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andyjens89
Hog
Joined: 21 Mar 2004
Posts: 1894
Location: Michigan
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| Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:08 pm Post subject: Dolphins make tackle Long top pick |
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| Quote: | After weeks of speculation, the Miami Dolphins made their intentions with the top pick in the NFL Draft known.
Jake Long
Offensive tackle
Height: 6-7
Weight: 315
College: Michigan
Hometown: Lapeer, MI
» More: 2008 NFL Draft coverage The Dolphins signed former Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long on Tuesday, making him the top overall pick in Saturday's NFL Draft. NFL Network's Adam Schefter reports the contract is valued at $57.5 million over five years, including $30 million in guaranteed money.
Miami general manager Jeff Ireland made the announcement from a team press conference, along with Long and head coach Tony Sparano.
"I'm very excited and honored to be able to be a part of the Miami Dolphins and this organization," Long said. "I want to thank my agents and the Miami Dolphins for getting this deal done so now I can just concentrate on football."
The Dolphins have been in negotiations with the representatives for Long, discussing contract parameters while attempting to keep their intentions with the top pick hidden.
"Jake was our guy from the beginning," said Ireland. "I don't make it a habit of telling you what's on our board, but he was on top of the board from the beginning. … There wasn't a whole lot of debate. We all felt comfortable with the player."
The draft will be the first in Miami for the regime led by executive VP of football operations Bill Parcells, Ireland and Sparano after the Dolphins went 1-15 last year. Miami has nine picks, including four of the first 64.
The 6-foot-7, 315-pound Long was a two-time All-American and a three-time Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year. He started 40 games during his college career, and finished second in the voting for both the Lombardi Award and the Outland Trophy last season.
By agreeing to the deal prior to Saturday's draft, the Dolphins were able to avoid a prolonged holdout and ensure Long will be at training camp on time, a problem that has plagued past top overall picks. Last year's No. 1 pick, JaMarcus Russell, missed all of training camp before signing a $61 million contract with the Oakland Raiders.
"It's really important for us to know that Jake is going to be on the field for us, on time, when training camp begins in July," said Sparano. "That was critical for us."
Long will become just the second offensive lineman to be taken with the top pick in the NFL Draft since 1970, joining Ohio State's Orlando Pace, who was selected by the Rams in the top spot in 1997.
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http://www.nfl.com/draft/story;jsessionid=814F5976B9BECD524973C81406407385?id=09000d5d807e7335&template=with-video&confirm=true |
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Countertrey
the 'mudge
Joined: 09 Jan 2004
Posts: 12782
Location: Curmudgeon Corner, Maine
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| Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:16 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm impressed. Excellent job by the Dolphins. This is how it's done. |
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gay4pacman
Pacman Rules
Joined: 17 Apr 2005
Posts: 1855
Location: Lawn Monster
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| Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 8:26 pm Post subject: |
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| he is a right tackle in the nfl. Not nearly polished enough to be the number one overall. I guess with what they had to choose from at the top of this years draft that wasnt that bad of a deal. |
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yupchagee
#14
Joined: 19 Apr 2006
Posts: 4125
Location: Louisville KY
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| Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 8:58 pm Post subject: |
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| gay4pacman wrote: | | he is a right tackle in the nfl. Not nearly polished enough to be the number one overall. I guess with what they had to choose from at the top of this years draft that wasnt that bad of a deal. |
That is WAY too early to pick a RT. A LT, yes, but not right. |
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CanesSkins26
Canes Skin
Joined: 13 Aug 2007
Posts: 6870
Location: Alexandria, VA
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| Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 9:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Long is a work in progress in terms of his pass blocking, but he is an elite run blocker and is going to be a very good left tackle in the NFL. |
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GSPODS
Hog
Joined: 03 Sep 2007
Posts: 4983
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:38 am Post subject: |
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| The Dolphins have so many other needs that Jake Long will have ample time to learn either tackle position long before the Dolphin-Safe Tuna becomes the Tuna-Safe Dolphins. |
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HEROHAMO
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Joined: 20 Oct 2004
Posts: 4028
Location: SANTA ANA,CA
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 4:12 am Post subject: |
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They still have the first pick in every round. I just dont like the unsexy pick. All though offensive line is a need for the Dolphins.
