Dolphins rookies aware of high standards placed upon them

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http://www.miamiherald.com/multimedia/Special_Reports/sports/footpreview08/dol1.html

Perfect picks?

By JEFF DARLINGTON
jdarlington@MiamiHerald.com
 
The details of that first meeting are a bit foggy for both of them.

Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne, at the very most, can still remember when and where (it was a recruiting visit to the University of Michigan during his senior year of high school), which is more than left tackle Jake Long can recall.

"Wow," Long said, squinting as he scratches his head in search of the memory. "I really don't remember the first time I met him. Is that bad?"

No, it's not bad -- especially because it has been five years since these Dolphins teammates were united as future college teammates. That is the type of long history these NFL rookies have with one another. The memories already have become a blur.

But it isn't the past that will define Long and Henne. It is the future.

You can forget about what both of them did together at Michigan. You also can forget about what each of the Dolphins' seven other draft picks did during their college careers.

Instead, Miami's 2008 draft class will be defined as the foundation for Bill Parcells' biggest reclamation project of his storied career. Pressure? You could say that.

"We want to leave a great legacy," said Long, the first overall pick of the 2008 draft. "First, we want to be remembered as hard-nosed, tough rookies coming into this team. We want to contribute, and we want to help this team win.

"Then, we want to bring that history back to greatness. We want to get this organization back to where we're not only winning games, but we're winning Super Bowls."

 
HUGE EXPECTATIONS

That might sound like some big talk, considering the 2008 Dolphins are a year removed from the misery of a 1-15 season. Nonetheless, Long realizes the expectations that come with being a Parcells pick, which might be about as high as the expectations behind a contract worth nearly $30 million in guaranteed money.

That is why it isn't only on Long to succeed with the Dolphins. It also is on Henne. And defensive linemen Phillip Merling, Kendall Langford and Lionel Dotson. And running backs Jaren Parmele and Lex Hilliard. And offensive linemen Shawn Murphy and Donald Thomas.

These days, it is even on undrafted rookie kicker Dan Carpenter, who got the new regime's endorsement by beating out veteran Jay Feely for the starting job.

"They stuck their neck out for us," Henne said. "Now, it's up to us to live up to those expectations.

"It's up to us to embrace these opportunities."

Do you need more reasons why this class has some serious pressure to deal with? Just look at the past.

Perhaps second to the lack of a perennial quarterback, the team's recent history of bad draft classes is the biggest reason why Miami's place is in the NFL's cellar. Only eight of the 48 players drafted by the Dolphins between 2000 and 2006 remain on their roster.

Only four months into their careers in Miami, Long, Merling and Henne -- the team's first three picks in 2008 -- acknowledged their awareness of Miami's bad drafting over the past several years.

It doesn't take much time hanging out at the Dolphins' facility to realize few people in this organization have been here for very long. That said, Parcells and his staff don't have a history of drafting soft players, so it should come as no surprise that players such as Merling aren't scared by the curse that has hampered Miami's draft picks.

NO PRESSURE HERE

"I don't feel any pressure at all, but I don't know if anybody else does," Merling said. "I know I don't.

"I try not to listen to the pressure, work hard in practice and hope it all follows through in the game."

So far, the early indications about this class -- at least during the offseason and training camp -- have been optimistic.

Henne has impressed the coaching staff to the point where he is being privately endorsed as the quarterback of the future.

Long's improvement as he gains more experience has been steady, and Merling has consistently looked like a force who could make an immediate impact.

Beyond those perks (keep in mind, those draft picks are supposed to make good impressions early, considering what has been invested in each), some of the later picks also are looking solid.

Is Thomas, a sixth-round pick, still competing for the starting position at right guard? Can the same be said about Langford, a third-round pick who has been seeing substantial time with the first-team defense?

The answer, believe it or not, is yes. But these rookies realize they can't view their surge toward the top of the depth chart as unusual. Embracing the starting job has become as important to the Dolphins' newest draft picks as earning it.

"When you get out there, you just play football," Thomas said. "You don't try to think about that. I'm trying to make the best out of every situation and maintain complete focus."

Before this new draft class can be heralded as the future, though, it is important to realize they aren't the first group of rookies to make a good early impression.

In 2005, after Nick Saban's first draft, the group was heralded as the future foundation.

And although that class still might be considered the best (or not the worst) in recent years, it still has yet to emerge as anything beyond decent.

For the 2008 class to be successful, it will need to be more than decent. Fair or not, it will need to be great.

Those expectations are fine with Long. Henne agrees. So does Merling. Each serves as the faces of this draft class and are confident that they will be playing for years to come.

FOCUS ON PRESENT

For Long and Henne, a successful run with the Dolphins would mean extending their success while playing on the same team -- college and pro -- to a decade or longer. It is a concept that intrigues both.

Before they talk about the future, though, and before they embrace their past, Long and Henne realize there is something too important to allow any of those discussions to cloud their minds: the present.

Expectations and pressure? It exists.

For now, though, the Dolphins' 2008 draft class would rather let those things take care of themselves.

"We're not ready to talk about our legacy together," Henne said. "Not right now. At this moment, we're just worried about doing the right things on the field today. If we do that, the future will take care of itself."