The Miami Dolphins will be without defensive end Dion Jordan for four games after he was suspended for violating the NFL's performance enhancing drug policy and his future with the team now could be up in the air after he was mentioned in trade rumors earlier in the offseason and teams like the Oakland Raiders and Philadelphia Eagles could be interested in making a deal down the line.
The Dolphins previously took Jordan with the number three overall pick last year and now he will be out for the first four games of this season. According to ESPN.com, the Dolphins were disappointed with Jordan's performance last season and felt he did not live up to expectations and this offseason he worked to gain more muscle and added 17 pounds to try and get himself into the defensive line rotation. Jordan came out of Oregon highly regarded as an athletic and explosive defensive end, but that did not translate in his first season, as he had just 26 tackles and two sacks.
Cameron Wake has emerged as a star at the position, while Oliver Vernon now will be relied on more in the first four weeks of the season. This is the latest bad news for the Dolphins, as they are also going to be without center Mike Pouncey, who underwent hip surgery and could miss the beginning of the season. Earlier in the offseason Jordan was mentioned in trade rumors and the Philadelphia Eagles mentioned due to his past connection to Chip Kelly at Oregon. According to blogger James Walker at ESPN.com,
Walker writes that Jordan already had questions about him heading into this season, including whether he can fit into the 4-3 defense or can bounce back from an unproductive year, and now this PED issue comes into the fold. The Dolphins have a bye week in Week 5 and that means his first game potentially will be the Green Bay Packers in October. Jordan was expected to come into training camp and compete for a starting position and the 24-year-old is still considered a work in progress with upside and potential. Walker writes that Jordan now will have to prove himself even more to earn a spot in the rotation and this could lead to his departure in the future.
Last season the Dolphins went 8-8 and they remained in contention until the final week of the season, but they lost their last two games and were shutout by the Bills in week 17, scoring a combined seven points in those games. The team has not made the playoffs since 2008 and they are hoping that Ryan Tannehill can turn into a productive and steady quarterback after showing some signs last season of emerging. The team ranked 24th in the league in rushing yards per game allowed last season and allowed over 230 passing yards per game to rank in the bottom half of the league and now they are hoping to improve those numbers this year. Tannehill had nearly 4,000 yards passing and if he gets some more production out of Mike Wallace, the offense should be much better as well.