Tonight, the Miami Dolphins signed Richard Marshall to a 3-year 15.975 million dollar deal with 6 million guaranteed.  Crazy numbers for a player that played in 9 of 16 games last year with the Arizona Cardinals.

The acquisition of the Cornerback allows for versatility in the much maligned Dolphin secondary that finished 21st in passes intercepted and was burned continually week in and week out.

Marshall is 27 years old and it is refreshing to see him add to an already deep cornerback corps.

Marshall had 3 interceptions and 2 touchdowns in playing in 9 games.  
 
I honestly like this deal.  We are talking about a guy that has a lot of upside and can fill the void of Will Allen whose legs are older and have less spring in their step.  I like the fact that Marshall can also compete with Sean Smith for a starting spot and move to free safety when needed. 

The Dolphins still have various other needs that I expect them to fill in the coming days, but with the signing of Marshall and Soliai today, there does not seem to be much more cap space unless they either borrow from next year or re-structure current player contracts. 

As for who is going to be taking their talents to South Beach...maybe Manning...maybe Flynn...maybe draft a QB such as Tannehill?

After waiting for over 24 hours finally some news breaks from the Dolphins as they have decided to re-sign big nose tackle Paul Soliai.

Jason La Canfora ‏ @JasonLaCanfora

Paul Soliai's 2year deal in MIA includes $12M in new money and when coupled with '11 franchise tag totals $24M/3yrs w/$18M guar#freeagency

The numbers for Soliai are pretty good considering, 2 years for 12 million is very good value for a player of his stature. The Dolphins sure up the defensive line by bringing Paul back and it’s an overall good situation. The signing also doesn’t shut the Dolphins in a corner for the rest of free agency.

Evan Silva ‏ @evansilva

#Dolphins won't score any points, but they have makings of beastly D-Line. Wake, Soliai, Odrick, Starks, McDaniel. No one will run on them.

 

As free agency opened at 4 o’clock on Tuesday afternoon, breaking Dolphins news hit that the Phins had traded 2 3^rd round picks for Brandon Marshall. Immediately as a fan when I hear my pro bowl WR has been traded for basically peanuts, I react with frustration.

This tweet from PBP Ethan Skolnick pretty much sums it up. 

Ethan J. Skolnick ‏ @EthanJSkolnick
Did not believe Marshall lived up to "elite WR" label with Miami. But GM believed he would. Which is the issue. Error after error.

I took sometime and let it digest and decided that it is impossible that this is a singular move and that this trade had to set up another move by Ireland and crew. While Brandon Marshall both impressed and disappointed on the field, clearly his off the field antics forced this organization to move on. The departure of Marshall leaves a clear void at WR.

The Dolphins went into free agency needing to fill some holes however it seems that they had only created more at free agency start.

However, hours later I read the following tweet,

RT @AdamSchefter: Bears WR Brandon Marshall was involved in another incident that could lead to an NFL review.

That tweet almost made everything better. It is clear no matter how Marshall produces he continues to find ways to screw up. There is a reason that a player with that talent has now been dumped by two different organizations. The Dolphins still have a huge need at finding Marshall’s replacement. The free agent market has dried up with Colston, VJ, Wayne, Garcon, Robert Meachem all signed however the Dolphins did bring in Laurent Robinson for a visit. Mario Manningham and Brandon Lloyd are some names still available.

The more likely option to replace  Marshall however is through the draft with Justin Blackmon, Michael Floyd and Kendel Wright all being viable options.

It isn't going to be easy to replace Marshall's size,talent and production but it most likely is for the best.  

It was a rough day for Dolphins fans and we still don’t know Ireland’s plan but let’s all hope its better than all the negative thoughts that are going through our heads.

At approximately 4:30 Eastern Standard Time, Brandon Marshall the Diva Receiva of the Miami Dolphins was sent packing to Chicago for a pair of 3rd Rounders in the 2012 and 2013 drafts.

There was plenty of negativity surrounding this move, but the deal saved the Dolphins 5.8 million dollars in cap space and allowed for the Dolphins to remain competitive for either Peyton Manning or Matt Flynn or other high priced free agents.

Bottom line, the Marshall trade leaves Davone Bess as the #1 receiver and essentially removes 6 TDs out of the equation that made the Dolphins offense.  (10 TDs if you were to count the Pro Bowl where Marshall was named MVP with 4 TDs...Maybe Ireland was counting that in Marshall's stats!!!)

The Pro Bowler Marshall will now rejoin and rejoice with former fellow Denver Bronco, Jay Cutler of the Bears, whom Marshall has been clamoring to play with since Cutler was dealt in 2009 to the Bears.

So, now what?  What can the Dolphins do next?

Supporters of this move give Miami a competitive edge in getting the most coveted free agent in Peyton Manning or Matt Flynn who was the backup QB to Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay.

However, critics of this move see it as a way of rebuilding and starting anew with a new head coach in Joe Philbin and new offensive coordinator in Mike Sherman.

The uncertainty lingers in the air tonight as cumulonimbus clouds form in Davie providing a violent thunderstorm that hovers over the offices of Jeff Ireland and Steve Ross. 

Next on the docket is Right Tackle Eric Winston and Dick Marshall both free agents from Houston and Arizona respectively. 

Can the Dolphins land a wide receiver when all of the good ones are now gone? 

Will Jeff Ireland land a QB this week or next week named Manning or Flynn?

Are we at the point as Dolfans that the collective Publix bags will be over our heads at Dolphin games in Sun Life/LandShark/Dolphin/Pro Player/ Joe Robbie Stadium?

Do the Dolphins move on to Plan D and look for a serviceable QB through mini camp and then reach for Ryan Tannehill or Brandon Weeden?

Where will the ship steered by Jeff Ireland and Steve Ross take us to next?

Please follow @DolphinMick @PhinsPhocus @PhinsDaniel for the latest on the misery that the Dolphins have brought their fellow fans!

As NFL free agency is about to get under way at around 4pm this afternoon there is still one name that is on the mind of all Dolphins fans and that is Peyton Manning.

Late last night we learned from Mort that the Dolphins met with Manning for 6 hours in Indy. Coach Philbin and members of the Dolphins staff had the chance to make their best pitch to Peyton.  Per Mando from the Miami Herald’s Miami still believes it is in the mix to land Manning.

Jeff Darlington ‏ @JeffDarlington

Dolphins, by the way, still feel like they're in mix. Maybe they're naive to Manning's beliefs, but they've yet to give up on possibility.

The national media whether it’s Schefty, the boys at NFL Network, or John Clayton all are not making anything of the Dolphins meeting and don’t give the Phins much of a chance at landing Peyton. This is obviously a big change from a couple of days ago where they were the favorite. #Dolphins brass are either extremely naive ( wouldn't surprise me) or have dealt with this #ManningWatch extremely well

While it certainly seems the Bronco’s are the above and beyond favorite to land Manning services no one really knows. Mort also reported he doesn’t expect Manning decision by the start of free agency and it might even go into Thursday until he has decided.

The delay in Manning’s decision does cause a bit of a predicament for the Dolphins who would have to wait in their pursuit for free agent QB Matt Flynn. We also can’t rule out finding a QB through the draft in a guy like Ryan Tannehill who has been speculated to be the Dolphins plan B even over Flynn.

The Dolphins have played their cards very close to their chest and therefore it is unclear exactly what move Miami will make in the upcoming few hours and days.

Hopefully it will be a bright future in Miami and we will find our next franchise QB.