NFL Rumors: Miami Dolphins Not Seeking New GM

By Craig Ballard
Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

The Miami Dolphins have a massively important off-season ahead of them. They last won a playoff game in the year 2000, and their fan-base is at an all-time high for anger/disgust/frustration.

Dolfans want General Manager Jeff Ireland fired. They do not want Ireland making the decisions on how to spend the free-agency money that they have this off-season, plus they do not want him running their draft.

Word out of Florida is that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross met recently with Mike Giddings Jr. of Pro Scouts INC. There are some that feel the meeting did take place, and there are others who insist that there was no meeting. I would say that even if there was a meeting it could have been just Ross picking Giddings’ brain and getting player personnel evaluations from a person who is respected in the field.

It does look like Ireland will run the Dolphins 2013 draft.

Word is that Bill Parcels ran much of Ireland’s first Dolphins draft in 2008. The best player landed that year was #1 overall pick Jake Long who may be done in Miami, but he was very good while he was a Dolphin (there is certainly a chance that Long does re-up with Miami, but that article is for another day!). Of the other eight players drafted by Miami that year, Chad Henne had the best NFL career (yikes).

Ireland had mixed results in 2009. He drafted Vontae Davis and Sean Smith to be the #1 and #2 cornerbacks going forward, and also Pat White to run their wildcat. Davis was underwhelming overall, and Miami has a big decision to make regarding Smith as he is a free-agent (again, that article is for another day…Recently I did get a Reggie Bush free agency article up, and it is HERE).

White did not work out, nor did Patrick Turner, but the middle-late rounds did produce Brian Hartline and Chris Clemons. Hartline is, you guessed it, a free-agent so he is another player we will monitor to see if his Dolphins days are done.

2010 may go down as a great Dolphins draft. Surely improvements are needed from all of these guys, but they have all shown they have the potential to contribute on the NFL level. Jared Odrick, Koa Misi, John Jerry, Nolan Carroll, and Reshad Jones were five of Ireland’s first six picks in ’10.

2011 landed Mike Pouncey, but it was full of swing-and-misses like trading up to draft Daniel Thomas, Edmond Gates, Charles Clay, Frank Kearse, and Jimmy Wilson.

In 2012 Ireland drafted Ryan Tannehill with the #8 overall pick. I felt that the roster had (has) so many holes that Ireland needed to trade down to add extra assets, and if he had to he could land Tanny later in the draft (NFL GM’s were not clamouring to draft Tannehill. All due respect to the young man, but he was never the #8 pick in that draft).

The rest of last years draft was full of ups and downs. Jonathan Martin is going to be a legit NFL offensive-lineman, and Olivier Vernon will have a chance to build on his 3.5 rookie sacks. The jury is still out on Lamar Miller, but if I was not a fan of his from the University of Miami days then I would likely consider him a poor prospect.

Michael Egnew, Josh Kaddu, B.J. Cunningham, Kheeston Randall, and Rishard Matthews all look like they are not legit NFL players/talents.

Word is that Ireland’s job is safe, and he will run Miami draft in 2013. Miami has five picks in the first three rounds so they are set up to add legit talent. Dolfans are hoping Ireland will be significantly better than he has been lately.

Thank you for checking out my work! I am the 2013 NFL Playoffs Insider for Rant Sports and you can read those articles + all of my Miami Dolphins articles RIGHT HERE

Twitter = @craigballard77

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