Olivier Vernon with opportunity to have huge year

In his second season, 2013, Olivier Vernon had produced all of .5 sacks through three games. Didn’t matter. Anyone tempted to wonder if this defensive end from The U was going to pan out had his answer over the next month: Vernon recorded a sack the next week, then another, and before you knew it, he had gone four straight games with a sack.

Vernon finished the season with 11.5, including three in a rout of the Jets. Everyone knew the Dolphins had spent their third-round pick in 2012 wisely.
Fast-forward to today, when Vernon is staring at an opportunity unlike any he has seen to date.

With Ndamukong Suh playing alongside Vernon next season, and Cameron Wake playing alongside him (along with, say, DT Earl Mitchell), there aren’t enough men on a football field to allow offenses the luxury of doubling Vernon, too.

Vernon went from 57 tackles in 2013 to 46 last season. Instead of quarterbacks dropping, it was his sack total that fell, to 6.5.

More alarming: Vernon managed just one sack over the final six weeks last season. If that rings a bell, it’s no coincidence those six weeks are when the defense imploded. Vernon totaled just four tackles the final four games.

That is not meant to pin the defensive problems just on Vernon. He had tons of help as that unit gave up 32 points per game those six weeks.
What’s it all mean?

Vernon, still only 24, is the first to say his career with the Hurricanes wasn’t all it should have been. It’s why he wasn’t drafted until the 72nd pick.

His hot streaks in the NFL, especially during that second season with the Dolphins, prove he has the ability. It’s why he starts opposite Wake.

But with two Pro Bowl linemen alongside Vernon, including the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, opportunity awaits. A unique opportunity at that.


(palmbeachpost.com)