Tag: Channing Tindall

Formula One is the newest form of speed coming to Miami in 2022

The team and the event have some things in common.

They say that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but don’t tell that to folks in South Florida.

The age-old adage of patience and planning in building references the first empire this world had ever seen. The Romans expanded their reach thanks to the advent of roads, connecting their vast empire.

When it comes to roads and speed, let’s fast forward to modern times, where both a literal and figurative racetrack have been constructed in Miami.

On Sunday, Miami Gardens and the Eden of Hard Rock Stadium convert to a Formula-1 racetrack. The Miami Grand Prix has brought another element to the vast entertainment landscape of what the business end of the Miami Dolphins organization brings to sport and community.

Just a week following the NFL draft, and months into an already successful offseason, the Dolphins organization has ironically taken the same blueprints from the business side of the building.

Bring in speed.

Forget patience and planning and the dreaded word “rebuild.” The Dolphins have changed their identity, virtually overnight following building blocks such as Tyreek Hill, Chase Edmonds, Raheem Mostert, and even newly drafted linebacker Channing Tindall. The three veteran acquisitions are offensive speedsters who could take the ball to the finish line at any given moment.

Tindall, who comes from the defending collegiate national champion Georgia Bulldogs, has blazing speed of his own. The inside linebacker who’s expected to be an immediate impact player ran a 4.47 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine. There’s no question why the Dolphins were kicking the tires on him the entire draft process.

Whether it’s on offense or defense, the Dolphins’ garage is full of vehicles to drive them to success, and most tend to do so quickly. Throw in second-year, record-breaking receiver Jaylen Waddle and tight end Mike Gesicki in the pole position as an offensive veteran and team leader.

Like any championship organization, the team or car is only as good as the full crew. Drivers on Sunday will have faith in their pit crew, as it truly takes a small army to win an event like the Miami Grand Prix.

The same is to be said about football and what will be featured at Hard Rock Stadium come September. New coach Mike McDaniel and his pit crew of assistant coaches and coordinators seem to work in harmony with that business end of things, in this case, general manager Chris Grier and master salary-capper, Brandon Shore.

Football isn’t just about a quarterback as much as an F1 race is about one driver. Sure, the praise and blame may be showered upon them, but it’s a full unit that must work in coordination for trophies to be lifted.

Much like a winner will be crowned on Sunday following the Miami Grand Prix, the Dolphins have started their race like all other NFL teams to attempt to reach the ultimate finish line.

As for fans of all things Dolphins, and South Florida sports, including tomorrow’s race, excitement is at an all-time high. The wait’s nearly over, and the time seems to be now.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.

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Setting expectations for Dolphins’ draft class in 2022

Miami should see an impact from some of these rookies in year one.

The Miami Dolphins didn’t have the largest draft class in 2022 due to the offseason trade for speedy wide receiver Tyreek Hill with the Kansas City Chiefs, but they still walked away with four young players.

Going into their first season, it’s tough to determine what exactly rookies are going to do for their teams because the range of outcomes is so wide. They could end up being an All-Pro, or they may not even make the team, and a number of factors could influence any result.

Here are some realistic expectations for each Dolphins draft pick in their rookie seasons.

Former Georgia players’ odds at winning 2022 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

Which former Georgia player has the best odds at winning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year?

The Georgia Bulldogs became the first university ever to have five defensive players selected in the first round of the NFL draft. In total, Georgia had 15 players taken in the 2022 NFL draft – another record. Of those 15, eight of them were members of Georgia’s legendary 2021 defensive unit that allowed only 10,.2 points per game.

With the draft in the rearview mirror and rookie minicamp set to begin, we are taking a look at which of the former Georgia defensive stars will have breakout rookie seasons.

Seven of the eight former defensive Dawgs that were selected have odds listed on Tipico Sportsbook to potentially win the 2022 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award. We listed those players and their odds below.

Not included by Tipico is former UGA linebacker Channing Tindall, who was picked by the Miami Dolphins in the third round.

