Why Dion Jordan Will Be Legitimate Comeback Player of the Year Candidate

The NFL offseason brings excitement, drama and optimism to fanbases as free agency and the draft promote player movement. Hitting on a first-round pick and picking up a few key playmakers can completely change the direction of a floundering team, or put them over the top as a playoff contender. Back in the 2013 offseason, one of the biggest rookie difference-makers was edge-rusher Dion Jordan.

Jordan was drafted third overall by the Miami Dolphins after a trade up with the Oakland Raiders for a swap of first-round picks and an additional second-round pick going to Oakland. The dynamic 6’6”, 248-pound athlete wowed evaluators as he tallied 29 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks while also showing great promise in coverage while at Oregon. He was the ultimate chess piece, capable of lining up anywhere and providing an impact.

Fast-forward three years and two suspensions later, and Jordan hasn’t played in an NFL game since December 28, 2014. His NFL career was put on hold for one entire season, and he still hasn’t been reinstated by the league. And yet, he will be a legitimate threat to win Comeback Player of the Year in 2016 if he is allowed to play.

There’s been positive movement toward Jordan receiving clearance to play. His agent, Tareq Azim, posted on Instagram that Jordan is hard at work to redeem himself and prove that he wants to be great. After all, it’s been Jordan’s lack of commitment to football that has held him back, not his immense physical talent.

According to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald, the Dolphins are open to having Jordan back on the team. It’s easy to see why when looking at their depth chart. The two best pass-rushers on the defense are 34-year-old Cameron Wake, who is coming off an Achilles injury, and 31-year-old Mario Williams, who admittedly didn’t play hard last year. Jordan would be a tremendous boost to this group as a defensive end.

But Jordan doesn’t have to be pigeonholed, either. Miami also has a limited linebacker group, with oft-injured Kiko Alonso at middle linebacker and another injury-riddled player in Koa Misi at strong-side linebacker. Jordan would easily be the most dynamic and versatile piece in that unit.

These may seem like bold claims for an individual who has just three sacks in 26 games played. After digging through all of Jordan’s 551 career defensive snaps, it’s easy to see why he was a top-three selection. Let’s take a deeper look at Miami’s new defense under coordinator Vance Joseph and why there’s reason to still believe in Jordan.

Miami’s 4-3 Under

In an interview with ESPN 106.3, Dolphins executive vice president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum stated Miami will employ a 4-3 “under” defensive front in 2016. This designation was a key tidbit of information to work off, as it’s easier to project where talent will fit and what skill sets will be required at each position. Below is a visual of how the Seattle Seahawks use a 4-3 under front:

The biggest differences between a 4-3 under and a regular set are the two space-eating defensive linemen on the strong side of the formation and the imbalanced linebacker alignment. This is meant to maximize the gaps for linebackers to utilize and unleash the weak-side pass-rushers.

Miami utilized the 1-technique often in 2015 with Earl Mitchell to try to free star Ndamukong Suh as the 3-technique, and it will continue to do that in 2016. Letting Suh shoot gaps to get into the backfield will maximize the effectiveness of the unit.

Where it gets interesting is what happens with the defensive end rotation. Wake will be a rotational pass-rusher regardless of health, per Salguero, and should play obvious …

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