One of the big question marks going into this season is who will be the Miami Dolphins' starting free safety.  There aren’t many positional battles on this roster so the biggest one probably comes at the back end of the secondary.  2009 5th-round draft pick Chris Clemons will battle it out this offseason with 2010 5th-round draft pick Reshad Jones. Both players have had their success and fair share of struggles. It will be a very competitive battle to see who lands the starting job. Both players show plenty of upside.  We had the good fortune to interview with the current Dolphins' starting free safety Chris Clemons to see what he thinks of this competition.

1)  How do you feel about going into year two of Mike Nolan’s defense? 

I feel really good about going in year two. I am much more comfortable with the scheme and it seemed that every game things were coming easier to me.

2)  Do you still feel there is room for improvement on this defense?

I feel there's always room for improvement. We can always create more turnovers giving the offense more opportunities. 

3)  What do you think the biggest hole in this defense is?

I don’t think there’s really a big hole, I think we have to be more balanced. Have to stop both the run and pass every game.

4) Do you think you have the best dreads in Miami since Ricky?

Yeah I feel like I have the best dreads since Ricky.

5)  What do you think you need to improve in your game to put you over the top?

I think I have to come down with more balls especially the deep balls. I think I have to take more chances when I have the opportunity.

6)  Do you and Reshad Jones have a good relationship or is it purely competitive?

Yeah we have a good relationship but when we step in-between the line it's all competitive. I like to compete no matter who it's against. 

7)  What’s your overall goal for 2012?

My overall goal for 2012 is to win the division then the Super Bowl. Personally, my goal is to be one of the top safeties in the league. Make more plays than I did a year ago.

In honor of NFL Network’s Top 100 Players of 2011, which wrapped up its top 10 on Sunday night, I thought I would see how the standout Miami Dolphins ranked amongst their AFC East rivals. To do so, I posed one simple question to my fellow Bloguin AFC East writers: Who do you think the top 10 players in the division are?

I had two bloggers from Buffalo Wins and Foxboro Blog, one from Rex Sanchez, and of course, Daniel and I, submit the players we feel are the class of the AFC East in order from 1-10. I tallied the submitted lists with a points system that rewarded the top slot with 10, the number two rank with 9, and so on and so forth.

As you are about to find out, there are some rankings we see eye to eye on, while we’re on a completely different page on others. Before I unveil Bloguin’s unofficial AFC East Top 10, here are some of the interesting tidbits our lists provided.

• The best left tackle in the league, Jake Long, who was the third highest ranked player in the division in NFL Network’s player’s lists, proved to be one of the most polarizing figures. He was slotted as high as third on four of our panel’s lists, but was actually left off of one of the Foxboro Blog’s top 10.

• The same can be said for Jerod Mayo. Mayo solidified himself as one of the league’s most productive inside linebackers with an astonishing 175 tackles in 2010. That led to some well deserved respect from our voters. So much so that one of the Bills’ bloggers ranked him in at three. But that didn’t stop Rex Sanchez from leaving Mayo off their list.

• That wasn’t the only head scratcher Rex Sanchez provided. Outside of Tom Brady, a second quarterback was left off of everybody’s list except one. Rex Sanchez considers Mark Sanchez the 7th best player the division has to offer.

• It’s clear that some of us let our biases cloud our judgment. That’s just our human nature. But when it came to Dolphins’ outside linebacker Cameron Wake, who exploded onto the scene in 2010 with 14.0 sacks (third in the league), my co-blogger Daniel actually left him off his top 10. Daniel and Rex Sanchez were the only to do so.

• Maybe it’s bias or maybe it’s just being well informed, but Buffalo Wins provided a nice little one-two punch for Kyle Williams-the only Bill to make our top 10. They accounted for 13 of Williams’ 16 points.

• Speaking of Buffalo, Stevie Johnson was the only other Bill to receive a vote. Johnson was slotted as the 10th best player in the division- ahead of Santonio Holmes and Brandon Marshall- by one of his hometown bloggers.

• It looks like Brandon Marshall’s subpar season by his standards has hurt how he is perceived to measure up. Despite putting up over 100 grabs in 2007-2009 and setting a new mark for catches in a game with 21 in ’09, Marshall is only considered the 61st best player in the league by his peers and was left off of four of the seven submissions by our panel. Marshall finished with only 11 points in our voting system, tying him with Wes Welker for the second-highest ranked receiver. But that wasn’t enough for him to crack the top 10.

• The AFC East champion Patriots lead the division with four players in the top 10. The Jets come in at second with three, the Dolphins are right behind with two, and the Bills are in the cellar with only Kyle Williams. I guess that makes sense considering that’s how the division has shaped up the past two seasons.

• Our top 10 is well proportioned with five players on offense and five on defense.

