

Do you think we'll finally have a Gesicki sighting with Teddy at QB? He had 6 receptions and 2 TDs when they played Vikings together.

Hey Dennis, I wouldn’t necessarily count on it. If you look at that Minnesota game, Gesicki had six catches on seven targets, but five of the targets came in the fourth quarter when the Dolphins were in full catch-up mode and needed to throw almost every down. It’s certainly not a situation the Dolphins want to find themselves in again.

From Michael McDonald (via email):

Hello Alain, aside from the health angle, from which there is no question Tua being in the concussion protocol is terrible news, is this revelation good in that it possibly answers some questions regarding the three 4th quarter interceptions against the Packers and paints a little brighter future for the Dolphins quarterback position?

Hey Michael, the only problem with your premise is that you’re operating under the idea that the interceptions were strictly the result of the concussion when it’s possible the symptoms didn’t start until after the game (very common). I’d be inclined to look more at the totality of the season, which has left us with an obvious answer that Tua can perform at a high level for long periods but a remaining question as to whether he ever can reach the level of the young AFC franchise quarterbacks with whom the Dolphins will have to contend over the next several years — Mahomes, Allen, Burrow, Herbert, Lawrence.

From NY – Fins Up (@azomback34):

Why does it seem like the Dolphins always snap the ball with 1 second left on the play clock? Is this a result of a rookie coach? Is it mostly Tua waiting for the last minute to analyze what the D is showing pre-snap? Is it confusion? Or maybe even a strategy to wait until last possible second to decide on an audible? All I can say is that it puts our (fans) anxiety through the roof watching on TV.

Hmm, I can’t tell you I’ve really noticed the play clock consistently and until there are a lot of delay penalties, I’m not sure I’d stress too much about it. Notice that the Dolphins send guys in motion very, very often partly to get an idea of what the defense is doing on a certain play, so that’s certainly a factor there.

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