Admit it, you’ve thought about it. We’re all guilty of it. Whenever a name on the NFL market is poised to potentially change teams, we’ve all had the same thought.
“Would he fit in Miami?”
We’ve done it with Jadeveon Clowney and Yannick Ngakoue. And now, we’re going to do it with Baltimore Ravens safety Earl Thomas. Thomas is just the latest example; he is a player that would undoubtedly fit the mold of the Dolphins secondary with his ball-hawking skills and ability to play in space as a deep-middle defender. This is the kind of player that we’re not sure we have in former cornerback Bobby McCain, who is currently expected to fill the role of free safety on the Dolphins’ defense.
But fitting the mold of the defense versus fitting all of the other variables in play are two completely different stories — and it is for that reason that Miami is unlikely to seriously consider pursuing a disgruntled Thomas, who was sent home by the Baltimore Ravens this weekend after a dispute with teammate Chuck Clark.
Thomas has served as a star on the back end of defenses for the past decade, but he’s not beginning to develop a reputation of being hard to work with. His departure from Seattle was accentuated with him flipping off his own head coach while being carted off the field with a broken leg. Reports are now pouring out of Baltimore that Thomas has butted heads with several key members of the team’s defense — including calling out injured defensive lineman Brandon Williams last season for missing a game.
At 31 years of age, Thomas would be the second oldest player on Miami’s roster. And, given his pedigree, he’s also unlikely to come cheap from a financial perspective. If the Ravens choose to keep Thomas barring a trade, Miami would then be facing giving up draft capital, financial wiggle room for 2020 and 2021 and compromising their core values from an age and team chemistry perspective.
When you look at the prospect of Earl Thomas through that scope, it is clear that Miami making any bid to secure his services would be an upset and a surprise.