Miami, FL

Dolphins Camp Preview: Defensive Line

Published

2 years ago

July 20, 2022

The Miami Dolphins made plenty of modifications this offseason hoping to make the playoffs for the primary time since 2017 and win a playoff recreation for the primary time since 2000.

The staff employed former 49ers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel as its head coach, acquired extremely touted offensive gamers like offensive sort out Terron Armstead and Tyreek Hill, and saved their whole 2021 beginning protection collectively.

In an effort to put together followers for a pivotal season, we’ve determined to interrupt down every positional group on the roster by giving an outlook for every participant, awarding superlatives, and analyzing key questions.

We proceed our collection with the defensive position.

DOLPHINS DEFENSIVE LINEMAN OUTLOOKS

Emmanuel Ogbah

2021 Stats: 41 tackles, 9 sacks, 9 tackles for loss, 1 pressured fumble 12 passes defended, 24 quarterback hits, 61 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: Ogbah returns for his third season in Miami after signing a brand new four-year cope with the staff this offseason. He’s blossomed into an above-average move rusher since becoming a member of the Dolphins, and there’s no purpose to suppose that may change this season.

Ogbah’s size, pure energy and move rush method make him an ideal slot in defensive coordinator Josh Boyer’s scheme. Ogbah will chase double-digit sacks this season, however his capability to get constant stress makes him one in every of Miami’s greatest defensive gamers no matter sack numbers.

Christian Wilkins

2021 Stats: 89 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 10 tackles for loss, 1 pressured fumble, 4 passes defended, 13 quarterback hits, 31 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: 2021 was a profession season for Wilkins as he eclipsed his career-highs in most vital classes. Nonetheless, 2022 is a vital season for Wilkins as he hopes to earn a long-term contract from the Dolphins after they exercised his fifth-year choice for the 2023 season this offseason.

The previous first-round decide has gotten higher each season since coming into the league and has his inside defensive position spot locked down. Wilkins nonetheless may look to enhance his move rush manufacturing this season whereas sustaining the high-level run protection he displayed final yr.

Zach Sieler

2021 Stats: 62 tackles, 2 sacks, 6 tackles for loss, 1 pressured fumble, 3 passes defended, 3 quarterback hits, 23 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: Sieler loved a powerful season in 2021, beginning 9 video games on the Dolphins’ inside defensive position. His numbers aren’t overly spectacular, however Sieler is an ideal match for Miami’s protection.

His movie reveals a succesful run defender who’s all the time positioned properly to disengage from blockers. This season, Sieler doubtless will see a good quantity of motion however may earn much more snaps if he develops as a move rusher.

Raekwon Davis

2021 Stats: 28 tackles, 0.5 sacks, 0 pressured fumbles, 0 passes defended, 1 sort out for loss, 1 quarterback hit, 5 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: Davis regressed in 2021 as he missed time with an harm early within the season and by no means discovered his footing after he returned.

Davis nonetheless has an essential function within the Dolphins’ protection as their major run-stopping nostril sort out, however his run protection left rather a lot to be desired in 2021. Davis additionally must make himself a extra impactful move rusher this season.

There’s a place for Davis to stay on Miami’s roster long run, however he’ll need to play nearer to how he did in 2020 to earn it.

Adam Butler

2021 Stats: 17 tackles, 2 sacks, 0 pressured fumbles, 3 passes defended, 2 tackles for loss, 5 quarterback hits, 24 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: Final season, Butler primarily functioned as a move rush specialist with 419 of his 592 snaps coming as a move rusher.

Butler’s function doubtless will stay the identical this season as Miami introduced again all of its defensive starters. If Butler needs to extend the variety of snaps he will get this season, he’ll need to show he can flip pressures into extra sacks.

John Jenkins

2021 Stats: Performed in 7 video games, 16 complete tackles, 2 complete quarterback pressures

2022 Outlook: Jenkins was inactive for 9 video games final season, which didn’t go away him a lot of a chance to garner stats.

Jenkins’ function for 2022 doubtless will likely be as a depth choice on the defensive position with a give attention to run protection. He’s a powerful participant on the level of assault and is able to two-gapping with out giving floor to opposing linemen.

