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ALAMA-FRANCIS IN RUNNING FOR STARTING JOB 
On November 24th of last season, the Dolphins added a defensive end by the name of Ikaika Alama-Francis to their roster for depth purposes. He did not appear in any games during the final weeks of the season and was an afterthought for most Dolphin fans. Even up until this past Friday, when traing camp began, most fans and media outlets labled him as just another "camp body" and had no real shot at making the team. The former 2007 second round choice by the Detroit Lions still is not guaranteed to make the final roster, but his chances appear to have skyrocketed. Mostly in part to new linebackers coach Bill Sheridan who came up with the idea to move the former Hawaii football player to outside linebacker. Alama-Francis lost weight this summer and is down to a respectable 275 pounds and from what has been reported during the first two days of camp, he could be the real deal. Not only is Alama-Francis running with the second team outside linebackers during camp, he apparently has shown enough to be considered to be part of conversation for winning the starting job opposite Cameron Wake. While logic would say that the safe bet is that 2010 second round pick Koa Misi has the inside track for the starting job, Alama-Francis should not be taken so lightly. Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland and Tony Sparano usually find a few afterthought players each year that make an impact in some sort of way during the season. In 2008, undrafted rookies Davone Bess and Dan Carpenter came out of nowhere to become integral parts of the team. Bess led the Dolphins in receptions in 2009, and Carpenter was named to the Pro Bowl as the AFC kicker. Nate Garner and Joe Berger, started a few games last year played well enough that they are in the running for starting jobs this camp. Could Alama-Francis be the next no name player to become an impact player for the Dolphins? That remains to be seen, but appears he could be on the track to do just that. TELL US WHAT YOU THINK IN THE FINHEAVEN FORUMS!
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