Plankton
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The Dolphins went into this draft with a lot of draft capital, and even more roster holes. Save for the starting wide receivers, starting corners and inside linebackers, the Dolphins are talent bereft at nearly every level of their team. This draft needed to be a Noah's Ark kind of draft - two of these, two of these and so on. The advantage to having a lot of draft capital and so many holes makes it easier to select - there's not too many situations where you can take a player who doesn't fill a need of some kind, regardless of the position. In free agency, the team added Byron Jones to give them a top flight cover guy opposite Xavien Howard, and also went to Brian Flores' Patriot past in signing Kyle Van Noy and Elandon Roberts to help shore up the linebacker position (where they already had good contributors in Jerome Baker and Raekwon McMillan), as well as Ted Karras as a hold the fort option at center. They also signed Ereck Flowers to play left guard for them, and Jordan Howard to give them a thumper at running back. On the immediate horizon, they are in dire need of a quarterback of the future, a younger, steadier running back, fixing a horrendous offensive line, adding an edge pass rusher, a run stopper inside on defense, and a safety to replace Reshad Jones. Here's how things shook out:
Round 1 (5) - Tristan Wirfs - OT Iowa - I ran a number of mock draft simulations, and it became clear that there wasn't going to be one of the top OT prospects available at #18. The Dolphins are a team returning Julien Davenport and Jesse Davis as their starting tackles, so that's a no go, especially if you plan on adding a young QB. I also wasn't enamored with using a top five pick on a huge injury risk in Tua Tagovailoa. I love the talent, but I can't trust his ability to stay healthy, and with a top five pick, I need certainty. There was also no chance of me reaching for Justin Herbert at #5 to fill a need, nor was I going to do that with Jordan Love this early. I reasoned that there was a better chance of me getting a quarterback at my second pick (who will need development time, regardless of the player) than a top tackle. Tua went at #2, so that temptation was removed immediately. Where I hesitated a bit was when Isaiah Simmons slid to be available at #5. While I love Simmons as a player, with the reinforcements already signed at linebacker, and his abilities lending themselves to him playing closer to the line of scrimmage (and not at safety), I went with the top tackle on my board in Wirfs. Wirfs is well schooled by Kirk Ferentz in how to play the OL, and was the first Iowa player under Ferentz to start at tackle as a freshman. He is technically sound, a fantastic athletic specimen, and just turned 21 years old, so he will be there for a long time. He has the ability to play either tackle, or could slide into guard, so it's only a question of where he will end up playing. He was who I went into this exercise expecting to pick at #5.
Round 1 (18) - Jordan Love - QB Utah State - I had discussions about possibly moving up into the higher teens prior to the draft, but when I saw that Herbert or Love didn't go in the top 10, I rolled the dice that there would be one of them available. For me, it was literally a coin flip between the two of them, and when Herbert went one pick ahead of me, I was content to take Love. Love is another 21 year old player that flashed real playmaking skills as a sophomore, but regressed in his junior year when there was a coaching staff change and many of his targets from 2018 left school. Love has a good arm, good mobility, and can make plays on the fly. He needs some maturity improvements (got popped for marijuana possession the day after he declared for the draft), but should have a good mentor in Ryan Fitzpatrick. From a developmental standpoint, having a mentor like Fitzpatrick, wideouts like DeVante Parker and Preston Williams and a pass catching tight end like Mike Gesicki should give him a nice young corps to grow with.
Round 1 (25) - Xavier McKinney - FS Alabama - This was a trade that DFWJC came to me with that allowed me to move up and get the top safety on the board, and still keep my final first round pick in exchange for my first second round pick and my third (with me getting a late third back in return). Taking McKinney was a no brainer for me - he was good value at this slot, and provides a steady leader in the back four. Reshad Jones left a big hole at safety, and McKinney's range and intelligence should work well within Flores' defense. He's another 21 year old player (sense a theme here?) who will be an anchor for the defense for a while. Another hole checked off the list.
Round 1 (26) - Austin Jackson - OT USC - In doing the mock simulations prior to this event, I saw some value in doubling up at tackle to provide bookends for the quarterback that I would take. This trade allowed me to fulfill this desire to set the stage for a young QB to have success. Jackson is another athletic, quick footed player who was slowed at the beginning of last year following donating blood marrow, but his play really picked up at the end of the season. He's another player who just turned 21 years old, and can step in at left tackle while Wirfs holds down the right tackle position. In this first round, the Dolphins have the cornerstones of a developing offense for five or more seasons in place with what was able to be achieved in the first round. I gave consideration to Cesar Ruiz to man the pivot, but Jackson was rated higher on my board, so I went in this direction.
