*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***
Aug 03, 1999: -- Wheatley Cut --
** Tyrone Wheatley Cut
Less than 6 months after the Dolphins traded their 7th round
draft pick to the New York Giants for him, the Dolphins have cut
Tyrone Wheatley from the roster. Wheatley put in a poor performance
during the first week of camp, fumbling several times and showing none
of the talent that made him a first round draft pick several years ago
by the Giants.
Also cut was safety Marcus Wimberly, who was signed as a free
agent in February.
To fill one of the vacant spots on the roster, the Dolphins
signed free agent DT Dewaine Robinson to a one year contract for the
league minimum. Robinson has spent training camp time with the
Redskins and the Jaguars, but has never played in a regular NFL game.
** Wong Out for the Year
Seventh round draft pick Joe Wong tore his anterior cruciate
ligament in the team scrimmage on Sunday and will miss the entire 1999
season for the Dolphins. He will have surgery on the knee later in
the week to repair it and will be transferred to the injured reserve
list.
My Comments:
Wheatley lasted even less time than I thought he would. I
figured that he would eventually be leaving the Dolphins this year,
but I didn't think that JJ would dump him quite so soon.
Apparently, Chris Mortenson of ESPN got his signals crossed
when he said that JJ was thinking of releasing Collins - which didn't
make any sense in the first place.
I can't say that I'm terribly disappointed with Wheatley's
departure. Cecil Collins, James Johnson and Karim Abdul-Jabbar are
more than capable of providing the team's running game and that was
pretty evident during the scrimmage on Sunday.
The only disappointment is that JJ didn't try to trade
Wheatley to the Detroit Lions - or some other team who needed running
back help. Not that he could have gotten much for Wheatley, but he
might have been able to get a 7th round draft pick.
The injury to Wong is a shame, but perhaps it will prolong his
tenure on the team. He didn't have much chance to make the squad this
year anyway and now he'll be able to come back next year.
Still, better him than Yatil Green.
Related Info:
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Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New Rochelle (almost)
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