There’s all the time room for these forms of gamers in Miami’s defensive position rotation below the present scheme.

Benito Jones

2021 Stats: Didn’t play

2022 Outlook: Jones spent all of final season on the apply squad after enjoying in six video games as a UDFA in 2020.

If Jones goes to make the 53-man roster this season, he’ll have to indicate some pass-rushing prowess. Miami has loads of gamers who’re succesful run defenders, so if Jones goes to face out, it may need to be by getting after the passer.

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Owen Carney

2021 Faculty Stats (Illinois): 44 tackles, 6 sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss

2022 Outlook: Carney signed with the Dolphins as a UDFA following the 2022 NFL draft. He produced stable numbers in faculty as an out of doors linebacker and defensive finish hybrid.

Since Miami has him listed as a “DL” on its roster, it looks like he’s considered as a defensive finish proper now. Carney can have an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster throughout camp because of Miami’s depth on the place.

Ben Stille

2021 Faculty Stats (Nebraska): 42 complete tackles, 1.5 sacks, 6 tackles for loss, 3 passes defended

2022 Outlook: Stille signed with the Dolphins as a UDFA following the 2022 draft. He profiles as one other participant who’s a major run stopper with restricted move rush upside and manufacturing.

If Stille goes to make the 53-man roster, he’ll need to show he can provide the Dolphins extra than simply ample run protection. The extra doubtless state of affairs is he competes for a spot on the apply squad.

Jordan Williams

2021 Faculty Stats (Virginia Tech): 33 complete tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks

2022 Outlook: Williams signed with the Dolphins as a UDFA following the 2022 draft. His physique kind makes it tough to venture the place he’ll compete for a spot on the Dolphins line.

He’s too skinny to be a everlasting inside lineman however doesn’t have the useful power to be a long-term defensive finish both. Williams’ path to the roster will doubtless come by him making the staff’s apply squad this yr.

DOLPHINS DEFENSIVE LINE SUPERLATIVES

Finest Move Rusher: Emmanuel Ogbah

Finest Run Defender: Zach Sieler

Breakout Candidate: Christian Wilkins

Most Versatile: Emmanuel Ogbah

Most Underrated: Zach Sieler

KEY DOLPHINS QUESTIONS AT DL

Will Christian Wilkins proceed his upward trajectory?

2021 was Wilkins’ greatest season within the NFL by far since he received drafted within the first spherical of the 2019 draft out of Clemson. He recorded profession highs in tackles, tackles for loss, and sacks final season.

Nonetheless, Wilkins nonetheless has room to get even higher in 2021 — primarily as a move rush risk. Wilkins’ 5 quarterback hurries ranked 124th within the NFL final season, based on Professional Soccer Reference.

Wilkins’ run protection is certainly above common, however his move rush manufacturing nonetheless must get higher regardless of his enchancment in 2021. That enchancment doesn’t have to return completely within the sack division both.

Miami’s defensive scheme is concentrated on blitzing second-level defenders to create stress and sacks, particularly on third down. The place Wilkins can separate himself in 2022 is by creating stress on first and second down.

If Wilkins can discover extra success on these downs in 2022, he’ll put himself in a superb place to get a contract extension, and the Dolphins defensive position will attain a brand new degree of effectiveness.

Who Will probably be Miami’s Major Nostril Deal with in 2022?

The nostril sort out place is crucial to Miami’s protection and for the reason that Dolphins are preserving Boyer as defensive coordinator, that received’t change this season.

Miami spent a second-round decide on Davis in 2020 hoping he would fill that function for the long run. His rookie season confirmed he was able to doing it, however he regressed closely each relating to his stats and his movie in 2021.

Different choices on Miami’s roster embrace Sieler, Butler, and Jenkins. Sieler strikes round rather a lot and is the defensive position’s most constant run defender, so he may fill that function a number of the time however not completely.

Butler noticed motion on the nostril sort out spot, however that was to provide him a chance to hurry the passer on third downs. He’s not going to be within the recreation taking up two blocks and making run stops fairly often.

