Sunday Dolphins Mailbag: Chubb, Schedule, 2020 Draft, and More

Tackling assorted questions from Miami Dolphins fans dealing with the past, the present (Las Vegas game) and future (schedule and contracts)

Part 2 of the pre-Raiders game All Dolphins mailbag:

From Dion Gardiner (@dantegardiniore):

Do you think last year's trade for Chubb was fine with the vision of getting Fangio in the offseason and build this defense? Were they looking that far ahead last year?

Hey Dion, I see where you’re going with this and maybe there’s something to it considering Fangio being a target didn’t just surface this year. Having said that, there never was any guarantee that Fangio would join Miami.

From Jamie Loudon (@loudon_jamie):

Is the defense Miami’s most dependable unit?

Hey Jamie, funny you should ask, because I wrote a column that suggested kind of that very idea, that the defense would become the strength of the team before too long — if it’s not already there.

From Pat G. (via email)

Hey Alain, the Dolphins vs Jets on Friday, Nov 24th...carried on Amazon Prime. Do you know if a local South Florida channel will be allowed to carry this game?

Hey Pat, yes, CBS 4 bought the rights to carry the game.

From Jimmy B. (via email)

Hey Alain! Going back in time, would you say one of the Dolphins’ biggest mistakes was letting go of Troy Vincent? He was still very effective after he left the Dolphins...

Hey Jimmy, I absolutely agree with you. The Dolphins had salary-cap issues when Jimmy Johnson took over as head coach in 1996 and he made the decision to let some key veterans leave via free agency, one of them being Vincent, another being Bryan Cox. I didn’t particularly for either move, to be quite honest, but then again he later built a championship-caliber defense with some great drafting.

From Nicholas (via email)

In the context of their whole career, who is the better player — Tyreek Hill or Jalen Ramsey? And do you think we have any other first-ballot Hall of Famers on the team at this time? (I’m kinda assuming the two above are but could be wrong!!)

Hey Nicholas, Ramsey has been a great player, but Hill is just different in terms of his ability to impact a game, so I think I’d give him the nod. I’m also not sure Ramsey at this point would be a first-ballot HOFer, though it’s not out of line to suggest. Outside of those two, though, nobody stands out at the moment.

From Jeff (via email):

A brief question, the upcoming schedule is Easy -> Medium -> Hard in terms of difficulty. We need to hit a stride, make a statement, and then play well in the big moments, in that order. I don't think I've ever seen as much of a "storybook" schedule to the season if the team hits all the right marks. Do you think this team, coaches and players, is built in a way to hit those marks?

Hey Jeff, yeah, I think the Dolphins have the ability to navigate their schedule and start peaking at the right time to get that statement victory down the stretch.

From Rob (via email):

Could Mike be sandbagging? Saving his good stuff for when it matters. Wouldn’t it be nice to eliminate the Ravens and the Bills from the playoffs in the last two weeks of the season? Could happen.

Hey Rob, no, McDaniel is not sandbagging or “saving good stuff for when it matters.” The idea is to win every game and it’s not like McDaniel is going to run out of new ideas.

From Todd (via email):

Hi Alain, with Tua potentially getting a big contract after the season (if he stays healthy and keeps up this pace), is there any chance that he could take slightly less than market value to stay in Miami? When he was interviewed before the Eagles game, he mentioned how much fun he has at work, and his relationship with Mike McDaniel. Would this be enough for him to take a team-friendly contract? Does the NFLPA discourage players from taking team-friendly deals in order to keep prices rising?

Hey Todd, the idea of hometown discounts or “team-friendly” is great in theory, but players generally tend to want to get as much as they can, just like teams want to sign players for as little as they can. So, Tua may love playing for McDaniel and/or playing in Miami, but the notion that he’d leave money on the table might be a bit of a reach.

From Todd Lynch (@ToddLyn68220233):

Not specific to this week, but taking a look back at 2020 draft, how would you grade it now? I’d have to go A-. Funny when you read draft-day grades knowing what we know now.

Hey Todd, it’s looking more and more like the Dolphins hit with Tua at No. 5 (though, yes, he still has to have a big December/January showing), and Austin Jackson is looking a lot better as the 18th pick than he once did, plus Robert Hunt and Raekwon Davis were good second-round picks, so there’s more and more to like about the draft. At this exact moment, though, I’d go B+ and it moves to an A- (at minimum) if Tua finishes the season the way he’s started it.

From Phins Fan (@DonKearnsJr):

How do you think the Raiders will use Maxx Crosby? Will they move him around? Will the Raiders attempt to replicate some of Kansas City/Philadelphia type defensive schemes?

Hey Don, the feeling is the Raiders are going to try to get as physical as possible with the Dolphins offense and that means having DBs at or near the line ready to hit receivers coming off the line. As for Crosby, he tends to stick to the left side of the defensive formation.

From Javier (@jboy1724):

What’s the one thing the Dolphins can’t do this game that will give the Raiders a chance to win?

Hey Javier, it’s kind of always the same thing, and that’s turning the ball over and giving up the big play on defense.

From Darryl Carpenter (@dazspire):

Bearing on mind LV's record against the run, can Jeff Wilson and Achane pick up the baton if Mostert is hurting or absent? Thanks for all the content, video and written articles much appreciated.

Hey Darryl, thanks for the kind words. Yeah, I do think the running game will be fine against the Raiders even with limited contributions from Mostert because I don’t think Achane is going to skip a beat (though he’s not necessarily gonna break 75-yard runs all over the place).

From Jay Bert (@bert695):

Weren’t the Dolphins excited about Kion Smith in pre-season? Whatever happened to that excitement? Also Tanner Conner…? Thanks guys

Hey Jay, they liked Kion Smith enough to keep him on the 53-man roster, which quite honestly came as a bit of a surprise. As for Tanner Conner, he was set back quite a bit by an injury and then Julian Hill showed prowess as a blocker that earned him a roster spot that otherwise might have gone to Conner.

From Rob Hellebrand (@dolfanrob1):

Have you gotten a sense from either players or coaches at this point if Hard Knocks is as much of a distraction so far as apparently feared at first?

Hey Rob, I’m going to be very honest with you and tell you that I’ve always found the notion of “distractions” to be massively overblown. NFL players and coaches have to deal with outside noise on a neverending basis because it comes with the job and they kind of get immune to it. But to specifically answer your question, no, we haven’t heard a peep about it being an issue in the least.

Dolphins Week 11 Opponent Breakdown: Las Vegas Raiders