Let's Do This Thing

(Yawn)

Ok, What's new?

Cam's canned. Mueller's out. Sparano hired. Parcells knighted. Green gone. Booker gone. Basically, the entire 2007 offensive unit let go. Thomas gone. So-so free agent signings. Great draft. JT's traded. Pennington's a Phin. Henne looking solid. John Boy hanging by a thread. 

That's got us up to today.

Some thoughts from the offseason:

Chad Pennington. Seriously?

OK. At first, I was a tad confused with this signing. A nearly broken down QB getting nearly $11 million over two years (...though it's not REALLY $11 million. Lots of goals to be attained before collecting that amount) from a Miami team that's seeking youth under center. To me, it seemed like a fruitless move, another stop gap, another Gus Frerotte, another Trent Green. The Phins aren't really playing for 2008, are they? So why the move?

First thought: McCown, Henne and Beck must be absolutely SUCKING in camp. Sure enough, they kinda were. Second thought: Now, who gets cut? As of today, there is talk, more like a whisper, of a Beck trade. That leaves Henne as our guy, to hold a clipboard and leave Pennington to work under an incredibly young yet potentially dominant offensive line.

Speaking of the O-line. Looks like it's shaping up as Long, Smiley, Satele, Thomas and Carey. A lot depends on the rookie left side. That goes without saying. I'll never pretend to be an offensive line guru but words like "gelling" and "cohesiveness" get thrown around when referring to offensive lines with new faces. The Phins have three. 

Speaking of big question marks:

Wide receiving corps looks awfully thin, like anorexic. The Ernest Wilford signing didn't make a ton of noise, but the thought was that he'd be No. 2 beside Ginn. Now, in camp, he's getting beat out by Derek Haggan? And David Kircus? Yikes.

Is Ronnie Brown healthy? This, to me, is the team's main concern. Sure, Ricky is a, dare I say it, dependable option, but a lot of the team's success rides on Ronnie's legs. And can we say with certainty that Ricky's healthy enough to take on the bulk of the carries? Couple these issues with that young O-line, and the Phins offense could be, well, pretty shitty. 

And we haven't even mentioned the defense. Matt Roth's transition to LB is looking good from what I've read. Joey Thomas has impressed. Paul Solial, who appeared to be out of a job, had the game of his life last Saturday. Rookie Philip Merling is practically invisible. I do like the linebackers: Roth, Crowder, Ayodele, Porter. Quentin Moses and Reggie Torbor provide some depth, too. The secondary doesn't seem nearly as dreadful as the injured-plagued 2007 squad, and it's good to see Jason Allen improving. It looks like he's finally ready to step into the starting free safety spot. It's been a long time coming.

Phins got the Chiefs on Saturday.