BY NICK ST. DENIS
The Miami Dolphins swung and missed on a handful of candidates for their vacant general manager position. Fortunately, one person sat on the tee, waiting to be given a shot.
Miami settled for Tampa Bay Buccaneers executive Dennis Hickey, who spent 18 years in multiple roles with the Bucs, most recently as the team's Director of Pro Personnel.
According to Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, Hickey is just what Miami was looking for.
“When we started the search, I outlined qualities that I was looking for in this position," Ross said in a statement, via Dolphins.com. "These included a collaborative team-first person who can work with Joe, demonstrated player evaluation expertise, and someone who is open-minded and creative.
"Dennis fit all of these criteria and I'm looking forward to having him get started."
Hickey was reportedly on his way out of Tampa Bay, as the team's new general manager was poised to clean house. So understandably, Hickey was happy to get a new job and offered his own politically correct statement to kick off his tenure with his new team.
"Miami is a great franchise with a historic tradition and passionate fans," Hickey said. "The opportunity to work with Stephen Ross, Joe Philbin and the entire Dolphins organization to build a team that wins on a consistent basis is exciting.
"The Dolphins certainly have talented players and I am eager to hit the ground running with our personnel and coaching staffs. We will all work together to construct a team that will make our organization and fans proud."
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