Folks Jake Long is a LT. He is bred to be a left tackle. I assure you he will move to the LT in due time. In fact I wont be surprised if he starts at LT this upcoming season.
I am pretty sure no teams were offering anything for the first pick so the Dolphins pulled the trigger early. Yet most teams make deals on draft day. I think it is a bit early to make the deal. You have all the way until Saturday to make something happen. Either way this kid is a stud and should be a main stay at LT. No folks not RT LT. |
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GSPODS
Hog
Joined: 03 Sep 2007
Posts: 4983
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 4:50 am Post subject: |
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| HEROHAMO wrote: | | I am pretty sure no teams were offering anything for the first pick so the Dolphins pulled the trigger early. |
What price would a team have had to pay for the 1st overall draft pick?
Realistically, there is no one in this draft worth trading up to the 1st overall pick for. Remember the Ricky Williams deal? Ditka traded his entire draft for one player, which is what I suspect it would have taken for the Dolphins to consider trading the pick. We know how that worked out for Ditka.
And how many teams could reasonably trade their entire draft for one player? Maybe the Colts? It's unlikely any team needs fewer than two draft picks or free agents, and if a good team signs the #1 pick it doesn't leave any cap room for anything else. In fact, good teams may not have the cap room to sign the #1 pick without making massive cuts and restructuring every veteran contract.
It goes without saying that bad teams need quantity of picks over quality of picks, so having two bad teams trade picks makes little sense for Atlanta, for example. Why would Atlanta trade up when they can pay the #3 pick considerably less than the #1 pick and still get a top prospect? Rumor has it they are attempting to trade the #3 pick away.
If this were the 1983 draft class, I could see trading up to the #1 pick. It isn't.
The 1983 draft class had five franchise player / hall of fame QB's drafted in the first round. Take a look below at how that class worked out. Charles Mann was the last selection in the third round in 1983.
IMO, only a franchise QB is worth the cost of trading up to the first pick. Between the draft selections and players lost in the trade, and the contract and salary cap ramifications, sometimes, even a QB isn't worth this price. See Russell, JaMarcus.
1 John Elway QB Stanford Baltimore Colts
2 Eric Dickerson RB Southern Methodist Los Angeles Rams
3 Curt Warner RB Penn State Seattle Seahawks
4 Chris Hinton G Northwestern Denver Broncos
5 Billy Ray Smith Jr. LB Arkansas San Diego Chargers
6 Jim Covert T Pittsburgh Chicago Bears
7 Todd Blackledge QB Penn State Kansas City Chiefs
8 Michael Haddix RB Mississippi State Philadelphia Eagles
9 Bruce Matthews OG USC Houston Oilers
10 Terry Kinard DB Clemson New York Giants
11 Tim Lewis DB Pittsburgh Green Bay Packers
12 Tony Hunter TE Notre Dame Buffalo Bills
13 James Jones RB Florida Detroit Lions
14 Jim Kelly QB Miami (Fla.) Buffalo Bills
15 Tony Eason QB Illinois New England Patriots
16 Mike Pitts DT Alabama Atlanta Falcons
17 Leonard Smith DB McNeese State St. Louis Cardinals
18 Willie Gault WR Tennessee Chicago Bears
19 Joey Browner DB USC Minnesota Vikings
20 Gary Anderson RB Arkansas San Diego Chargers
21 Gabe Rivera NT Texas Tech Pittsburgh Steelers
22 Gill Byrd DB San Jose State San Diego Chargers
23 Jim Jeffcoat DE Arizona State Dallas Cowboys
24 Ken O'Brien QB California-Davis New York Jets
25 Dave Rimington C Nebraska Cincinnati Bengals
26 Don Mosebar C USC Los Angeles Raiders
27 Dan Marino QB Pittsburgh Miami Dolphins
28 Darrell Green DB Texas A&M - Kingsville Washington Redskins |
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fleetus
Hog
Joined: 25 Apr 2004
Posts: 1757
Location: Charlottesville, Va.
