Sunday Dolphins Mailbag: Jackson, X, Williams, Needham, and More

From S M D (@asnf61930):

You and Omar talked about the Eagles always drafting OL -DL in the early rounds; do you see Miami doing this? Is Miami looking to add more speed through the draft to keep this type of offense going?

Well, the Dolphins haven’t had a first-round pick since 2021, so it’s been tough for them to add OL-DL help, and it’s also not been their M.O. I also think I would agree with you that for this style of offense, skill position players might take precedence over linemen. But also remember that the Dolphins have five important O-linemen scheduled to become UFAs next spring (Lamm, Wynn, Williams, Hunt, Jackson).

From Mario Gonzalez (@MarioGo67676156):

When's the final day before we have to place Needham out for the rest of the year? Could both of you discuss the comments from Stephen Smith? Do you think there is something behind Wilson not playing????

Hey Mario, the Dolphins have until next Tuesday or Wednesday before they have to make a decision on Needham. I prefer not to bother with the comments from Smith, who says a lot of things for effect and whose research when it comes to the NFL often is sub-par. And Mike McDaniel said all week that Wilson could have played last week but it came down to numbers, though he was listed as doubtful on the final injury report of Carolina week.

From Kevin Levine (@KcLeinv15):

Especially with Needham now in the safety mix, it looks like Brandon Jones has fallen out of favor. With AVG looking so good coming off the edge, and Jones looking more comfortable near the line of scrimmage, should Fangio be cross-training Jones to take reps as a nickel LB?

Hey Kevin, Fangio has mentioned that Needham has gotten reps at nickel corner, dime corner and safety. As for Jones as a nickel linebacker, hmm, not sure I see that if for no other reason than he doesn’t have the build for it.

From Carlos Moloti (@Elwatcher25):

Miami can’t stop the run (especially when it comes from a QB). The only way is when you are scoring a lot of points and the other team is trying to catch up…how would you solve this problem???

Hey Carlos, by playing better up front? Joking aside, the Dolphins run defense hasn’t been great, but it hasn’t been terrible, either, and it’s just a matter of guys winning their individual battles and fulfilling their assignments.

From Chris Bustin (@ChrisBustin3):

Hey, Alain. I was so disappointed with how terrible the Dolphins were in their big road game against the Bills. What would you point to as the biggest reason why the Dolphins will be much more competitive in this prime-time road game against the Eagles? Thanks!

Hey Chris, I’m confident the Dolphins will be more competitive because there was some self-inflicted sloppiness involved in the Buffalo game, because the Eagles secondary is shaky and because the offensive line won’t get dominated like it did at Buffalo for the better part of the second half.

From Ross Jones (@RossJon41489617):

Even though the Dolphins offense should find success against Eagles secondary, will the Eagles’ stronger OL/DL dictate outcome of the game?

Hey Ross, that’s the big question, isn’t it? And it’s where the Dolphins CAN’T let the Eagles lines dictate the outcome.

From Kevin Hennessy (@henzey):

If Austin Jackson keeps up the same level of performance over the rest of the season, what sort of contract will he earn himself, either with the Dolphins or elsewhere?

Hey Kevin, that’s a very good question and it could present an interesting dilemma for the Dolphins, who’ll have to decide how much to pay him — because the franchise tag won’t be an option. The top 12 right tackles in the NFL make more than $10 million annually, but I don’t see Jackson getting that much. But him asking for something like $8 million/year if he finishes the year strongly wouldn’t be shocking.

From Jouvanie (@LiefAintThatBad):

How does “The Kraken” sound as a name for the offense. So many variables that make it make sense.

Hmm, won’t be my call, but can’t say it does a lot for me. Besides, it’s the nickname of an NHL team already. Sorry.

From don story (@don_story):

Win or lose, what do you need to see from Miami to show they are ready to compete with the elite teams?

Hey Don, very simple: They can’t get dominated on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

From Armando Acevedo (@Chincue):

Is the Dolphins defense capable to stop the Philly run offense?

Hey Armando, yes, the Dolphins defense has shown it can do when it’s been playing well, but the consistency just hasn’t been there. Will that happen Sunday night? Let’s revisit that Monday.

From Jared Fox (@jsaefox98):

On the road in Buffalo, our offensive operation was slow and it limited motion and pre-snap reads. Especially when we exhausted the scripted plays. How can/did we fix it? Love the show!

Hey Jared, we have to accept the fact that the Dolphins simply aren’t going to be able to throw all the bells and whistles on offense like they normally do at home because crowd noise becomes a factor. There probably isn’t a way around it, but the execution still can be crisper than it was at Buffalo.

From Mad doggo (@Dogadoodle72):

Do you think they should sit X for a couple weeks to get healthy? When he had a similar injury last year, he was not the same player; these types of injuries can really linger. Same question for Connor Williams. Thanks guys, love the show.

Hey Mad doggo, to me, it always boils down to one thing: Is there a greater risk of making the injury linger if the player plays? If the answer is no, then there’s no reason to keep a player out simply to be overly cautious. If the answer is yes, then absolutely make X or Williams wait another week. The long term is much important than one game in Week 7.

From Matt Fleming (@MattFleming7776):

It feels like it’s all gone quiet on the 73 watch front. How are you guys feeling about Austin Jackson’s performance six weeks in. Is he getting it done? Performing? What are your O Line positives?

Hey Matt, given the numbers the Dolphins have put up, it’s hard to complain about much offensively, and that includes the line. From this vantage point, there have been an awful lot of good performances from O-linemen and Jackson is among those. I particularly like the way he’s gotten out front at the second level in the running game. I’d say he’s performed very well so far.

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