Re: Dolphins coaching staff news and rumors

by white1 Sat Feb 12, 2022 2:11 pm

Also interviewing the Boston College offensive line coach for the OL coaching job here in Miami

https://twitter.com/petethamel/status/1492567021174861825?s=21

I know it’s a college coach but BC churns out excellent linemen. Good guy to interview

by **JMP** Sat Feb 12, 2022 8:48 pm

white1 wrote:Also interviewing the Boston College offensive line coach for the OL coaching job here in Miami

https://twitter.com/petethamel/status/1492567021174861825?s=21

I know it’s a college coach but BC churns out excellent linemen. Good guy to interview

Seem like this dude - Matt Applebaum - got the job. From what I can see, he is considered a very good coach and an excellent teacher. 3 of the linemen he coached at Boston College are likely getting drafted. And, he coached with Mike and Kyle Shanahan with the Redskins in 2010. I'm feeling really good about this hire.

by white1 Sun Feb 13, 2022 11:46 am

Vic Fangio sitting out the season - likely the Broncos have to pay him anyway.

If McDaniel can build this offense in one season, and Boyer only does so-so, maybe this would be an attractive DC job for Fangio at that point going into 2023? I know, I can't let it go - but I firmly believe he would be an excellent hire for McDaniel...

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2022/02/12/report-vic-fangio-is-expected-to-sit-out-this-season/

by HalCHorn Sun Feb 13, 2022 12:52 pm

JMP wrote:
white1 wrote:Also interviewing the Boston College offensive line coach for the OL coaching job here in Miami

https://twitter.com/petethamel/status/1492567021174861825?s=21

I know it’s a college coach but BC churns out excellent linemen. Good guy to interview

Seem like this dude - Matt Applebaum - got the job. From what I can see, he is considered a very good coach and an excellent teacher. 3 of the linemen he coached at Boston College are likely getting drafted. And, he coached with Mike and Kyle Shanahan with the Redskins in 2010. I'm feeling really good about this hire.

Certainly you'd think this makes OG Zion Johnson and C Alec Lindstrom stronger possibilities. Lindstrom probably won't make it to our third round pick, Johnson seems likely to go in the second, the # 50 pick would make him a good value. The OT, Tyler Vrabel, appears to be rated a 5th rounder.

by **JMP** Mon Feb 14, 2022 9:11 am

HalCHorn wrote:
JMP wrote:
white1 wrote:Also interviewing the Boston College offensive line coach for the OL coaching job here in Miami

https://twitter.com/petethamel/status/1492567021174861825?s=21

I know it’s a college coach but BC churns out excellent linemen. Good guy to interview

Seem like this dude - Matt Applebaum - got the job. From what I can see, he is considered a very good coach and an excellent teacher. 3 of the linemen he coached at Boston College are likely getting drafted. And, he coached with Mike and Kyle Shanahan with the Redskins in 2010. I'm feeling really good about this hire.

Certainly you'd think this makes OG Zion Johnson and C Alec Lindstrom stronger possibilities. Lindstrom probably won't make it to our third round pick, Johnson seems likely to go in the second, the # 50 pick would make him a good value. The OT, Tyler Vrabel, appears to be rated a 5th rounder.

Zion Johnson got some run at center during Sr. Bowl week, and supposedly looked good. That versatility will be appealing to the Dolphins. I think Johnson is in play at 29, though I agree he is more likely to go early-ish in the 2nd. But yes, I bet we end up with one of those BC linemen.

by **JMP** Mon Feb 14, 2022 11:58 am

Tom Pelissero
@TomPelissero
The #Dolphins are hiring Frank Smith as their offensive coordinator, source said.

Most recently the #Chargers’ run-game coordinator/offensive line coach, Smith has a strong history of developing tight ends and OL — filling a big need in Miami.
11:50 AM · Feb 14, 2022 from Los Angeles, CA

by white1 Mon Feb 14, 2022 1:01 pm

Outstanding. Not only did we hire the OL coach from Boston College, our new offensive coordinator also has experience coaching OL.

THIS IS HOW you solve a problem. Bring in the coaching talent to fix it.

BTW - retaining Studesville is also an excellent move. Retained through the Gase and Flores hires, and now McDaniel, because of his ability to coach up running backs.

by **JMP** Mon Feb 14, 2022 2:39 pm

white1 wrote:Outstanding. Not only did we hire the OL coach from Boston College, our new offensive coordinator also has experience coaching OL.

THIS IS HOW you solve a problem. Bring in the coaching talent to fix it.

BTW - retaining Studesville is also an excellent move. Retained through the Gase and Flores hires, and now McDaniel, because of his ability to coach up running backs.