Jenkins has the pure dimension (weighs 335 kilos) and talent set to play because the nostril sort out, however he was inactive for 9 video games final season.

Whether or not one participant steps up or the Dolphins finds an efficient rotation on the place, they should get extra constant play from the nostril sort out spot in 2022.

How will the shortage of recent gamers have an effect on the unit?

This query may very well be requested for nearly your entire protection since Miami retained each defensive starter from final season. Nonetheless, the staff did put money into its linebacker group by drafting Channing Tindall within the third spherical.

The defensive position acquired no such help partially as a result of the Dolphins traded so a lot of their picks to Kansas Metropolis for Hill.

Miami’s defensive position received sturdy play from Ogbah, Wilkins and Sieler final season however gamers like Butler, Davis and Jenkins didn’t have massive impacts. That very same lack of depth will comply with the staff into 2022 until Davis regains his 2020 type whereas Butler and Jenkins enhance their recreation as veterans.

It does go away the door open for one in every of Miami’s UDFAs to compete for a major backup spot, which makes for an fascinating camp battle between these gamers.

The Dolphins made the choice to not improve its defensive position by free company or the draft, in order that they’ll need to depend on inside improvement, which isn’t a positive factor by any means.

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Miami, FL

No Messi, no party? 10-men Miami suffer worst loss this season

Published

4 hours ago

July 7, 2024

Press Room

No Messi, no party? 10-men Miami suffer worst loss this season

In a crushing 6-1 loss against FC Cincinnati, Inter Miami suffered their heaviest loss of the season.

With important players Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi unavailable, Miami had a tough test played in front of a sold-out 25,513 at TQL Stadium. Things worsened when Sergio Busquets was sent out in the 62nd minute, resulting in his side playing with 10 players.

But the game did not start disastrously for Tata Martino’s players. After Yuya Kubo opened the scoring for Cincinnati in the 10th minute, Serhiy Kryvtsov managed to level the score in the 21st minute; providing a glimmer of hope for the visitors. Nevertheless, this optimism was fleeting as Cincinnati wasted no time stepping up their offensive game.

They have proved once and for all why they are a formidable opponent in MLS.

Cincinnati showcased their offensive prowess in the first half, scoring four goals and effectively sealing Miami’s fate early on. Luca Orellano ran riot as a forward, assisting twice and creating numerous opportunities.

Luciano Acosta, a player poised to repeat as MLS MVP, scored in the 36th minute and provided two assists. This includes one for Pavel Bucha’s strike just two minutes later. Yamil Asad added another goal in the third minute of extra time, making it 4-1 by halftime.

The relentless pressure from Cincinnati continued in the second half. Kubo scored his second goal in the 57th minute, and Gerardo Valenzuela added a sixth goal in the 72nd minute. The match marked a record for the Orange and Blue, which equaled the highest number of goals scored in a single game since joining MLS in 2019. The last time they scored six goals was against San Jose Earthquakes on September 10, 2022.

A tough result for Inter Miami.

Cincinnati took over Miami on top of Eastern Conference

Inter Miami were significantly weakened without Messi and Suarez, who were on international duty at the Copa America. Additionally, Jordi Alba was suspended due to yellow-card accumulation. These absences left Miami vulnerable, a situation exploited ruthlessly by Cincinnati.

As the game progressed, Miami’s fortunes worsened after Sergio Busquets’ dismissal in the 62nd minute for dissent. The former Spain international received two yellow cards in quick succession.

First, it was for arguing a foul called on Leonardo Campana and then for continued protesting. This dismissal, only the fourth of his career, left Miami with ten men and compounded their defensive woes.

With this victory, FC Cincinnati not only overtook Inter Miami in the Supporters’ Shield race but also made a strong statement to the rest of Major League Soccer. Cincinnati improved their record to 15-4-3, amassing 48 points to Miami’s 47. This win positioned them as the top team in the regular-season standings, a title they hold from their triumph in 2023.

What’s next for Inter Miami?

Inter Miami coach Tata Martino reflected on the defeat, acknowledging the superiority of their opponents. “We had a period early in the season where we were vulnerable in back, we started to fix that. But this game we reverted defensively to how we played early in the season. Our opponent was better than us,” Martino stated. He also expressed hope that the team would improve with a full roster available in the final part of the season.

