This series will analyze the Miami Dolphins' needs during the off season. Team owner Stephen Ross, has committed to keeping the staff and management intact for next year for the purpose of promoting team stability and preserving continuity. There are several components which returning staff and management will be dealing with as the team prepares to make hard decisions. These decisions will undoubtedly have significant consequences on the Dolphins' 2015 season. Off-season decisions will include the salary cap, returning free agents, the free agent market, and players who will have to be cut to make necessary room, and finally the NFL draft.
The Dolphins front office was kept together for next year. Returning will be now second year General Manager Dennis Hickey, along with Head Coach Joe Philbin, Defensive Coordinator Kevin Coyle, and Offensive Coordinator Bill Lazor. Returning along with the manager and coaching staff, will be Dawn Aponte, the Dolphins so-called salary cap wizard. Aponte will have her work cut out for her during the Spring and Summer, as the team will face some challenge in getting under the salary cap for 2015. The news of the returns was met with a great deal of controversy in Dolphins land, and local sports radio has been ablaze with comments on both sides of the issue. Stephen Ross cited the general direction and general stability of the team. Additionally, Stephen Ross hired former Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum as the new Executive Vice President of Football Operations shortly after the Dolphins played their last game. Tannenbaum, whose hiring met with some controversy from the local fan base and sports media also, has vowed to work along with Dennis Hickey and Joe Philbin during the off season and has promised that everyone's job will remain unchanged.
Dealing with the salary cap room the Dolphins presently have promises to be one of the biggest challenges Miami will face during the off season. Certainly some agonizing decisions will have to be made by Dennis Hickey and company. A number of Dolphin starters will become free agents in the coming months as the team may also be setting their eyes on other free agents around the league. A combination of returning players who have fallen short of expectations, or may be to pricey for the cap, may have seen their last game in a Dolphins uniform in order to make cap room. It can be expected that the Dolphins will make the sport headlines across the country and news regarding some of these cuts during the spring and early summer, may be shocking to the sports world this year.
The hope for a lot of Dolphin fans is that the team will seek to fulfill the present needs from the draft. How the Dolphins prioritize these positions remains to be seen, but already changes at linebackers are being frantically called for over the sports radio waves. These players, whether from the draft or free agency, will be expected to hit the ground running and if last year is any indication, Dennis Hickey may strike gold on his first couple of additions.
The Miami Dolphins will hope to improve on last years record, and the returning management and staff, along with Mike Tannenbaum, will soon again start making decisions on which returning veterans will be cut or traded or kept, in order to make room for players who will be retained and offered a bigger salary and other teams free agents who will be entering the market. The NFL combine will be taking place in just a couple of weeks for invited college players who are eligible for the draft. Some of the most pivotal decisions affecting the year will be made long before a down is played.