| So the Dolphins traded for Ricky Williams, and
many of you are ready to crown them the champions of at least the AFC East, if not the
Super Bowl, right? Well, don’t jump to conclusions just yet. There’s still some
work to be done. In 2000, RB Lamar Smith experienced a significant production drop-off
from his 2000 campaign, in which he ran for 1,139 yards and 14 touchdowns. He
single-handedly rejuvenated his career and the Dolphins’ running game. Or so we
thought.
This past season was a different story. Smith could muster only 968 yards and six
touchdowns, something your non-football-knowing girlfriend might call "a lot of
yards." Indeed, it was a lot of yards, but not what the Dolphins were looking for.
So how do you solve the problem? Well, the situation couldn’t have been better for
Miami. Smith became an unrestricted free agent this offseason, meaning the Dolphins could
opt to not offer him a contract and go after somebody else. That somebody else, through
the proper aligning of the planets, was the Saints’ Williams.
New Orleans didn’t need Williams anymore, because its other, younger stud running
back, Deuce McAllister, is supposedly ready. So they decided to shop him around. The
Dolphins took the bait.
Did you realize that Williams has been traded now for a total of 10 draft picks
straight up (eight in the Ditka draft-day bonanza that brought him to the Saints and two
in the Miami deal)? That’s a lot of potential to be giving up, but Williams seems to
be worth it in Miami’s case.
Williams gives the Dolphins an instantly reliable back who can take the pressure off QB
Jay Fiedler, his WR corps and his offensive line in terms of pass blocking. But let’s
talk about the offensive line, because I believe that’s getting overlooked in the
whole equation.
Smith’s low production last year has numerous possible explanations. Some would
say that he wasn’t running as hard or as downhill as he did in 2000. But the glaring
problem, in my opinion, was the play of the offensive line. Miami brought in new OL coach
Tony Wise to run the show and lost OT Richmond Webb and OG Kevin Donnalley via free
agency. While those guys were on the older side of the coin, their absence certainly
seemed to have an effect.
Miami signed OG Todd Perry to fill Donnalley’s place, and it took Perry quite
awhile to get going. He came on a bit toward the end of the year, but most of the season
seemed to be a struggle for him.
The Dolphins believed OT Brent Smith was ready to step in at left tackle for Webb, but
Smith blew out his left knee and was lost for the season in July. In stepped OT Marcus
Spriggs, who did a fair job but also blew out a knee in September, leaving the Dolphins
with a platoon of Harry Swayne and Spencer Folau. Both did an honorable job of stepping
in, but neither played starter-caliber football.
Add to that the late-season loss of OG Mark Dixon, and the Dolphins were in deep
trouble. They have some young depth in Anthony Cesario, Andy Vincent and Troy Andrew, but
that depth lacks experience (only Andrew played in eight games last year).
So the operative questions are: Is the Dolphins’ offensive line good enough, and
can it stay healthy enough to keep Williams going? Smith struggled on his own last year,
but he didn’t get any help from a makeshift offensive line.
Sure, Williams could lead the Dolphins to the Super Bowl, but he’s going to need
some help in front of him. If the Dolphins don’t improve their offensive line, they
can forget about the benefits they’d reap from having Williams in the first place. |
