2015 Fantasy Football Team Preview: Miami Dolphins
For your fantasy football draft prep and advice, continue to check on this page for updates regarding the Miami Dolphins.
Team outlook:
This team was .500 a year ago and now they want a winning record. Miami spent big bucks on their quarterback of the future and signed some players that support Ryan Tannehill's style of play. They didn't just focus on their offense. Miami also made waves by signing one of the most ferocious defensive linemen in the game, Ndamukong Suh.
Bye week: 5
Rookie impacts: DeVante Parker (WR) and Jay Ajayi (RB)
The Dolphins used their first-round pick on Louisville's Parker. He caught at least 40 passes in his final three seasons at Louisville. Parker also tallied over 2,400 yards during that span. I failed to mention that Parker missed the first seven games last year with an injury. When he returned, Parker averaged 142.5 yards per game in 2014. Ajayi recorded more than 1,800 rushing yards in 2014 with an impressive 28 rushing TDs. He added over 500 yards and four TDs as a receiver. He could make a push for the starting role in Miami, but Ajayi has to battle with two other RBs before he gets his shot at the No. 1 guy.
Quarterback: Ryan Tannehill
Last season, he was one of 11 QBs to pass for more than 4,000 yards. Now, three of his four leading receivers are no longer in Miami (Mike Wallace, Charles Clay, and Brian Hartline). Tannehill has a new batch of Dolphins to train. I think Tannehill will be my QB to target late in fantasy drafts this season.
Running back: Lamar Miller
I'm honestly having a tough time developing an opinion on Miller. He finally broke the 1,000-yard plateau last year and was 10th on the rushing yards list in 2014. His 5.1 yards per carry was matched by Jeremy Hill and topped by Justin Forsett (5.4 ypc), while Jamaal Charles was the only other RB to reach the 5.0 mark. However, the number of carries just isn't present. Miller only recorded 13.5 attempts per game. He never tallied more than 19 carries in a game last year.
Running back: Damien Williams
If Miller isn't getting 20 touches in a game, then you know that Williams isn't likely to get double-digit carries. In fact, last season, Williams rushed for 11 attempts once. Other than that, he received no more than seven carries in a game. However, he may have some value in PPR formats. Williams caught 10 passes for 81 yards and one TD in the final three games combined.
Wide receiver: Kenny Stills
Keep your eyes on Stills in 2015. He was the deep threat in New Orleans and now he could be a solid role player in Miami. The 23-year-old receiver tallied 931 yards on 63 catches (14.8 yards per catch) last season. While Tannehill is no Drew Brees, the young QB could scramble and launch some deep passes to Stills for some big points this season.
Wide receiver: Jarvis Landry
The lone returning receiver option for Tannehill is Landry (Rishard Matthews only caught 12 passes, so I'm not including him in the conversation). Landry was targeted on 111 pass attempts and led the Dolphins with 84 catches in 2014, nearly 20 more than Mike Wallace. Unfortunately, Landry will need to compete with Stills and Parker for Tannehill's attention. However, I will give the slight edge to Landry because of the previous experience with the QB.
Tight end: Jordan Cameron
As long as he avoids any and all contact to his head, Cameron is a solid option at TE for any fantasy team. In 2013, Cameron caught 118 passes for 917 yards and seven touchdowns. When healthy, he can be a top-10 TE. If you draft him, be sure to have a plan B at the ready.
Placekicker: Caleb Sturgis
Accuracy comes into question when talking about Sturgis. Two years ago, he made 76.5 percent of his field goal attempts. In 2014, that number rose slightly to 78.4 percent. Plus, Sturgis had to recover from a leg injury suffered by a team-sanctioned kickball game in the offseason. However, maybe that is what he needed to regain his focus.
Team defense (D/ST):
When New England is in your division, you need to bolster your defense. That is exactly what Miami did in the offseason. The Dolphins signed Ndamukong Suh to help wreak havoc on the AFC East. Plus, a great strategy for adding fantasy defenses is to look at the first four games on the team's schedule. How does this sound: Washington, Jacksonville, Buffalo, and New York (Jets). I'll buy low.
