Dolphins Mailbag: Tua, Cornerbacks, Fuller, Flowers, and More

Part 2 of the latest All Dolphins mailbag, as the Dolphins prepare to welcome the Atlanta Falcons for joint practices before the teams play a preseason game at Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday.

Here we go:

From Bryan Thorn (@thornybr1968):

What do you think is the most realistic performance for the Fins this year? I think they have a great chance if they can protect Tua as the D is pretty awesome.

Bryan, if I knew the answer to that question, I would have placed a big bet during my recent vacation stop in Las Vegas. I do think the Dolphins have a lot of good things going for them, but they also have question marks. So let's say they'll finish between seven and 12 victories.

From Q Dantley (@DantleyQ):

Being in our current situation with the O-line’s subpar play, what was Grier and Flores' thought process when trading Ereck Flowers?

Hey Q, that is one fabulous question. I'll be honest, I didn't get it at the time and I still don't get it. Flowers was scheduled to make $10 million this year, but by trading him and agreeing to pay some of his salary they ended up saving only $2 million against the salary cap, per reports. I don't see a $2 million cap savings as good justification for getting rid of a veteran offensive lineman, even if Flowers isn't necessarily a top-end player.

From Scott Jones (@scottjones0131):

Do you think the Dolphins will be any good this year?

Hey Scott, "any good"? Yes, they'll be any good. How good? See my previous answer on this question.

From jon green (@ripplerat):

Has there been any speculation or news about Will Fuller's injury status is?

There has been no news because Brian Flores has been reluctant to share any information about injuries, whether in terms of severity or nature of the injury. The only time he's actually volunteered any info was when he said Xavien Howard was dealing with an ankle injury. All I can tell you about Fuller is that he usually makes an appearance at practice, which would indicate it's not something overly serious.

From Showtime (@Showtime_Mia):

What more do you need to see from Tua as the season goes on?

I'll tell you what, more of what he showed against Chicago (minus the interception, of course) would work perfectly well for me.

From Scott Jennings (@scootphin34):

Do you see the Dolphins trading a player, maybe WR....for an OL man....or do they just go through all the cut down days looking for decent pieces?

Hey Scott, yeah, that would make sense because the Dolphins do have a surplus of wide receivers (even with the injury to Allen Hurns), but the problem is finding a trade partner. Offensive linemen are in short supply everywhere around the NFL and I don't think there are many teams who have too many that they want to trade one.

From Juste un Gars (@juste1gars):

Who do you think the fins will keep at CB???

Bonjour JUG, that's a very good question. We'll start with the idea that I think the Dolphins will keep 10 defensive backs. Byron Jones, Xavien Howard, Nik Needham and Noah Igbinoghene are pretty much locks as pure cornerbacks, and the same for Eric Rowe, Jevon Holland and Brandon Jones as pure safeties. That leaves three spots and I think right now I'd say they would go to Jason McCourty, Justin Coleman and Jamal Perry, with a young player like Javaris Davis and Terrell Bond still having an outside shot to steal one of the spots.

From Josh/Shark (@CutoffShark):

What is Tua’s mindset and inspiration leading into his sophomore season?

Hey Josh (or is it Shark?), that would be a better question for Tua, but what I can tell you is what he's said in media session, and that's that his mind-set is he's more comfortable and confident than last year and his inspiration always has been his family and making them proud.

From Dante (@GhostofMarino):

O-Line and who the real play caller is have been major topics, but i want to ask about the defense. What have you seen, if anything, that shows natural QB pressure being created by the front so they won't be so reliant on blitzes? I realize Phillips has been out most of camp.

Hey Dante, you make a very good point. Emmanuel Ogbah is the one D-lineman on the roster with natural pass-rushing ability, but the Dolphins believe that their scheme will help them create pressure regardless. That's what happened last year when Jerome Baker ended up with seven sacks and Andrew Van Ginkel had 5.5. Also understand that it's not as easy to be a productive pass rusher as a defensive lineman playing in a 3-4 alignment.

From LMSPORTSTALK (@sportsgenius777):

Who's the starting RB? Which RB will get the bulk of carries?

Still have to think it's going to end up being Myles Gaskin, even though it was Malcolm Brown who started against the Bears in the preseason opener.

From FattyDaddy (@Dolphin_Fan_Dan):

How many Dolphins make this year's NFL Network top 100. Is X top 12?

Considering the first 60 have been revealed without one Dolphins player so far, I have to believe the final tally will be one player, and that will be Xavien Howard. Keep in mind that the list always is a major reflection of what happened last year and Howard's 10 interceptions no doubt caught the attention of players around the NFL. So I'm going to guess that Howard indeed will be in the top 12.

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