Saturday Dolphins Mailbag: Young and Tua, Trade Thoughts, and More

What's with all the freaky injuries at wide receiver? Can the front four produce a consistent pass rush without blitzing? Tackling those and other questions from Miami Dolphins fans

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

From Tito (via email):

Really enjoy and respect your work on the Fins. It's the first articles I look for when I open the phone. I want to know your take on the weird WR injury history for the Fins these last few years. This year it's Ezukama with the neck (could be lost for extended time), a couple of years ago it was Will Fuller with the finger that kept him out the whole season after the one game he played, and before that it was Preston Williams with a strange foot injury that kept him out the rest of that year. I guess it's just bad luck, but always seems it's something "more" than just injuries that kept them away.

Hey Tito, lot of fluky stuff going there with those three players and the only one where I would agree with maybe “more” going on was Will Fuller. Williams basically had a mid-foot fracture, which is a very severe injury and Ezukanma had a neck issue from college flare up. I don’t think I’d look too deep into any sort of connection there.

From RL (@ronaldlyles):

Hey Alain, is Bryce Young similar to Tua in QB style? Strength? Motion? Accuracy? So forth and so? If so, how will this defense react to a similar type player?

Hey Ronald, Young's similarities extend to both being from Alabama, shorter than ideal for an NFL quarterback and being accurate, but that's where that ends. Tua is a pocket passer, whereas Young is more a guy who'll create things after the play breaks down. So the Dolphins have to be aware of his scrambling ability and stay honest with their rushing lanes.

From Todd Lynch (@ToddLyn68220233):

Not really a question; just an observation. I guess we shouldn’t put too much stock in training camp. It seemed you and Omar were high on the defense but had some concerns about the offense. The season has been the complete opposite! Really appreciate both your respectful perspectives.

Hey Todd, yep, training camp and preseason can be deceiving. Look at the flip side of this, the Pittsburgh offense was absolutely on fire all summer and there’s been nothing but calls for their OC’s job since the regular season started. With the Dolphins, they were working on some things in the summer, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle practiced sporadically, and they weren’t motioning like mad men the way they have since the start of the regular season.

From Mark Lever (@MarkFinsfan):

Should we grab someone in trade before the deadline? If so, who would you get? … Not looking ahead but if I was, do you think we can beat the Eagles; how do we match up with them? Great job guys keep up the good work.

Hey Mark, I don’t know yet of any player who’s on the move who the Dolphins should go after — Jerry Jeudy and Frank Clark don’t interest me — and their limited cap space is going to limit what they can do. As for the Eagles, it’s OK to look ahead as a fan, it’s the players who can’t do it. Yes, the Dolphins can beat them because their offense gives them the chance to beat any team when it’s operating a peak efficiency. However, the Eagles have maybe the best combination of offensive/defensive lines in the NFL (along with the 49ers), and the Dolphins have to at least hold their own there.

From Leo T (@DonChiclon):

Despite having little cap to maneuver around, do you see a scenario where the Dolphins make a trade for a defender? Denver has eaten cap hits so far to tear down their team and it makes me wonder if Justin Simmons becomes a viable trade target if Denver absorbs a chunk of salary.

Hey Leo, the Dolphins don’t even have $2.5 milllion of cap space and his cap number is $18.2 million this year with a $14.4 million salary. You’re not actually expecting the Broncos to pick up like $12 million of that, are you? Bottom line: It’s not happening.

From Miami Dolphins #1 – Jack (@TTg8913468):

Hey Poupart and O. Just wondering your thoughts on Chase Claypool’s involvement this Sunday? Think there will be some package for him that was meant for Elijah Higgins. Thanks guys keep up the amazing work!

Hey Jack, what Claypool does will have nothing to do with any package meant for Higgins (did the Dolphins ever had a package for Higgins?). My expectation is that Claypool is 50-50 to play Sunday and when he does play, it’ll be like 15-20 snaps at most.

From Crash Jensen (@Sngly):

Do you think Jeff Wilson plays, and if so, does he have over 100 yards from scrimmage?

Hey Crash, no and no. I did expect the Dolphins to activate him in light of the De’Von Achane injury but that changed when I was listed as doubtful on the final injury report of the week. I never did see 100 total yards from him.

From Big Ern McDolphin (@dana_buice):

Now that we’ve seen Terron Armstead’s and Connor Williams’ backup play, is it safe to say that Connor Williams’ health is more important than Terron Armstead?

Hey Dana, we’ve seen one game from Liam Eichenberg at center, so maybe we’re being harsh in thinking that’s what we’ll get every time he’s on the field. But playing along, based on the current evidence, yes, Williams’ health is more important because Kendall Lamm has been very solid in place of Armstead. But let’s not confuse that with who’s the better player, because that’s Armstead.

From Alexander Emmett (@AlexEmmett):

Does Claypool go nuts in the red zone?

Hey Alexander, I don’t know about “nuts,” but I sure would expect him to get some throws not necessarily in the red zone, but in goal-to-go situations.

From JohnnyBoy (@JohnSalerno22):

When are we gonna see our DEs beat their man 1-on-1 and get pressure on the QB? And are we going to need to wait until JP comes back in order to see this?

Hey John, the timing of the question is interesting because the Dolphins DEs/edge defenders sure won a lot of one-on-one battles last week, though, yes, it was against the porous Giants offensive line. But I get your point that more consistency is needed there. Carolina actually has two decent offensive tackles in Taylor Moton and former first-round pick Ikem Ekwonu, so this game will be a good challenge there.