Dolphins owner and itinerant dingbat Steve Ross: 'We're not done'By Omar Kelly, Staff writer
Steve Ross didn't become a billionaire sitting on his hands. This week alone the Miami Dolphins' owner has a couple of deals pending.
The Dolphins will become the first NFL team to put Wi-Fi throughout the entire stadium, and offer broadcasts of the games on cellphones.
The team is launching the new logo and jerseys in exactly a month.
Later this month Ross' sports enterprise will announce another major event he's holding at Sun Life Stadium. His camp is lobbying the Florida legislature and Miami voters for support of public funds for stadium renovations, which he hopes will attract Super Bowl L to South Florida.
And by the way, the Dolphins just so happen to be the most aggressive and active NFL team during free agency, remodeling the team's roster. And Ross warns "we're not done."
The Dolphins have already spent $185 million in total value of the deals luring five players, and re-signing five members of last year's team. Ross has guaranteed nine players $83.2 million on their new deals. And what scares the rest of the NFL is that Miami still has another $19-20 million to spend on free agents, and the team's 10 draft picks.
"You can't help but like what they've done," said one AFC coach, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "Mike Wallace and Dustin Keller are both scary players."
But Ross and General Manager Jeff Ireland, the architect behind Miami's makeover, will be the first to admit teams don't win championship based on the moves made in March.
"The only place it really matters is on the football field. We can all talk about it, but you've got to win," Ross said. "But you don't do it unless you've got the right ingredients. We're certainly going down that direction."
The addition of Wallace, a receiver who has scored 32 touchdowns in his first four seasons, and Keller, a tight end who has scored 17 touchdowns in his five seasons with the Jets, provides the Dolphins the weaponry needed to open up the west coast offense. Both players create mismatches that help the offense feed off their speed.
"You can see where the NFL is going. It is about speed, the passing game and explosiveness and excitement," Ross said. "We're developing that. I don't think we're done."
Ireland explained the linebacker sway, which saw Miami cut Karlos Dansby and Kevin Burnett and replace them with Dannell Ellerbe and Phillip Wheeler, by saying the defensive coaches aim to create "a more physical presence" on defense.
"They are younger," Ireland said. "They run exceptionally well and are very, very physical."
The Dolphins still need to address the offensive line, especially after the defection of former No.1 pick Jake Long, who signed a four-year deal reportedly worth $36 million with the Rams.
The Dolphins are also shopping for cornerback help, and additional pass rushing. There are a number of aged but experienced defensive ends — Osi Umenyiora, Dwight Freeney, John Abraham, James Harrison, Elvis Dumervil — still available, and the Dolphins have expressed interest in a few.
The Dolphins have taken minimal cap hits on the new additions to preserve space for more newcomers, and Ireland said that's by design. For explain, Wallace, who received a five-year, $60 million deal, only costs the team $3.2 million in cap space this season. But next year he'll account for $17.2 million.
That tricky distribution of his cap value would allow Miami to easily part ways with the receiver before the 2015 season if things turn sour. Most of Miami's deals have similar three-year structures, and Ireland acknowledged that's purposely done to create a three-year window for the team.
Ireland hinted the Dolphins will remain aggressive, and is exploring trades that could also improve the team's talent base.
"We've got contingencies upon contingencies upon contingencies trying to get the best players we can that are available," Ireland said. "We've got [10] draft picks coming up and dollars to advocate in free agency. We knew we had to be active. … We're still trying to upgrade this football team."
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