"The Dolphins are in a great situation. They've got money, they've got draft picks. This is going to be a quick turnaround in Miami." CBS Sports HQ's Pete Prisco couldn't even stop short of listing the Dolphins as his preferred team of choice were he to play fictional GM this upcoming offseason.
That line of thinking has been the general sentiment this week in Indianapolis. Prisco praised the work of Miami's front office for putting the organization in prime position, and Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy lauded the man in charge on the field, Brian Flores.
"He's got that thing going in the right direction," Nagy said before going in on their time together in New England. "He just worked his tail off. He was the same guy all the time, and [New England] was a pretty intense building; but to have people like Brian made it a great place to work. He's the best."
Nagy spent his colligate years and the University of Michigan. With 11 players here, the Wolverines have the second-highest representation at the combine; none better than edge/outside linebacker Josh Uche, according to Nagy.
"After Javon Kinlaw, Uche had the best week of practices of any defender in Mobile [for the Senior Bowl]," Nagy said. "He plays long, he can play off the ball. He showed in Mobile he can cover. He can run with tight ends and backs and most importantly, he can rush the passer."
Uche himself shared his affinity for his former coach, and new Miami Dolphins Linebackers Coach, Anthony Campanile.
"He's one of the greatest guys I've ever met," Uche said. "Just a really good person. He coaches the game the way it's supposed to be coached. He cares about his guys, he's a great person and I love him to death."
Utah edge rusher Bradlee Anae was dubbed as the best pure pass rusher in Mobile at the Senior Bowl by the Move the Sticks Podcast. Anae played under Kyle Whittingham at Utah, which taught him some valuable lessons about how to be a pro.
"It's pretty much an NFL system we have at Utah," Anae said. "Being to meetings five minutes early, little things like that were taught there at Utah. Accountability and responsibility on and off the field. It's very well ran, especially from a head-coaching standpoint. It just gets you ready and gets you prepared for what to expect."
We caught up with Bucky Brooks Wednesday from the Move the Sticks Podcast. Dolphins General Manager Chris Grier Tuesday stopped by the set to chat with Bucky and Daniel Jeremiah.
"The tape is the majority of it," Grier said in response to a question about weighing the tape and the drills at the combine. "With the combine, players can kind of fake it. You're going to have to spend time out of this setting because everything is so rehearsed and coached for these guys now and that's the hard part of trying to get know who they are."
The questioning then spun towards the collaboration between the front office and the coaching staff.
"It's imperative," Grier said. "The communication has to be on the same page or you've got no chance. It's a lot of time with Brian [Flores], the coaching staff, and the scouts making sure that whether it's prototypes or scheme-specific stuff, [that] at the end of the day it's all about communication and really spending time talking through things. You always see talented players but sometimes they may not fit for what you want, whether it's mentally, character-wise, etc. Talking through all that stuff, that's the only way teams win and find good players, and we spend a lot of time doing that."
Versatility has become commonplace in today's league. Asked about how the versatility aspect of the game impacts the way that he evaluates, Grier said, "It's a huge part, and the big thing is for your roster. It allows you to keep players at other positions, or do things because you have a guy that play guard and center, or a corner that can play safety – Eric Rowe did that for us. It's finding guys like that because the game has changed so much. It's spread out. I think teams are finding ways to spread teams out and do things. You have to adjust and be able to find ways to counter it."
