Mike Wallace was one of 2013's biggest free agents. The former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver was a hot commodity during the offseason and opted to sign with the Miami Dolphins in favor of a nice contract extension and pay raise. However, Wallace failed to earn that money as the Dolphins remained one of the more disappointing teams of the year. As they prepare to begin a new era with a newly hired general manager, Wallace is speaking out over the direction of the team.
Wallace had just five touchdowns in 2013. Considering he signed a five-year, $60 million deal with Miami, the 930 receiving yards he out up were a bit of a disappointment. Wallace never gained any chemistry with quarterback Ryan Tannehill. He never looked comfortable in the offense. The result was a less-than-satisfying year. However, Wallace says that is not his fault, but instead the fault of the coaches and game plans.
"We have to (make offseason adjustments)," Wallace said, via the Miami Herald. "Definitely have got to get the deep ball going. That's the difference between winning and losing a couple games. I should have had 15 or 20 more touchdowns. And that's being modest. If you press me, you have no shot to cover me. Once I get you to stop your feet, it's over."
Wallace might take issue with the game plan for the offense, but the Dolphins remain very limited considering the lack of deep ball success Tannehill has been showing. The quarterback ranked near the bottom in passes of 20 yards or more. Tannehill was accurate on 32.8 percent of his long balls and only 25 percent of them were actually completed. Wallace can request more deep passes tossed his way, but Tannehill might not be able to handle it.
The other question is whether or not Wallace will catch them. Tannehill threw 36 passes of 20 yards or more to the wide receiver. Only six were completed. That was the worst percentage among quarterback-wide receiver duos in 2013. Of those 36 passes, eight were deemed catchable, Wallace dropped two of them.
If Wallace is going to complain about the game plan and Joe Philbin's use of him in the offense, he should likely start to work on improving his abilities to be effective in a new plan. The receiver caught 53 percent of the passes tossed his way, ranking 88th amongst 111 wide receivers.