The Herons face a challenging period ahead with Messi likely to miss the MLS match against Toronto FC on July 18 due to his participation in the Copa America semi-finals. However, the superstar’s mid-season return could bolster Miami’s chances in their upcoming games, including a crucial match against Chicago Fire on July 21.

Photo credit: IMAGO / Newscom World

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A day in the life of Robert Rivani, a 34-year-old real-estate mogul with $750M in deals who left LA to invest in Miami

Published

12 hours ago

July 7, 2024

Press Room

A day in the life of Robert Rivani, a 34-year-old real-estate mogul with $750M in deals who left LA to invest in Miami

Robert Rivani got a taste for business flipping shoes as a teenager in his hometown of Los Angeles.

At first, he said, he sold his own Air Jordan and Nike shoes to just afford other shoes, but when business took off, he was making $10,000 a month before he could legally drink. He dropped out of high school in the 11th grade. At 18 years old, Rivani said he was approached to sell his shoe collection for over $150,000 and he took it.

“The hustle came young because my family wasn’t wealthy or rich by any means, and I wanted to be able to afford nicer things in life,” Rivani, now 34, told Business Insider. “The only way for me to go about getting that done was by making it on my own.”

He started working in property management, helping run buildings in Los Angeles, and has stayed in real estate ever since. He specializes in buying more dated buildings, from restaurants to offices, and revamping them.

“I consider myself somewhat of an artist when it comes to designing the properties,” he said. “Painting a building a certain way or making it more aesthetically pleasing, from the facade or the landscaping, and then being able to have tenants buy into the vision. It was an amazing thing to turn around these dilapidated properties into something special or unique.”

Rivani left California in 2022 to make his mark in Miami, where he’s grown his real-estate portfolio.

His investment group, Black Lion, has a portfolio of restaurants, office buildings, and mixed-use buildings in South Florida totaling 500,000 square feet of space owned.

His hospitality real-estate investment firm has completed $750 million in transactions, he said.

In April, he paid $62.5 million for a building in Miami Beach with stores at its base and offices above. He plans to renovate the interior and exterior and rebrand it at The Rivani. So far, West Elm and Williams Sonoma are retail tenants.

“To buy my own office building at 34 years old for 60-some-odd million with no investors or no partners was a huge milestone in my career,” Rivani said. “It was a dream of mine since I was a kid to have that and then also have the building named with my last name.”

Robert Rivani posing in front of his former Beverly Hills mansion.

1Ten Media

Rivani is also known for his California home — a Beverly Hills castle inspired by “Harry Potter” and “Game of Thrones,” including a $50,000 replica of the latter franchise’s iron throne — which he sold for $22 million in 2023.

Rivani now lives in a 9,000-square-foot mansion in Miami. He let Business Insider take a peek inside a typical day, and described how he sets his life up for success.

5:30 a.m.

Although Rivani left California for South Florida, he still sticks to his West-Coast rituals and wakes up around 5:30 a.m. or 6 a.m. While working in California, he still had properties to worry about on the East Coast, so he had to be up early to stay efficient. Now it’s just a habit.

“I get anxiety if I sleep until 8 a.m. or 9 a.m.,” Rivani told BI. “I feel like I’m missing things. I feel like I’m being disrespectful.”

6 a.m.

Once awake, Rivani immediately spends 30 minutes to an hour catching up on emails he didn’t get to the night before and researching current market trends. He also takes time to meditate and visualize what’s ahead in the day.

Around 7 a.m. every morning he has tea with his wife, Krystal.

Rivani and his wife, Krystal.

Anna Orsborn

“I can’t stress how important it is to have a healthy, stable marriage when you’re trying to do what you do in real estate because you’re always so busy 24/7,” he said. “I make sure I spend quality time with her in the morning.”

8 a.m.

Rivani usually hits the gym in the morning for about an hour.

“I’m a big, big believer in going to the gym at least four to five days a week — or at least staying active, whether that’s hitting weights or playing paddle or tennis or physical therapy to keep my body,” he said. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that without your health, there’s no wealth.”