Channing Tindall named one of the biggest steals of the 2022 NFL draft

Miami’s getting credit for their first pick.

The Miami Dolphins, and their fanbase, had to wait through nearly three full rounds of the 2022 NFL draft before they found out who the first member of their rookie class was, and it wound up being Georgia linebacker Channing Tindall.

Tindall, 22, met with the Dolphins prior to the start of the three-day event, and he clearly impressed those that he interacted with. That’s a bonus to some of the plays that he put on tape during his time with the Bulldogs.

It was those plays that showed his ability to be an impact player, and that’s why he was listed as one of the biggest draft steals by Draft Wire, which had him rated as the 60th best prospect in the draft.

In limited opportunities, Tindall recorded 108 total tackles (16 for a loss), 12 sacks and one forced fumble in his four-year collegiate career. Those numbers don’t exactly show the talent that Tindall possesses. He was limited because he was playing behind Quay Walker and Nakobe Dean, who were both projected to be first-round picks entering the draft.

Entering a Dolphins’ linebacker room that boasts Jerome Baker, Elandon Roberts, Duke Riley, Sam Eguavoen, Brennan Scarlett and fellow rookie Cameron Goode, Tindall has competition for reps in the pros just as he did at Georgia. He has an opportunity to prove to every other team that passed on him in the first 2.5 rounds were foolish to do so.

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Watch highlights of the Dolphins’ 2022 draft picks

Check out highlights of the Dolphins’ four draft picks this year, from Channing Tindall to Skylar Thompson.

With the Miami Dolphins trading their first and second-round selections to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for wide receiver Tyreek Hill, none of four members of the team’s 2022 draft class would be considered household names.

However, Miami did still get some talented young players who had varying levels of productivity in their collegiate careers that they expect to have some impact in the coming years.

We’ve taken the time to find some highlight videos of linebacker Channing Tindall, wide receivers Erik Ezukanma, linebacker Cameron Goode and quarterback Skylar Thompson so that we could all familiarize ourselves with the newest Dolphins.

Where did each Dolphins draft pick rank on pre-draft big boards?

There were some good deals, and there were some swings.

When teams make their selections during the NFL draft process, one of the first things that everyone does is check where the newest members of their organization were ranked.

Fans want to know whether the team made a smart move and grabbed someone who was valued higher or reached a bit and grabbed a player that may have been available later in the draft.

This year, the Dolphins seem to have a mix of results as far as value goes. We looked at four pre-draft big boards to compare how each Dolphins’ selection ranked before the draft to where they were actually taken.

Draft Wire: Top 300
Pro Football Focus: Top 250
CBS Sports: Top 300
The Athletic Consensus Board: Top 300

Recapping the Dolphins’ 2022 draft weekend

They walked away with four drafted rookies and a bunch of undrafted players as well.

Now that the 2022 NFL draft is officially closed, the Miami Dolphins added four selected players as well as a slew of undrafted free agents.

The Dolphins added a pair of linebackers in the draft in third-round pick, Channing Tindall from Georgia, and seventh-round pick, Cameron Goode from California.

Tindall is Miami’s earliest drafted linebacker from Georgia since Bill Stanfill was selected 11th overall in 1969. At the time of his retirement, Stanfill led the Miami franchise in sacks. Today, he’s third in team history.

Goode is the first-ever linebacker from California picked by Miami, and the earliest Golden Bear drafted by the Dolphins since tight end and current South Florida broadcaster, Joe Rose.

The Tindall pick clinched the continuation of two trends displayed by Miami general manager Chris Grier in his tenure as a lead executive. He’s gone through seven straight drafts with selecting a player from a reigning collegiate national champion. He’s also picked an SEC player in all of his selection processes.

Grier also took care of the offensive side of the ball as well, as he added two depth pieces in wide receiver Erik Ezukanma out of Texas Tech and closed their draft with quarterback Skylar Thompson from Kansas State.

Ezukanma is the sixth player Texas Tech player drafted by Miami. The last was wide receiver Jakeem Grant. The former Dolphin was taken in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft and was dealt to the Chicago Bears last season.

