Ricky returning to Dolphins?

Last week, coach Saban reportedly spoke with Ricky Williams. The possibility exists that Williams may return to the Dolphins next season, after serving a suspension for drug use. Having Williams would be a bonus if he can play like he did before his "retirement", but I'm wary of how committed he really is to playing football again. Either way, the Dolphins should approach the draft, free agency, and the upcoming season as if Williams will not be a Dolphin. Even if he wanted to return, it's questionable how long he would stay given his flaky disposition.

Dolphins add Frerotte

In the past two days, the Dolphins added QB Gus Frerotte, safety Tebucky Jones, and right tackle Stockar McDougle. I don't know anything about McDougle, but I like Jones. He's a good tackler who was probably playing out of position as a free safety in New Orleans. The Dolphins are thinking of switching him to strong safety, and he should do better there.

The signing of Frerotte is somewhat curious in light of coach Saban's comments that the starting quarterback job is now up for grabs between Frerotte and Feeley. True, it wouldn't be a good idea to hand Feeley the starting job outright, but I don't think Frerotte is that great. If Frerotte beats out Feeley, that still doesn't signify an improvement at the quarterback position. What if Feeley wins the QB battle? Would he be the lesser of two evils, like Fiedler was when he battled Feeley for the starting spot last year?

Recent Dolphins moves

In the past week, the Dolphins picked up three defensive players: linebacker Donnie Spragan and defensive linemen Kevin Carter and Vonnie Holliday. Carter is the biggest name of the three, having been cut by Tennessee in their salary cap purge. Word is that Carter wanted to come back to Florida and was willing to accept less to play for the Dolphins.

The Dolphins also cut wide receiver David Boston in a salary cap move, although the official reason given was that he failed his physical.

Goodbye to a dismal season

Before the 2004 season began, there were high hopes for the Miami Dolphins. The team had just signed David Boston to provide a balanced offensive attack, complemented by its already impressive defense. Most people, including me, believed that the Dolphins would make the playoffs and advance far.

Then the Ricky Williams soap opera unfolded. Without warning, Williams announced his retirement right before training camp. The Dolphins were in a bind because the draft had passed and they were staring at a season without a number one running back. Then David Boston went down with a season-ending injury. Where the offense was once thought to be pretty good, it was now in shambles.

The Dolphins proceeded to limp through a 4-12 season. Opposing teams smothered the Dolphins offense regularly. At one point, the offense was creating more points for the opposition than for itself. The defense played well through most of the season, keeping the team in most of its games, but toward the end, the fatigue began to show. About the only bright spot of the season was that the Dolphins beat the to-be-Super-Bowl-champ New England Patriots on a Monday night game.

Now we face a new season with a new coach and the #2 pick in the draft. Hope is blossoming again, if for no reason other than the Dolphins can't possibly be worse than 4-12 in 2005.

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