9 a.m.

Rivani leaves his home in Miami to his office in Miami Beach — which can take up to 45 minutes depending on traffic. Even that 45-minute drive is valuable time, so his personal assistant or wife drives while Rivani texts and takes calls.

“I’d rather not text and be on phone calls,” he said. “A lot of the good old residential brokers do, and I see them on their phone. I’d rather be safe than sorry.”

10 a.m.

Rivani is a believer in intermittent fasting and has his first meal, usually a protein shake, at 10 a.m.

His next meal won’t come until dinner.

“I’m a big fan of intermittent fasting, so that’s why I decided to drink tea versus other drinks because I fast for 14 to 16 hours every single day,” he said. “I won’t eat any food or have any special breakfast routine.”

1 p.m.

On Mondays, Rivani is usually slammed with a gauntlet of meetings from the legal team, to the construction team, to designer meetings, so he’s usually in the office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Throughout his meetings he’ll meet with his legal team and go over the status of pending deals. Meetings with the construction team checking in to see where they’re at with bids on new projects and ensuring current projects are on track. He’ll have interior design meetings to go over renderings for projects and help with furniture selection.

However, he’s a little more active every other day of the week. Tuesday through Friday, Rivani meets with tenant companies, potential vendors, and contractors.

Rivani has the luxury of having restaurants, including Delilah Miami, as tenants and can host multiple meetings in one location instead of bouncing around Miami.

Rivani posing in an all-red outfit.

Michael Timzil Nio

“I’ll set back-to-back meetings at one of my restaurant properties where I’ll just have people coming there,” he said. “So I try to be as efficient with my time. I’m never lapping the city to go to a meeting and going to another meeting — that’s just an inefficient use of my time.”

7 p.m.

About 65% of the time, Rivani eats dinner at home, he said.

“My wife loves to cook, and if I decide to eat out too much she’ll kill me,” he said. “On the weekends, that’s when we’re going out and having dinners. I’ll be having dinners much later than that, unfortunately.”

After dinner, Rivani winds down by watching TV for about an hour — he’s on his third watch of the History Channel’s Viking-age drama “Vikings,” he said.

Rivani said that because of the nature of the job, he’s still fielding calls up until bedtime.

“There’s no cutoff,” he said. “There are times when I’m talking to people right up until bed. I had a really bad habit where I would leave my phone on at night. But now it’s on silent and I don’t pick up anyone’s call. Once it gets to 9 o’clock-ish, my phone just goes on silent and time’s up.”

9 p.m.

It’s time for bed.

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Miami, FL

FC Cincinnati make a statement in dominant 6-1 win over Inter Miami CF | FC Cincinnati

Published

19 hours ago

July 6, 2024

Press Room

FC Cincinnati make a statement in dominant 6-1 win over Inter Miami CF | FC Cincinnati

With the top spot on the line, FC Cincinnati welcomed then leaders Inter Miami CF into TQL Stadium for a rare top of the table clash and made a statement to the league in record-breaking fashion. For just the second time in MLS history the top two teams in MLS met in a match after the 21 matchday in a season and it was the second place team who came out on top as FCC took the fight to Miami and emerged with a 6-1 win.

While both sides were without significant players as injury, suspension and international duty kept many out of the match, FC Cincinnati’s quality was evident from the opening kick through the final whistle, sending wave after wave of relentless attack at Miami while holding steadfast on defense.

It was the visitors who had the first scoring chance of the night, as a headed corner kick forced a diving save from Roman Celentano, but from there it was all Orange and Blue in the opening quarter of an hour.

With a new formation fueling a dynamic attacking force with Luciano Acosta, Luca Orellano and Yuya Kubo up top, FC Cincinnati attacked the Miami defense with waves of relentless creativity. It took world-class saves from Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender to keep FCC off the scoreboard.

But eventually it was too much, and the creativity of Orellano, who started the match as an attacking midfielder rather than a wingback, broke through on a brilliant run and pass to Yuya Kubo, who scored the game’s first goal in the 10 minute giving FCC the early lead.