The unofficial Bloguin AFC East Top 10 Players of 2011 can be seen after the jump... 

 
We wanted to wish all of you Dolphins and NFL fans out there a Happy 4th of July, and we hope that all of our Canadian followers out there in Canada had a Happy Canada Day July 1st.

We will bring you an interview with Dolphins' starting free safety Chris Clemons on Wendesday and we will launch a blog on the TOP 10 players in the AFC EAST tomorrow.

Stay tuned to Phins Phocus, as you wont want to miss what we have in store for you guys!

The beginning of July usually symbolizes the calendar turning to the new season as training camps begin kicking off around the last week of the month. Under normal circumstances, I would traditionally begin July with the first installment of our training camp preview, an exciting post to say the least as we are normally so close to football by now that we can taste it.

But, yes, I must remind you that circumstances are far from normal this time around. The lockout has put a serious damper on the increasing excitement we’ve grown accustomed to this time of year.

It’s worth noting, though, that the players and owners still have plenty of time to salvage all of camp and the preseason. But to start previewing training camp would be pointless considering that the Dolphins will be signing several free agents and undrafted rookies between now and whenever they open.

It’s been a difficult task lately, but we’re going to keep churning along here by manufacturing topics to discuss. What better way to do that then by talking a little defense, a topic that has seemingly been thrown under the rug all offseason. The reason for that has been obvious. The Dolphins were pathetic on offense in 2010 and have been forced to make drastic changes on that side of the ball- an unfinished project, with plenty of work yet to be done in free agency.

We’ve all kind of just chalked up defense as something that the Dolphins will excel at in 2011 by continuing to build off of the improvement they made last season. Comparing Mike Nolan’s unit to what we saw in 2009 was like night and day. I could talk all day about the strides made in the secondary, the emergence of Paul Soliai, the dominance of Cameron Wake, and the impact of Karlos Dansby, but the proof was in the numbers.
The pass defense improved from 24th to 8th, the run defense from 18th to 7th, and overall, the Dolphins jumped from 22nd to 6th. Logically, most are expecting the Dolphins to continue that trend by emerging as one of the league’s elite defenses in 2011. A fair expectation in my opinion.

But sometimes it doesn’t work out like it’s supposed to. Time and time again, players, offenses, defenses, and entire teams fail to live up to expectations. Here are the top three things that must happen for the defense to live up to those lofty aspirations and avoid being a disappointment this season.

3. Soliai stay motivated: It was a blessing in disguise for the Dolphins’ front three when Jared Odrick went down for the season with a broken leg. It was unfortunate for Miami’s first-round pick but they likely wouldn’t have found a dominant nose tackle if it didn’t happen. The injury forced Randy Starks back to defensive end and threw Paul Soliai into the starting lineup. Soliai flourished.

By season’s end, he was consistently commanding double-teams and causing havoc with penetration. In my opinion, he was the biggest factor in the Dolphins’ domination against the run in the latter part of the season. But some have pointed to the fact that Soliai was in a contract year as to why he was able to keep his weight down and finally emerge as a starting material.

Well, Soliai got his cash this offseason and then some when the Dolphins designated him as their franchise player. But that is obviously only for one year. He’s going to have to prove that 2010 wasn’t a fluke if he wants to earn a lucrative multi-year deal in 2012. But will his success last season and the cash he was handed this offseason allow some content to slip in? The Dolphins surely hope not. Whether or not they will be a brick wall or simply average against the run hangs in the balance.

We’ve had a fun little ride here at Phins Phocus, taking a look back at the proud tradition of this franchise by unveiling the greatest players in team history. It’s been a nice reminder in times like these. We haven’t seen the Dolphins win a playoff game in over a decade, and with the uncertainty of the lockout, we would probably kill to see them play in what we usually consider a meaningless preseason exhibition.

But all good things must come to an end, and it’s time to wrap up the series by selecting the All-Time Miami Dolphins’ special-teams unit. That obviously means the best kicker and punter in Dolphins’ history, but instead of boring you to death with a long snapper, I thought we would also try to pinpoint the top returner specialist to strap on the aqua and orange.


KICKER

Olindo Mare (1997-2006): There isn’t much debate here. The Dolphins have enjoyed some outstanding kickers- Garo Yepremian and Pete Stoyanovich to name a couple. But Mare’s credentials for this honor stand alone.

He’s the team’s all-time leading scorer, and at one point in time during his tenure in Miami you could have made a case for Mare being the greatest kicker the game has ever seen, as he was temporarily the most accurate kicker in league history.

Mare also made an impact on kickoffs, frequently being one of the league leaders in touchbacks. His finest season came in 1999, when Mare was voted to the Pro Bowl and received All-Pro honors.