Of course, legendary linebacker Zach Thomas was from Texas Tech, and Ezukanma’s new wide receivers coach Wes Welker was also a Red Raider. Perhaps a ready-made apprentice-teacher relationship is inevitable for Ezukanma and Welker.

Thompson, who was just the ninth quarterback Miami has ever drafted, was moved to tears when getting the phone call from Grier and his new coach making him Dolphin.

While the 2022 draft ended with four players, the fewest in one selection meeting in team history, Grier beefed up the roster with a crew of undrafted free agents.

On Miami’s roster right now, cornerback Nik Needham, wide receiver Preston Williams, offensive lineman Robert Jones and defensive lineman Benito Jones all eventually earned a spot as undrafted free agents.

The Dolphins will look forward to mini-camps with their rookie class in May, leading into a summer of what looks to be a number of heated positional battles.

Following the draft, rookie head coach Mike McDaniel was asked how he felt now that his first selection process in Miami went.

“I feel like there has been a lot of work done, but nothing has been done if that makes sense,” he told reporters.

That’s becoming a typical McDaniel response. It’s this type of answer Miami fans should be excited about, on top of every other aspect this new coach brings to the table. Grier has set the table with the groceries, and now it’s time for McDaniel and staff, as well as their players, to cook.

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4 things to know about new Dolphins LB Channing Tindall

He’s considered one of the most athletic linebackers that’s come through the draft.

The Miami Dolphins, after waiting through the first two rounds without a pick, selected Georgia linebacker Channing Tindall with the 102nd pick in the 2022 NFL draft.

The former Bulldog will join a linebacker room that already boasts Jerome Baker, Elandon Roberts, Duke Riley, Sam Eguavoen, Brennan Scarlett and Andrew Van Ginkel.

It’s unclear what his role will be, but Tindall could end up as a four-down contributor at the professional level if he takes to the coaching offered by defensive coordinator Josh Boyer and linebackers coach Anthony Campanile.

Here’s what Dolphins fans should know about their newest linebacker heading into his rookie season.

Chris Grier shares why Dolphins targeted Channing Tindall in the draft

There are some patterns with this pick.

The Channing Tindall selection at No. 102 by the Miami Dolphins on Friday in 2022’s NFL draft has a number of fun connections to the franchise and college. The Georgia Bulldog was a third-round selection and the first-ever linebacker from the school drafted by the Dolphins.

He becomes the earliest player Miami has selected from Georgia since 1969 when they picked defensive end Bill Stanfill at No. 11 overall. Stanfill retired following the 1976 season as the Dolphins’ all-time leader in sacks with 69.5, a mark that’s third in team history today.

Tindall is the 10th Bulldog drafted by the Dolphins and the first since guard Solomon Kindley was picked 111th overall in 2020. Some other notable Bulldog-to-Dolphins include Jake Scott, Randy McMichael and Reshad Jones.

Since taking over as general manager in 2016, Chris Grier has shown remarkable consistency in certain trends, specifically the drafting of a player from the reigning CFP national champion in seven consecutive drafts. That’s every one of his selection processes as the head man in the draft room.

In a related pattern that correlates perfectly here, Tindall’s selection makes 2022 the seventh-consecutive draft that Grier has selected a player from an SEC school. The last year that Miami didn’t draft an SEC player was 2015, the year before Grier, which is no coincidence.

Not only is Tindall from a champion SEC school, but they’re also a team that saw seven defensive players taken in the first three rounds of the 2022 NFL draft; the most defensive players taken from a single school in the first three rounds since 1967. This mark surpassed the previous high of six from Alabama in 2017 and LSU in 2013. Grier himself spoke with Miami media late Friday night following the selection and detailed the journey to pick Tindall.

“He was a player that we had been targeting throughout the process,” Grier said. “We met with him in Indianapolis and really enjoyed our time with him. We brought him down here on a 30 visit, spent a lot of time with him here as well. For us, it’s the versatility, the speed is what we like.”