Yes, this offensive coaching staff is shaping up nicely. We added a lot of experienced coaches and it seems like every single one is considered a great teacher. There has been an emphasis on OL and running the ball - the two biggest weaknesses last season. Gotta love what McDaniel is doing: identify a problem, and move quickly to solve it.

by **JMP** Tue Feb 15, 2022 8:14 pm

Phins hire Chandler Henley as assistant OL coach. Henley was McDaniel's teammate at Yale. He was the Falcons' assistant OL coach last year, and was with the Titans before that.

Chris Kouffman
@ckparrot
So the Dolphins had an historically bad blocking in 2021. Fast forward, they hire Mike McDaniel, Jon Embree, Frank Smith, Matt Applebaum, and now Chandler Henley onto the coaching staff. All of them have worked with TEs and OLs and run games, specifically. Sensing a theme yet?
6:42 PM · Feb 15, 2022

Now that's how you fix a problem!

by **JMP** Tue Feb 15, 2022 8:22 pm

Big news coming:

Jeremy Fowler
@JFowlerESPN
Dolphins are working toward adding Darrell Bevell as pass-game coordinator/quarterbacks coach, per sources. Long-time OC and interim coach at two stops gives new coach Mike McDaniel plenty of experience.
6:40 PM · Feb 15, 2022

WOW! McDaniel has built a helluva staff and this would be the final piece of the puzzle on offense. We might see a historic offensive turnaround in 2022! cheers

My biggest concern with the next Dolphins coach was always building a coaching staff. Well, McDaniel has done even better than I could have hoped on offense. In less than a week, he has far surpassed anything Flores did on offense in 23 years!

by mercury22nathan Wed Feb 16, 2022 8:46 am

The Atlanta Falcons are moving on without two members of their 2021 coaching staff.

...assistant offensive line coach Chandler Henley is taking a job with the Miami Dolphins.

https://sports.yahoo.com/falcons-part-wrs-coach-lose-004002295.html

by **JMP** Wed Feb 16, 2022 9:13 am

OLB coach hired: Tyrone McKenzie

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2022/02/15/dolphins-hire-tyrone-mckenzie-as-outside-linebackers-coach/

The Dolphins have hired Tyrone McKenzie as their new outside linebackers coach, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports.

McKenzie began his coaching career in 2017, four years after his playing career ended. He was assistant special teams coach with the Rams for one season before becoming the inside linebackers coach with the Titans.

He spent 2018-19 in Tennessee before joining the Lions as linebackers coach in 2020.

McKenzie was out of the league last season.

EDIT: Apparently we worked with the Colts last season in some capacity.

by **JMP** Wed Feb 16, 2022 10:07 am

It's official:

Tom Pelissero
@TomPelissero
The #Dolphins agreed to terms with Darrell Bevell as their QB coach/passing game coordinator, source said. He’ll help develop Tua Tagovailoa and work closely with new coach Mike McDaniel and OC Frank Smith.
9:53 AM · Feb 16, 2022 from Plymouth, MN

EXCELLENT hire!!

by JEGnj Wed Feb 16, 2022 10:31 am

Not sure if it's just the social media era or we are very hopefully but I don't remember this much coverage and effort just getting the right staff in place.

by white1 Wed Feb 16, 2022 11:07 am

Well, in year one of Flores, the staff was assembled in about 4 days. I'm guessing since the Fins had to wait until the Superbowl was over, the agreement was in place and he was probably assembling the staff since approximately two weeks prior - or whenever his last interview was.

In fact, before I continue let me look back and see if I can figure the timeline:

Well, this won't stand up in court (see what I did there) but here's the link that appears to talk about "staff is complete under Flores" - date is Feb 8, 2019: https://www.thephinsider.com/2019/2/8/18217408/miami-dolphins-coaching-change-2019-brian-flores-staff-chad-oshea-patrick-graham-jim-caldwell

Official hire date per Wiki for Flores was right after the Superbowl that year, on Feb 4th.

The reason I believe we are seeing so much detail and coverage is that the coaching staff was a major point of contention about the Flores regime. Especially on offense, but one has to wonder now more loudly about why Patrick Graham moved after one season (and he appears to be better than Boyer by the way). The quick resignation of Caldwell also causes me to wonder what "health reasons" there may or may not have been...

by **JMP** Wed Feb 16, 2022 12:22 pm

white1 wrote: The quick resignation of Caldwell also causes me to wonder what "health reasons" there may or may not have been...

I'm waiting for Flores to add Caldwell to his ever-increasing lawsuit. Razz

by white1 Wed Feb 16, 2022 8:30 pm

Sam Madison to return to Miami as passing game specialist and CB coach :

https://twitter.com/adamschefter/status/1494104749922209793?s=21

by **JMP** Wed Feb 16, 2022 9:00 pm

white1 wrote:Sam Madison to return to Miami as passing game specialist and CB coach :

https://twitter.com/adamschefter/status/1494104749922209793?s=21

YES!!!! Love it!