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 7:56 am Post subject: |
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| No, I think the Dolphins would have taken much less for the 1st pick. It all depends on who would have offered to trade. Obviously if St. Louis offered to move up from #2 it wouldn't cost as much. If NYG offered from the #31 spot, it costs a whole lot more. Anyway, point is, everyone agrees there is no single player who is the consensus #1, so the #1 pick is not worth as much. Still the Dolphins were reportedly hoping someone would make an offer. Problem is, everyone who wants Chirs Long, Matt Ryan, Mcfadden is willing to take their chances those players will fall to #3, 5, 7 etc. We may see some trades to those lower spots. This is where I think Parcells screwed up. Jake Long is not the best player in this draft. He might have been available at #3 or later. Parcells should have kept this jake Long signing secret or played it off as a misdirection ploy to keep teams believing he would draft another player. he might have been able to move down 3 spots and still get his guy, with an additional 2nd or 3rd round pick in his pocket. At the very least, if no offers were forthcoming, he should have kept us all in suspense right up until the Dolphins were on the clock, to name his choice. IMHO |
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PulpExposure
Pushing Paper
Joined: 06 Sep 2005
Posts: 4461
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 8:49 am Post subject: |
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| fleetus wrote: | | Parcells should have kept this jake Long signing secret or played it off as a misdirection ploy to keep teams believing he would draft another player. he might have been able to move down 3 spots and still get his guy, with an additional 2nd or 3rd round pick in his pocket. |
I don't think you can trade out of the first spot once you agree on a contract with a player. The ability to negotiate with a player before the draft is only allowed for the team holding the first pick.
You get into all sorts of nasty contractual issues if you allow otherwise; e.g., Dolphins sign Jake Long, trade to the 3rd spot, and the Rams at #2 sign Jake Long. Now you've got the Dolphins & Jake Long having an invalid but signed contract, the Rams having to sign him to a contract, it's all messy. |
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Countertrey
the 'mudge
Joined: 09 Jan 2004
Posts: 12782
Location: Curmudgeon Corner, Maine
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:29 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | At the very least, if no offers were forthcoming, he should have kept us all in suspense right up until the Dolphins were on the clock, to name his choice. IMHO |
Why? Is it the Tuna's job to keep us guessing? I really don't think the cares whether we are in suspense or not. His job was to get the best value he could at the number one spot, and to get him signed. He did that. |
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GSPODS
Hog
Joined: 03 Sep 2007
Posts: 4983
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:34 am Post subject: |
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| Countertrey wrote: | | Quote: | | At the very least, if no offers were forthcoming, he should have kept us all in suspense right up until the Dolphins were on the clock, to name his choice. IMHO |
Why? Is it the Tuna's job to keep us guessing? I really don't think the cares whether we are in suspense or not. His job was to get the best value he could at the number one spot, and to get him signed. He did that. |
Correct. What Man-Boob-Man did was to lock up the best talent available at the historically safest draft position. A lot of other teams would have gone the same way. Huge investment means lowest possible risk. |
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HEROHAMO
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Joined: 20 Oct 2004
Posts: 4028
Location: SANTA ANA,CA
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 10:27 am Post subject: |
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Jake Long is a fine player no doubt.
I just think Parcells could have played this better. Definatley to early to pull the trigger. Also who knows what could have happened during this week?
Either way Parcells develops players really well. I am pretty sure Parcells and staff will mold Jake Long into a pro bowler, making his pick look all that much more better.
Who knows? Maybe Jake Long was that impressive working out for the Dolphins. It just is not the sexy pick. |
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Countertrey
the 'mudge
Joined: 09 Jan 2004
Posts: 12782
Location: Curmudgeon Corner, Maine
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 10:35 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | It just is not the sexy pick |
This is Parcells... He is about winning championships (hate him or love him, there is no doubting that), not about sexy picks. You want sexy picks? Try Al Davis.
Parcells did it just as you would expect. No fooling around, no games, just brutal logic. Identify the goal, achieve the goal... Is that a problem? We could use a little of that ourselves. |
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VetSkinsFan
One Step Away
Joined: 19 Jul 2007
Posts: 7779
Location: NoVA
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| Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:23 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | It just is not the sexy pick |
I don't know what you watch football for..... |
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