Fixing The Franchise: The Miami Dolphins – Preseason 2019

On paper, the Dolphins look like they are about to have a bad year. In real life, they already started the 2019 season terribly – losing 59-10 to the Ravens in their opener at home.

I have taken ownership of the Miami Dolphins (in Madden 2020). As a financial mogul, I have come in to overhaul the franchise. I will be a Jerry Jones type owner, not only controlling the financial side of things, but also by making all football related decisions.

• I have disabled relocation settings.
• Injuries and pre-existing injuries are on.
• Practice squad stealing is on.
• I play offense-only on All-Pro.
• 8 min quarters and accelerated clock to 20 seconds on the play clock.

State of the Roster

The team is bad at just 63 overall. There are some good pieces to build around – but this team needs a ton of work. At the moment our three best players are all defensive backs.

Offense

There is a glaring need across the board on the offensive line. Our best lineman comes in at just 67 overall – there is no hope for any QB behind this line. That is a position group I will need to upgrade before the season starts.

Defense

The defense is better than the offense, but that is not saying much. There are some young pieces in place on this side of the ball, but the overall talent is lacking.

Thoughts

This team needs a lot of work, but there is some young talent that I can be optimistic about. On the current roster, these are the players that I am excited to have on the squad:

PLAYER	POS	OVR	AGE
Minkah Fitzpatrick	SS	80	22
Kenyan Drake	HB	79	25
Xavien Howard	CB	83	26
Mike Gesicki	TE	75	23
Christian Wilkins	RE	73	23

Heading into the 2019 season I have $94.3M in salary cap space remaining, with $106M committed to players for now.

Roster Rebuild

I am an offensive minded owner – that is the area that I want to improve immediately. A good offense starts with a good offensive line, and that is an area where my team is sufficiently lacking. My best lineman is Daniel Kilgore at just a 67 OVR. As I look toward Free Agency I see a number of players that can help me there. I am very tempted to talk to Andrew Luck and convince him to come to South Beach – but I am trying to keep this semi-realistic.

Overall, I signed 17 free agents. Their contract details are listed below:

PLAYER	AGE	POS	OVR	SAL
John Sullivan	34	C	72	$3.25M
Clint Boling	30	RG	76	$4.65M
Brandon Fusco	29	RG	73	$4.15M
Jeremy Parnell	33	RT	76	$4.05M
Nick Perry	29	ROLB	80	$6.75M
William Hayes	34	LE	81	$7.35M
Brandon Marshall	29	ROLB	75	$3.85M
Briean Boddy-Calhoun	26	CB	74	$2.25M
Dez Bryant	30	WR	83	$7.05M
Eric Berry	30	SS	86	$5.75M
Austin Seferian-Jenkins	26	TE	81	$3.85M
Tyree Jackson	21	QB	64	$2.15M
Muhammad Wilkerson	29	LE	79	$6.75M
Mason Foster	30	MLB	77	$2.85M
Pierre Garcon	33	WR	79	$4.55M
Terelle Pryor Sr.	30	WR	73	$2.25M
LaGarrette Blount	32	HB	78	$3.05M

• Nick Perry moved to LOLB.
• Minkah Fitzpatrick moved to CB.
• Eric Berry moved to FS.
• Muhammad Wilkerson moved to DT.

After all of those Free Agent acquisitions – I have some players on my roster that I view as a surplus – I may be able to move them for some helpful pieces.

• QB Ryan Fitzpatrick
• WR Allen Hurns
• WR DeVante Parker
• WR Albert Wilson
• TE Nick O’Leary
• FS Bobby McCain
• MLB Raekwon McMillan

Trades

Offensive line is the greatest area of need right now. I have a surplus of solid DBs – I went out to see who was interested in pricey FS Bobby McCain.

PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT	TO	PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT
Bobby McCain	FS	$5.58M	TB	Ali Marpet	LG	$10.1M
Johnson Bademosi	CB	$2.75M
John Jenkins	LE	$650K

When I contacted the Bucs they seemed interested. After finessing with the offer I was able to acquire Ali Marpet – who instantly became the best player on the Dolphins.

After acquiring Marpet, we were still short a few quality lineman. The most expendable receiver I had on my roster was Allen Hurns. He is talented, but is just coming off of a major injury.

PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT	TO	PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT
Allen Hurns	WR	$2M	GB	Corey Linsley	C	$5.26M

The Packers were looking for WR help, and I was able to snag Corey Linsley to anchor my offensive line. Things are starting to look better in the trenches, let’s see what else we can do.

I acquired quite a few OL in free agency, but none really fit the build of a true LT to protect my QB. I have been a fan of Mike McGlinchy since he came into the league. He is relatively young, if I can trade for him I can build around him for years to come.

PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT	TO	PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT
Albert Wilson	WR	$6.98M	SF	Mike McGlinchy	RT	$750K
Raekwon McMillan	MLB	$890K
DeVante Parker	WR	$500K

I lose a few valuable players in this trade, but I feel like the loss of talent was worth getting my new LT. I trade away Albert WIlson and DeVante Parker, but considering they are not elite WRs – I can replace them. The big loss in this deal was Raekwon McMillan.

• Mike McGlinchy moved to LT.

Preseason Depth Charts

Offense

The offense has improved significantly. Our overall grade has jumped from a 61 to a 75. The glaring weak point is the QB position. I have Josh Rosen slated at the starter for now, and we have a solid veteran backup if I need to make a change.

Defense

The defense also improves to a 75, when I bought the team it was a 69 (nice) overall. I have a good mix of young talent and solid veterans on this side of the ball. I am hoping that our free agent signings can stay healthy through the season.

Preseason

Week 1

• Andrew Luck signed with the Broncos (I edited his stats to 0 so they would drop him the following week.)
• Chargers trade Austin Ekeler to the Buccaneers for MLB Kendall Beckwith and a 4th and 7th round pick
• Buccaneers trade Cameron Brate to the Jets for a 3rd and 6th round pick.
• Buccaneers trade Jason Pierre-Paul to the Texans for Keke Coutee and a 5th and 7th round pick.
• Cowboys trade Jordan Lewis and a 4th and 6th round pick to the Broncos for Will Parks.

I was a fullback growing up, and I feel like that is a position that I neglected in improving upon. While I do enjoy a blocking fullback, I like to employ a fullback that can be a utility piece – playing in the slot as well as running the ball when needed. Taysom Hill is the ultimate Swiss-Army knife football player, so I went out to get him.

PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT	TO	PLAYER	POS	CAP HIT
Chandler Cox	FB	-20K	NO	Taysom Hill	QB	$0

• Taysom Hill moved to FB.

Week 4

The Patriots let go of Phillip Dorsett II, he is an awesome piece to add to my WR core in the slot.

PLAYER	AGE	POS	OVR	SAL
Phillip Dorsett II	26	WR	77	$3.55M

• RE Jachai Polite signed to practice squad.
• HB Myles Gaskin moved to practice squad.
• WR Preston Williams moved to practice squad.
• CB Jomal Wiltz moved to practice squad.
• RT Isaiah Prince moved to practice squad.
• RE Jonathan Ledbetter moved to practice squad.
• CB Ken Webster moved to practice squad.
• HB Patrick Laird moved to practice squad.

Cuts

• TE Taybor Pepper
• CB Chris Lammons
• C Chris Reed +$1.05M CAP
• RG Danny Isidora +$650K CAP
• MLB Deon Lacey +$650K CAP
• C Daniel Kilgore +$2.35M CAP
• SS Steven Parker
• RG Shaq Calhoun
• LOLB Trent Harris
• LG Evan Boehm +$2.03M

Other Notes

• Captains this season are as follows: Ali Marpet, Eric Berry, Dez Bryant, Mike McGlinchy, Minkah Fitzpatrick, and Josh Rosen.
• Dez Bryant paid Mike Gesicki for #88. Gesicki will now wear #87.
• Austin Seferian-Jenkins will wear #89.
• Pierre Garcon will wear #85 – the number he wore with the Colts.
• Phillip Dorsett II will wear #13.
• Terrelle Pryor Sr. will wear #10.
• LeGarrette Blount will wear #28.
• Eric Berry will wear #26.
• Taysom Hill will wear #7.

Wrap Up

As we head into the regular season, the Miami Dolphins are looking much better – on paper. This will be an interesting season, as I attempt to re-build and band-aid together a quality team at the same time. I am hoping that all of our new players can come in and establish a winning culture.

– Buzz