BY NICK ST. DENIS
Dennis Hickey has quite the helping on his plate in his first year as the Miami Dolphins' general manager.
The Dolphins were as aggressive as anyone last offseason in free agency, a strategy that earned them a .500 record and still left the team with a fair share of holes heading into 2014.
Miami essentially needs to build an entire new offensive line, try to keep maybe its best defensive player in cornerback Brent Grimes or find his replacement, hold the middle of the defensive front together and inject some life into the offensive backfield.
All that comes in the wake of an internal harassment/bullying/whatever-you-want-to-call it scandal that has raised questions as to the competency of the organization.
Regardless, Hickey doesn't think the Dolphins will have any problem garnering interest from free agent prospects.
"I think a free agent will be attracted to who we are," Hickey told the media Thursday, via MiamiDolphins.com. "We have an excellent coaching staff. We live in Miami, that is pretty strong. We have a committed owner to allocate the resources necessary. We have an environment, a collective, strong environment.
". . . When you get into the building and you get to know all the people, you really get a sense for what the organization is about."
The thing is, it's not only a matter of whether outside free agents want to get on board, but also whether the team's pending free agents for this year and in the coming years want to stick around.
Even if some of the turmoil is perceived, there could be some good players in the locker room that would prefer a fresh start elsewhere, especially considering reports at the end of the season that not everyone buys into what coach Joe Philbin and his staff are selling to the players.
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