The funny part is, when they filmed McDaniel walking through the facility for the first time, he pointed out a few of the Dolphins legends' photos on the walls - and the first name he mentioned was Sam Madison!

by CarsonChris Wed Feb 16, 2022 11:42 pm

I like the staff except for DC. Need an upgrade.

by **JMP** Thu Feb 17, 2022 9:04 am

CarsonChris wrote:I like the staff except for DC. Need an upgrade.

Agreed, but I'm OK with prioritizing the building of the offense this season, and keeping Boyer for now. We'll see what happens, but I'd be perfectly happy in year one if McDaniel can build a legit offense but the D takes a step back. I'd love to add Fangio next offseason...

by white1 Thu Feb 17, 2022 10:03 am

Agreed, but I'm OK with prioritizing the building of the offense this season, and keeping Boyer for now. We'll see what happens, but I'd be perfectly happy in year one if McDaniel can build a legit offense but the D takes a step back. I'd love to add Fangio next offseason...

Totally agree on this take.

By the way... take this for what it's worth, I am NOT a journalist and haven't done any "digging to confirm".

A man on my team has a cousin who works directly for Steve Ross. Clearly, he gets some good tidbits in talking Fins with the guy. Anyway here is what I have heard. Boyer has successfully built a good relationship with Tom Garfinkel. This is a large part of the reason he was retained. The rumors we've heard were reinforced. The defensive game planning and game calling was largely handled by Flores and Alexander given the struggles over the first half of the season. The players - by the way - preferred Alexander and there was a possibility he could have been elevated to DC.

However, the Boyer relationship with Garfinkel killed that possibility.

If true, it's an interesting view into the politics of Miami's front office.

I also think if Boyer's defense is bad this year, relationship with Garfinkel or not, there's no way this team will hamstring its new head coach with a bad defensive coordinator. As long as the offense is showing improvement and scoring points, if McDaniel wants Fangio next offseason he will get him.

by mercury22nathan Thu Feb 17, 2022 10:18 am

white1 wrote:The players - by the way - preferred Alexander and there was a possibility he could have been elevated to DC.

and Omar Kelly says...

“I can tell you this as a fact,” Kelly said on an episode of his YouTube show “X’s & Omar.” “Players on defense are not very pleased with Josh Boyer being named defensive coordinator. We will see what happens here because they know that Boyer’s scheme, concepts, approach did not lead to success last year.”

Kelly has stated both this episode and in the past that when Miami’s defense stepped up during the second half of the season, it was Flores who was actually calling the plays.

https://sports.yahoo.com/report-dolphins-defenders-aren-t-193127021.html

i just hope pushing McDaniel to keep Boyer doesn't turn out to bite the team in the ass.

by white1 Thu Feb 17, 2022 10:21 am

i just hope pushing McDaniel to keep Boyer doesn't turn out to bite the team in the ass.

Worse case, we are bad on defense in McDaniel year one. That's not awful. We need to see how Tua develops anyway.

I will add, the correlation to "bad QBs" I thought was behind the first half / second half disparity doesn't really add up. Jacksonville and Atlanta are far from high-powered offenses, our defense should have destroyed Jacksonville - and done enough to win against Atlanta.

Looking back on the season my guess is Flores and Alexander took over before the Baltimore game. We were not playing that well, and it was a big surprise to see us handle the Ravens like we did. Baltimore had no answers for what we were doing on defense - playing a lot of "amoeba" formation and calling a lot of zero blitzes.

by CarsonChris Thu Feb 17, 2022 12:16 pm

It will be interesting to see what happens with our offense. I feel good about the coaching. The player development last year was terrible. Every lineman got worse. How many of these linemen are salvageable?

by **JMP** Fri Feb 18, 2022 9:33 am

CarsonChris wrote:How many of these linemen are salvageable?

That is the question!

--I'd say Hunt is the only 100% starter we have, and I'd probably keep him at RG.
--Eich was of course terrible this season, but he was too good in college to just be a crappy NFL
player. I could see him possibly moving to LG full-time.
--Jackson could be done after his horrific season, but he does seem to have the skillset and athleticism to play in this offense. Maybe he sticks as a back-up T/G.
--Deiter is a nice depth player that can play all 3 interior positions.
--I have a feeling Kindley will be looking for a new team.
--Hopefully Davis is finally gone, although I do think he could be serviceable in this system.
--Keep an eye on Robert Jones - I have a feeling he could be our starting RT.

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