Despite the Dolphins finishing the season strong, 6-3 down the stretch, and the relatively strong play by quarterback Matt Moore in that run, it appears that Miami is shopping for a franchise quarterback.
The Miami Herald is reporting that a “team source” indicated that Peyton Manning is their first priority. That is a clear indication that they are swinging for the fences, looking for a proved veteran as opposed to an unproven, younger player.
Manning has been as good as any quarterback to ever play the game, but hasn’t played in over a year and is still working to recover from two offseason neck surgeries. If the Colts let Manning go, the market will be interesting – if he can fully recover, there’s no reason to think he won’t be able to perform at the same elite level he always for at least a few more years. But that’s a big “if” for someone who hasn’t taken a snap in over 12 months.
Matt Flynn was believed to be another possibility, especially after the hiring of Joe Philbin, but the Dolphins have shown no discernible interest in Flynn up to this time.
Flynn is going to be one of the more interesting stories in the offseason. He has essentially a one game dress rehearsal under his belt, when he closed out the regular season for the Packers against the Lions, and threw for 480 yards and 6 TDs. That makes him an intriguing find, but with only one game (and surrounded by all the talent on the Packers), it’s hard to tell how well that will translate.
The odd man out seems to be Matt Moore, who finished the season playing in 13 games and threw for 2,497 yards with 16 TDs and 9 INTs. His passer rating was 87.1 for the season, but after his first four games – he was 112 in November and 94 in December. And in the last two months of the season, he threw 14 TDs and only 3 INT.
Moore seems to have the skills to be an effective starter in the league. Certainly, he can’t compete with a healthy Peyton Manning, but he has a much bigger body of work than Matt Flynn. Perhaps the grass is truly always greener.
