The Miami Dolphins have quietly put together a very talented secondary. Could they be developing into an elite group heading into 2018?
One of the things that many of the recent championship caliber teams have in common is an outstanding secondary. Whether it be The Legion of Boom in Seattle or No Fly Zone in Denver, we’ve seen a ton of great defensive backfields carry teams to Super Bowls in recent history. It’s way too early to be talking Super Bowl when it comes to the Miami Dolphins, but it looks like they could be putting together one of those types of groups.
We can start with the safeties. Reshad Jones is the star of this group. We have seen him be the Dolphins top playmaker on defense and post eye-popping numbers to go along with his ability to ace the eye test. In his past 38 games, Jones has posted a ridiculous 308 tackles, four sacks, eight interceptions, four fumble recoveries and two touchdowns.
Despite not getting the national recognition he deserves, everyone that watches him knows he’s been an All-Pro caliber player, particularly in 2015. I’d put him up against just about any safety in the league — especially now that he has more talent around him both in the secondary and hopefully in the linebacking corps.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
Next to Jones, it now looks like 2018 first-round pick Minkah Fitzpatrick will be the starting safety. He was a stud at Alabama and highly regarded as one of the best players in this years draft. He’s anticipated to be one of the smartest most versatile secondary players in the league with both coverage and playmaking abilities being his greatest strength. He’s so strong in coverage that he could just as well step up and play corner if needed. Fitzpatrick has garnered rave reviews this summer and has already looked even better than expected.
Despite having two potential stud safeties already mentioned, we can’t forget another Pro Bowl caliber safety on the roster in T.J. McDonald. He inked himself a new deal with Miami last year and it would be shocking if he didn’t have a significant role on the defensive this season.
There is a chance he could play linebacker and cover opposing tight ends and running backs, and even drop back to safety at times and allow Fitzpatrick to step up in the slot in certain passing situations. This trio gives them tremendous talent and depth at the position.
Then we move to the cornerbacks. The headliner is a young up-and-comer Xavien Howard, who I have not been shy about sharing my admiration for. All offseason, I have made it clear that I whole heartedly believe he’s going to take another huge step forward this season on his way to becoming an elite corner in this league. He is locked in as the teams top corner and will be one of the best.
Miami has options opposite Howard with Tony Lippett and Cordrea Tankersley likely battling for the second corner job. Personally, I believe Lippett will ultimately be the starter come September. He missed all of last season due to injury, but really made progress in 2016 wrapping up 67 ball carriers and picking off four passes. His coverage ability is every bit as good as Tankersley’s and his playmaking ability separates him from the rest of the pack.
The former Michigan State wideout drew comparisons to former Stanford product and Legion of Boom co-founder Richard Sherman coming out of college. I believe he could have similar playmaking ability and has a ton of potential to develop his technique in coverage.
Next: NFL Draft 2018: Grades for each first-round pick
Lastly, we can’t forget about Bobby McCain who just earned himself a nice new four-year deal. I’m not as high on him as many others are, but he is viewed as one of the better nickel corners in the league. I’m not sure if the team isn’t better off putting Fitzpatrick or Lippett in the slot, but after giving him a $27 million extension that’s obviously not the plan heading into the season.
If nothing else, it shows the great depth in this secondary and having too many good players to pick from is a problem most teams would love to have in today’s pass heavy NFL.