Wednesday Dolphins Mailbag: Baker, Phillips, Fast Start, and More

Part 1 of the post-Bills, pre-Bengals SI Fan Nation All Dolphins mailbag:

From ChrisDavis (@KyLouFinFan):

Thanks as always. It’s fair to the say that so far the AFC is not going according to predictions. And forgive me I don’t recall what your exact prediction was but it’s not too far off to say the media in general preseason split with 45% saying we’d start 1-3 and 45% 0-4 and 10% 2-2. So what’s the biggest reason for the pleasant surprise and is it sustainable?

Hey Chris, for the record, I don’t know if I ever wrote and said in any radio interview what I thought their record would be after four games, but I had them at 2-2. As to why they’re at 3-0, I could go real basic and say they were able to make the key plays at the big moments against Baltimore and Buffalo and that’s got them at 3-0 instead of 2-1 or even 1-2. The offense obviously being able to deliver clutch plays has made a huge difference. I do think the Dolphins are going to be competitive for the long haul this season, but winning games the way they did against Buffalo is not sustainable.

From Mark Rodriguez (@MarkRodSTL):

Do you think Shell will play this week or at least be on the active roster for the game?

Hey Mark, I would suspect that at the very least, it would be Shell who gets the practice squad elevation to serve as the eighth offensive lineman against the Bengals after Larnel Coleman got the call the past two weeks. But, no, I don’t see Shell playing barring injuries.

From Andrew Smith (@prefonsmith):

Where is Tindall and why is River playing over Erik?

Hey Andrew, two good questions regarding the 2022 draft picks. I get the fascination with Tindall because he was the top pick and because he flashed at Georgia, but there was nothing that happened during training camp to suggest he was in line for a big role in his rookie season. I said and wrote before the season started that my expectation was that most, if not all, of his playing time in 2022 would come on special teams. As for Ezukanma, wide receivers coach Wes Welker outlined it pretty well last week and it comes down to an issue of the coaches trusting Cracraft more than the rookie at this point.

From Miami Dolphins Québec (@Dolphins_Quebec):

Salut Alain! Is it too early to say that Josh Boyer is the "real DC"? Many said the defense was a courtesy of Flores and Alexander but we can admit that Boyer had an excellent game vs. Buffalo and a good season.

“Real DC”? What does that mean? Yes, he’s clearly the man in charge of the defense this season and the defense has played its role in the 3-0 start, particularly with the performance against New England. But the Dolphins gave up an awful lot of yards against Baltimore and Buffalo, though they did come up big at key moments. I wouldn’t call the defensive effort against Buffalo “an excellent game” when the Bills rolled up 497 yards despite missing two starting offensive linemen for most of the game and left at least 13 points on the board for reasons that had nothing to do with the defense (Allen bobbled snap that prevented him from spiking at the end of the first half; Ogbah tipping the field goal attempt, which is a special teams play; and Allen badly missing the fourth-down pass because of poor technique and not something the defense did).

From Reza Hariri (@Therealrezpect1):

Some interesting decisions for Dolphins to make with possible Byron Jones, AJ & Fejedelem returning. Also, what will they do with Cracraft? Who stays, who is in jeopardy?

Hey Reza, I’ll start with Cracraft, who I see no way the Dolphins’ don’t sign to the active roster (forgive the double negative). Byron Jones and Austin Jackson absolutely will have a place on the 53 when they’re ready to return, but I think Fejedelem isn’t a sure thing because of how well Justin Bethel has played. As for who’s in jeopardy on the current 53? I might look at Myles Gaskin, who was inactive the past two games, and maybe Cethan Carter could be in jeopardy because the Dolphins don’t really need five tight ends.

From James Sonny Burnett (@JamesBurnett11):

Will Cracraft be signed to the 53 before Thursday? Or will they wait until after the game?

Hey James, easy answer here and it’s that I would be very surprised if that didn’t happen this week. The dude has earned it.

From steve , (@jujusimba7777):

Hi Alain, it was great that Baker stepped up vs. the Bills. He and Roberts were a concern. I wait on Roberts; yes, 1 or 2 run stuffs apart he’s average elsewhere. Now, Jaelan Phillips, where is he? Where has he been? Thank goodness for Melvin Ingram, otherwise our edge rushers have been poor.

