Friday Dolphins Mailbag: Tyreek Targets, CB Dilemma, Bowden/Williams, and More

Part 1 of the latest SI Fan Nation All Dolphins mailbag following the roster cuts to 53 and heading into the regular season opener:

From Reza Hariri (@Therealrezpect1):

I get it was time to move on from Bowden & Williams, but getting them on PS would have been smart. Good for depth regardless. Thoughts?

Hey Reza, the first point that needs to be made here is that it’s a two-way street, meaning that Williams and Bowden would have needed to want to stay with the Dolphins after being cut from the 53-player roster. In the case of Williams, I’m of the opinion a mutual parting was best for both sides, and I don’t know why we would think Williams would want to stay after the Dolphins re-signed him as a UFA and then went out and got Tyreek Hill, Cedrick Wilson Jr. and Trent Sherfield as free agents and then drafted Erik Ezukanma. I think Bowden was the more likely of the two to come back to the practice squad, but that ship sailed when he signed with the Pats.

From Craig M (@Dolfan2334):

Hi Alain, there’s a bunch of interesting veteran CBs still on the street. I liked the Alexander add. With Jones out for at least the first four games, why has this not been addressed yet? Are they waiting until after Week 1? Bit puzzling really, with Bills and Bengals early.

Hey Craig, yeah, the idea that the Dolphins are waiting until after Week 1 when they won’t have to fully guarantee the 2022 salary for a vested veteran has merit, though it’s certainly not something they would publicly disclose. The other issue is getting a cornerback who would represent a clear upgrade over the backups on the roster but someone who would be willing to be relegated to a backup role once Jones returns. That’s not exactly easy to find.

From Bob Curvelo (@curvelo13):

With the keeping of 5 TEs, does it mean a trade is definitely coming? Or is Tanner Conner going to go on IR?

Hey Bob, I fully understand the question and I have to admit I was surprised they kept five tight ends, even if they did that last year as well. Conner has been wearing a knee brace for at least a week now, so I was expecting him to be put on IR, if not with the cuts to 53, then definitely after. But that has not happened yet, and GM Chris Grier said Tuesday there were no plans for that to happen. As for a trade, Grier kind of shut the door on that idea Tuesday when he was asked about Mike Gesicki. The one thing to remember, too, is that Cethan Carter doubles as a fullback.

From ChrisDavis (@KyLouFinFan):

3 related Q's: Does IR mean B. Jones can’t practice for 4 weeks or just not play? Does the lack of FA CBs indicate no one Fins like for the price or real confidence in unproven CBs? And what is your confidence in our backup CBs? Thanks as always.

Hey Chris, first off, Byron Jones is on PUP, not IR, and he can’t practice for at least four weeks. The lack of an addition at cornerback could be a combination of factors, such as confidence in the young QBs on the roster, not being able to find somebody at the right price, not being willing to fully guarantee the 2022 salary to a vested veteran (which changes after Week 1), though only the team would know (and not share). I would put my confidence level as measured, though I think it’s going to require a scaling back of the aggressiveness the defense usually shows.

From Olive Grove Jon (@Owlizee):

Many elements of the team have improved, but do you still have cause for concern with the running game?

Hey OGJ, I will have concern for the running game until I see it produce in a regular season game. That said, I do believe it will be much, much better than it was last season.

From Csonked Out (@csonked):

Is it assumed that Needham will be the starting outside corner opposite X week 1?

Hey Csonked, no, I would not assume that. The reason is that moving Needham, while logical in a sense, then creates a situation as the slot corner spot and that slot corner is going to be on the field quite a bit. So the Dolphins have to weigh the cost/benefit of moving Needham outside as opposed to keeping him inside and having somebody else line up opposite Xavien Howard.

From Sean Williams (@SeanWil19859888):

Hey Alain, I’m wondering what McDaniel’s plan at CB is gonna be Week 3-4. You can’t start a rookie unproven corner against those WRs. Do you think they possibly move Needham outside and then put Rowe in the slot? Or what’s the solution? Thanks … Dolphins Beat the patriots twice last year and have added upgrade after upgrade (on paper). The Patriots actually lost talent on (on paper). Dolphins reports are a great camp. Patriots reports are a horrible camp. Shouldn’t we dominate them?

Hey Sean, it’s interesting that you’re asking the ever-popular CB question referring only to Week 3-4, though it makes sense because that’s when they face the Bills and Bengals, who both are loaded at wide receiver, after the opening two games against the Patriots and Ravens, who are not. While using the Needham/Rowe tandem certainly makes sense, there are other options, so I don’t think it’s a slam dunk that’s the way they’ll go. I do have a hard time seeing Kader Kohou being given a starting assignment right away, though I also wouldn’t rule it out. In terms of the Week 1 matchup, yeah, it certainly would seem logical to think the Dolphins would dominate this game, but this is where the coaching matchup might come into play given the respect that everybody always gives Bill Belichick and then Mike McDaniel going into his first regular season game as an NFL head coach.

From crack (@crackfin44):

How many Tyreek/Waddle targets should we expect per game: 5, 10, 15? And how serious is McDaniel about playing Tyreek out of the backfield?

Hey there, between Tyreek and Waddle, it’s going to be a lot closer to 15 combined targets than five, that’s for sure. There’s no way the Dolphins aren’t going to try to maximize the talents of the fastest WR duo in the NFL. As for Tyreek in the backfield, I must have missed it because I don’t recall McDaniel ever saying anything about that and I also don’t expect to see Hill doing that. Now, he will get some rushing attempts on jet sweeps or end-arounds or reverses, but that’s not the same thing as actually lining up in the backfield.

From Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly):

What's the best approach for the Dolphins to survive this stretch without Byron Jones?

Hey Omar, I was hoping you’d tell me. LOL. That’s the $64,000 question, right? If McDaniel asked for my opinion (and I’m not holding my breath for that), I think the right move is to start Noah Igbinoghene outside opposite X and switch to Keion Crossen if Igbinoghene isn’t up to the task. The other option I’d consider is having Eric Rowe in the slot and moving Nik Needham outside, but I think I’d give Igbinoghene the first shot at it because I did see some improvement this summer even though there were some rough spots.