Speed has certainly been a theme the last few months in Miami’s renovation of what was a rebuild of an organization just three seasons ago. With additions like Tyreek Hill, Raheem Mostert and Chase Edmonds on offense, Tindall brings his 4.47 40-yard dash to an already swarming Miami defense.

Tindall will be an inside linebacker and has three-down ability while mixing in with Jerome Baker and the re-signed pair of Elandon Roberts and Duke Riley. The rookie’s tracking speed and ability to roam sideline-to-sideline is what Miami covets.

Grier discussed some of the attributes which made Tindall their pick saying, “it’s a very talented defense [Georgia] and how they use him – they use him as a spy, they use him to blitz, he covers backs. Just a lot of the ways that are kind of similar to how he will probably be used here in different schemes…Specifically, the speed stands out on film on him.”

The questions returned to Tindall’s speed, and Grier even showed personality in his response.

“I think the way the NFL is, there’s a lot of speed now in the game and how it’s evolving, he explained. “It’s a little bit of the college game where you’re spreading people out. We have guys that can run; (Jerome) Baker can run, Duke Riley, can run, ‘E-Rob’ (Elandon Roberts) will tell you he can run.”

The calm, confident Grier also joked about what Miami truly did Thursday night and much of the evening prior to the Tindall selection. When asked directly what they did, Grier gave an appropriate answer.

“Eating a lot of food,” Grier said. “Mike [McDaniel] and I just sitting there talking and watching our weight go up.”

Grier, McDaniel, and the Dolphins don’t have too much time to sit back, as they’re scheduled to pick 125th, just twenty picks away from the opening of the fourth round.

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New Dolphins LB Channing Tindall meets with South Florida media

Here’s what the linebacker had to say to the media.

After what seemed like two weeks and not two days, the Miami Dolphins finally were able to make a selection Friday night in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

Without a top-100 pick for the first time in franchise history, Miami waited patiently until pick No. 102 to call Channing Tindall’s name, making him a Dolphin.

The former Georgia Bulldog is a year removed from a National Championship season on a defense that saw five of his teammates on that unit drafted in the first round on Thursday.

Tindall, part of that stacked group was a valuable role player who may have been lost in the shuffle of the top-tier talent on Georgia’s defense. Regardless, Tindall was on general manager Chris Grier’s radar early in this process.

Immediately following the late-night selection, reporters heard from Tindall, and the new Dolphin confirmed that he was in Miami recently for a team visit.

“I did go down there, and when I went down there, I just loved the campus and the facility they had there,” Tindall said. “I just really got in with the linebackers’ coaches. I talked to the whole staff, and I felt like home, honestly, when I was there.”

Coming from a powerhouse program from the SEC helps to make a rookie pro-ready, as Tindall mentioned to South Florida media.

“It’s very business-like at Georgia,” he said. “Just coming in there and seeing the culture that was already built there before I got there, like in fall camp. With the culture that was already built there and everything that was going on, I just felt like it prepared me.”

Tindall made a leap in production his senior season, and he credits his position coach with his development.

“Coach (Glenn) Schumann, who was my position coach at Georgia, I just took extra time and watched film with him,” Tindall shared. “I feel like I knew what I had to do. “I was on a mission before the season started. I was just on a mission like I have to get this done. I would say the biggest thing is probably just my mindset. My mindset was do or die.”

Tindall finished his 2021 campaign with 67 total tackles, including 7.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks and a championship to boot.

He also shared what new coach Mike McDaniel and the staff like about him as a player and versatility was the buzzword, and the rookie seems prepared to know his role.

“Just Miami as a whole, where they put their linebackers, their linebackers do it all. I feel like I fit into that,” he said confidently.

Tindall told about his connection to a new defensive teammate on the Dolphins, a name that Dolphins fans love to see attached to anything – Jevon Holland. Tindall said that he and the second-year safety met at a Nike event some in the past. He said he and Holland are “pretty cool.”

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