Hey Steve, not quite sure what the question is, but Jaelan Phillips indeed has been quiet so far this season. There’s no denying that. But I absolutely will disagree with you on Elandon Roberts, who I think has been really, really good so far this season. He does dirty work that doesn’t produce splashy plays, so maybe he doesn’t flash. But he’s been really, really good.

From John Wallace (@Dolfanjw):

Why can't Dolfans in the West Palm Beach TV market watch the Bengals game on local TV but Broward can? We are big season-ticket holders market too!!!!

Hey John, that is an excellent question that is beyond the scope of my expertise (insert jokes here that ANYTHING football-related is beyond my scope LOL). But thankfully esteemed peer Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post dove into the issue and discovered that the NFL allows one station in each team’s market to carry the game, and in this case it was Channel 39 in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale market.

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From Jorge Boyd (@raga1922):

Hi Alain, how do you think the LBs did against the Bills. I saw Jerome Baker everywhere. Could they do a good job against the Bengals?

Hey Jorge, yeah, I did think Jerome Baker had his best game of the season, Melvin Ingram was involved in big play after big play and I thought Elandon Roberts was lights out against the run. As for the Cincinnati game, of course they can do a good job. Will they? I’ll tell you after the game.

From Craig M (@Dolfan2334):

Hi Alain. Forget the score and circumstances for a second, how big a win was that for Miami yesterday against Buffalo (first win in 8 tries) and what if any do you think the long-term effects might be?

Hey Craig, you can’t ask a question about the long-term effects of a win while telling me to disregard the circumstances, such as Buffalo on the road on a short week with a ton of injuries before and during the game. Or the fact that Buffalo outgained the Dolphins by 285 yards and left points on the board all day. I would say the win stamps the Dolphins as legit contenders in the AFC, but that needs to be tempered by the fact the Dolphins were fortunate to win that game (sorry, that’s just a fact). Had the Dolphins dominated that game, I’d tell you thinking Super Bowl might be legit. That wasn’t that kind of game.

From Mick (@Mrac317):

Alain, which position do you believe we should trade for at the deadline? I think we need a true MLB to make the team real strong up the middle. I like Riley and Roberts, but they are more role players IMO.

Hey Mick, I’m going to say this again because apparently it needs to be repeated: Elandon Roberts is very, very good at what he’s being asked to do. I’d almost go as far as call him the true MLB because the do-it-all MLB just doesn’t exist in today’s NFL (or rarely). As for what’s needed, I don’t see a glaring, gotta-have-it weakness, but the team could use a pass rusher.

From NY – Fins Up (@azomback34):

No doubt that Jaelan Phillips hustles like crazy every play. But wanna see him get to the QB (hits/sacks) and not be the guy who just puts on pressure (like Olivier Vernon did). What can Boyer do to help Jaelan terrorize opposing QBs each week ?

Yeah, the Jaelan Phillips question is a good one. If you want to unleash his full pass-rushing potential, then you have him focus strictly on chasing the quarterback, but that’s not the way the defense is designed because they ask Phillips to do different things like set the edge and sometimes drop back in coverage.

From Sean Byrne (@ByrnesBog):

With about 13 mins left in the 4th quarter Miami got flagged for ineligible player down field on the O-line on the Tyreek screen pass. Was it a penalty? Can you please explain the rule on that one? Cheers!

Hey Sean, the rule stipulates that an ineligible receiver cannot be past the line of scrimmage when the ball is thrown. What was weird about that call is they identified Greg Little as the guilty party when Robert Hunt actually was farther downfield.

From David Triana (@davidtriana):

How important has the veteran presence been both on the field and in the locker room from guys like Armstead, Ingram and Hill?

Hey David, that’s always a tough question to answer because I’m not inside the locker room and if we ask players, nobody is going to shoot down the idea of somebody being a leader — even if that happened to be the case. That said, I can’t speak on Ingram at all, though he does have the respect of his teammates, but Hill and Armstead undoubtedly have put their stamp on the team in terms of setting an example, whether it be with their words or actions.

From Big Ern McDolphin (@dana_buice):

Hey my friend, the Dolphins were not very good on special teams last year. They brought in several players this year to address this issue this year. Their coverage has been suspect & now have a “ blocked” punt. How can they improve on special teams, and do you think they will?

Hey Dana, yeah, they brought in several players to address the special teams, but they pretty much do that every year. Will the special teams improve? Time will tell, but rest assured they’ll be putting in plenty of time to make sure it does, which pretty much is the only it gets done.