The goal was possible thanks to a brilliant run from Kubo, who timed his moment to avoid being offside when the final pass from Orellano (who showed great restraint in waiting to pass) came to pot his career high eighth goal of the MLS season on Orellano’s sixth assist of the year.

But Miami wouldn’t go quietly and pressured FCC on the other end, with Roman Celentano making three key saves in important moments. But on a corner kick the keeper was left helpless, as Sergii Kryvtsov broke free and headed in the equalizer in the 20 minute.

But the MLS MVP would not be denied in the half. With a clear fire in his play and the quality to match, FC Cincinnati’s Luciano Acosta pushed his club forward and dribbled through three Inter Miami CF defenders before losing a shot to the back post past Callender to restore the FC Cincinnati lead.

But Acosta was not yet finished. Moments later, with the smoke from The Bailey still in the air from his goal, he played the maestro; orchestrating a perfect corner kick service to Pavel Bucha, who one touch swung and volleyed home his fourth goal of the season to double the FC Cincinnati lead in the 38 minute.
The initial goal was Acosta’s 10th of the season in MLS play (11 all comps), it was also his 50th goal across all-time in all comps with the club, the first FCC player to reach that mark. Obinna Nwobodo also earned his second assist of the year for his effort on the play. The Bucha goal, his third in two games, earned Acosta his 17 assist on the year.

The Orange and Blue were not finished though. With the two goal lead and smelling blood in the water, Acosta continued to push for more. With time running out in the first half, the 2023 MLS MVP picked the pocket of a Miami defender and launched an attack. With a field width long crossing pass that confused The Herrons defense, Lucho found Yamil Asad on the far post and the fellow Argentine patient took a touch, waiting and waiting for the perfect moment before sending a shot through five-o’clock-traffic like defense to score the fourth goal of the first half.

The goal would ultimately be the final play of the half, capping off one of the best 45 minutes in club history. The four goal effort was just the second time FCC had scored four goals in the first half (2022 decision day) and the second time this season they’ve scored four in any half (4-2, at San Jose).

The second half kicking off with no changes for either side, FC Cincinnati weathered an early storm from Inter Miami CF as they attempted to get back into the game quickly. After five minutes without a dangerous look from the visitors, FCC launched back into their attack and picked right up where they left off.

Orellano and Kubo linked up again to start the scoring in the second half, as the Argentine attacker danced through the defense along the back line before chipping it to a wide open Kubo for the duo’s second goal of the evening and the fifth goal of the night. DeAndre Yedlin, a former member and captain of Inter Miami CF, also earned an assist.

With the game already well in Cincinnati’s favor, Inter Miami cracked under the pressure and made their lives much harder. Acting captain Sergio Busquests took exception to a foul called against his side and earned a yellow card for dissent. Not liking that reaction from the ref, Busquests continued to argue and the official deemed he had stepped over a line and gave the Spanish star a second yellow card and a red card, ejecting him from the match and forcing Miami to play with 10 men for the final half hour of the match.

In response to the new advantage, Pat Noonan decided to go to his bench and bring on youngsters Bret Halsey and Gerardo “Dado” Valenzuela” for the goal scoring pair of Orellano and Kubo, who were both one yellow card away from suspension.

Valenzuela, a Boca Raton native and a former Miami academy player before joining the FC Cincinnati academy, made history in his appearance by scoring the sixth goal of the night, equalling a club high. But more importantly, the goal, scored in the 72 minute and assisted by Acosta and Asad, was the 19-year-olds first career goal in MLS in play.

With the strike from the keeper’s left and slotted under the defender, Valenzuela made it 6-1, the ultimate winning score for FCC.

With the victory, not only was a statement made but a lead taken, as FC Cincinnati earned all three points and took the lead atop the Eastern Conference and Supporters’ Shield tables with 48 points and a 15-4-3 record while still having a game in hand over the now second place Inter Miami CF.

FC Cincinnati will look to take this momentum into next week’s home match, the second of three at home, when they take on Charlotte FC. They will then host Chicago Fire FC on Wednesday, July 17 before jetting off to New York Red Bulls for the final match of MLS play before kicking off Leagues Cup 2024.

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