Byron Jones' contract

Byron Jones has been just "ok" with Miami and i'm not convinced he's lived up to his contract. certainly the defense is worse without him in the lineup - not because he's so great, but because no one else (mainly Iggy) is good enough to fill his spot opposite Howard. and i know the big thing everyone points to is how Jones' contract pissed of Howard, but i think the bigger issue is...

Byron Jones became one of the league’s best cornerbacks while working in Rod Marinelli’s Cover 2-inspired scheme with the Dallas Cowboys. When he reached free agency in 2020, the Miami Dolphins made him the game’s highest-paid cornerback (for about six months).

Jones entered a new system and hasn’t been the same player.

Jones hasn’t been great since signing with Miami last offseason. He’s allowed completions on 61.6% of his targets (a step up from 52.8% in his last two years with Dallas) and a passer rating over 100.

https://sports.yahoo.com/bleacher-report-named-pick-worst-141518412.html

another example where Grier found a guy who was good doing one thing (cover-2), but paid him big bucks to do something else - which he hasn't been great at...at least not up to the value of his contract. you know, the contract the Phins can't get out from under...

Jones has cap hits of $16 million or more over each of the next three seasons.

Terrible signing compounded by a terrible draft pick. If either is good, makes the other not so bad.

This regime in a nutshell. Too many bad free agents, too many busts in first round.

I know I'm in the minority, but I think the Jones signing was and is an excellent move. He gives us the ability to play man coverage across the board and run those crazy defensive fronts we saw against Baltimore. This scheme doesn't work with just one good corner - you need two. X and Jones are the perfect tandem. Jones is also an excellent tackler, and he's having a much better season this year than he did last year. He's a player to build around IMO, even at the high pricetag.

white1 wrote:Terrible signing compounded by a terrible draft pick. If either is good, makes the other not so bad.

This regime in a nutshell. Too many bad free agents, too many busts in first round.

Reminds me of the infamous first round Fletcher pick when the Fins were coming off a season of leading the league in pass D. And I don't have to tell you who they passed up...

JMP wrote:I know I'm in the minority, but I think the Jones signing was and is an excellent move.  He gives us the ability to play man coverage across the board and run those crazy defensive fronts we saw against Baltimore.  This scheme doesn't work with just one good corner - you need two.  X and Jones are the perfect tandem.  Jones is also an excellent tackler, and he's having a much better season this year than he did last year. He's a player to build around IMO, even at the high pricetag.

IDK about that. I could swear I saw Jones get beaten repeatedly late VS the Ravens. Yeah it was garbage time but still, his man kept making catch after catch on those last two drives. And he just doesn't produce takeaways like Howard.

DolFan 316 wrote:

JMP wrote:I know I'm in the minority, but I think the Jones signing was and is an excellent move.  He gives us the ability to play man coverage across the board and run those crazy defensive fronts we saw against Baltimore.  This scheme doesn't work with just one good corner - you need two.  X and Jones are the perfect tandem.  Jones is also an excellent tackler, and he's having a much better season this year than he did last year. He's a player to build around IMO, even at the high pricetag.

IDK about that. I could swear I saw Jones get beaten repeatedly late VS the Ravens. Yeah it was garbage time but still, his man kept making catch after catch on those last two drives. And he just doesn't produce takeaways like Howard.

Jones doesn't produce as many takeaways, but this season his stats are comparable to Howard's:
--Pass breakups: Jones 7, Howard 10
--Forced fumbles: Jones 1, Howard 2
--Completion percentage against: Jones 63%, Howard 57.1%
--Yards per completion allowed: Jones 11.8, Howard 12.4
--Missed tackle percentage: Jones 2.4%, Howard 16.7%

As for the Ravens game, Jones had 9 total tackles and was a big reason the defense completely shutdown that offense.

I know he doesn't get any love from Dolfans, but I think that's a big mistake. It's not always about the stats with Jones- it's the fact he shuts down one side of the field while Howard shuts down the other. When this defense plays the way it should be played, Jones is a huge part of the success.

Good post JMP.  

I believe a lot of fans remember Jones in early year one, when he was legitimately struggling.  Clearly he's much better now and has a full grasp on our scheme and his role within it.  

As for the contract and cap dollars, it's all fake anyway especially when you're not paying a veteran franchise QB salary which takes a huge portion away.  

The flaw in this plan was that Iggy would develop into someone allowing the team to trade away or otherwise move on from one of the expensive corners.  A solid strategy and good thinking, but as in many moves with this rebuild.... the execution failed.

white1 wrote:Good post JMP.  

I believe a lot of fans remember Jones in early year one, when he was legitimately struggling.  Clearly he's much better now and has a full grasp on our scheme and his role within it.  

As for the contract and cap dollars, it's all fake anyway especially when you're not paying a veteran franchise QB salary which takes a huge portion away.  

The flaw in this plan was that Iggy would develop into someone allowing the team to trade away or otherwise move on from one of the expensive corners.  A solid strategy and good thinking, but as in many moves with this rebuild.... the execution failed.

Exactly, white. The money is high - but the cap is expected to go way up next season, and the Dolphins will reportedly have a ton of cap space. So, there's no immediate need to lower Jones's salary unless the team determines that he's not worth it - and I don't see that being the case with the way he's played so far.

And yes, Iggy was drafted in part to eventually replace Howard or Jones. I still don't have a problem with that strategy, even though it was obviously a mistake.

I said it at the time and stand by it... They paid too much for Jones. I mean, Jerry Jones let him go.

I also agree with JMP. Flores defensive scheme will not work with Howard at one CB spot and iggy or any of the other goobers they have at DB now.

So... If the Phins were winning and in the playoff hunt, I could live with the Jones salary. Even at the price they are paying him, Jones is worth it if it keeps Iggy off the field!!!

And as somebody said... If the Phins could draft a lot of these problems would solve themselves.

finfanatic wrote:

If the Phins could draft a lot of these problems would solve themselves.

That line should be etched on Grier's pink slip when he eventually gets fired.