Round 2 (56) - J.K. Dobbins - RB Ohio State - Entering the second round, I figured that there would be a run at the running back position at some point, but I believed that I would be positioned to take a good one at this draft slot, or I could look at the defensive line for reinforcements. The running backs started going at pick #45, and three went off the board before my selection. I was hoping that Marlon Davidson would slide to my pick (would be a perfect 5T in the Dolphin defense), but he went five picks before my selection. I went with the highest rated guy left on my board in Dobbins. Dobbins is a tough, hard nosed runner who gets better with more carries. I think he has the ability to develop even further as a pass catcher, and he has been reliable in terms of protecting the football (5 fumbles in 800 career touches). He's also a sneaky good pass protector. Dobbins is yet another 21 year old building block for the offense, which looks a hell of a lot better now that it did prior to the draft.
Round 3 (105) - Jonathan Greenard - EDGE Florida - This was a brutal stretch waiting for this pick to happen. I saw that Raekwon Davis was sliding, and I made multiple attempts to trade up and get him, but I couldn't make a deal. In looking at the board, the value in this area was shaping up to be the edge rushers. The Dolphins have Charles Harris, Taco Charlton and Andrew Van Ginkel at this position, and this doesn't exactly inspire memories of Bill Stanfill and Vern Den Herder. At the time of the pick, I was between Bradlee Anae and Jonathan Greenard, both of whom had early third round grades on my board. While I liked both players, I think that Greenard has a little more upside than Anae, so I went with him. Greenard was productive at both Louisville and Florida, and produced against top competition. He's a gritty, effort based player who will be a factor on this defense, and will likely force Harris off the roster.
Round 4 (141) - Hunter Bryant - TE Washington - This was purely a case of the value being far too good for the player being available at this slot. Bryant was far and away the best value on the board - this pick was at the end of the fourth, and I had a third round grade on Bryant. Bryant is a good pass catching option at TE (could work out of the slot, or as an H back type) who needs work on his blocking. I considered Alton Robinson or James Proche at this slot, and there really wasn't a good interior defensive lineman available at this juncture of the draft, so I went with the value. Gesicki and Bryant can work in tandem as pass catching options for Love down the road, and threaten defenses up the seam.
I feel like I addressed a number of holes in this draft, but frankly, it would have been hard not to given the inventory of picks and the swiss cheese nature of the roster. With three more picks in the fifth, I think there would have been more opportunities to address the other needs. Kudos to tm1119 for running this event - it takes the patience of a saint to make it through this. Teams that were engaged did well in this event, with the Jets, Vikings, Ravens, Cardinals and Buccaneers, amongst others, having good drafts.
Round 1 (5) - Tristan Wirfs - OT Iowa - I ran a number of mock draft simulations, and it became clear that there wasn't going to be one of the top OT prospects available at #18. The Dolphins are a team returning Julien Davenport and Jesse Davis as their starting tackles, so that's a no go, especially if you plan on adding a young QB. I also wasn't enamored with using a top five pick on a huge injury risk in Tua Tagovailoa. I love the talent, but I can't trust his ability to stay healthy, and with a top five pick, I need certainty. There was also no chance of me reaching for Justin Herbert at #5 to fill a need, nor was I going to do that with Jordan Love this early. I reasoned that there was a better chance of me getting a quarterback at my second pick (who will need development time, regardless of the player) than a top tackle. Tua went at #2, so that temptation was removed immediately. Where I hesitated a bit was when Isaiah Simmons slid to be available at #5. While I love Simmons as a player, with the reinforcements already signed at linebacker, and his abilities lending themselves to him playing closer to the line of scrimmage (and not at safety), I went with the top tackle on my board in Wirfs. Wirfs is well schooled by Kirk Ferentz in how to play the OL, and was the first Iowa player under Ferentz to start at tackle as a freshman. He is technically sound, a fantastic athletic specimen, and just turned 21 years old, so he will be there for a long time. He has the ability to play either tackle, or could slide into guard, so it's only a question of where he will end up playing. He was who I went into this exercise expecting to pick at #5.
Round 1 (18) - Jordan Love - QB Utah State - I had discussions about possibly moving up into the higher teens prior to the draft, but when I saw that Herbert or Love didn't go in the top 10, I rolled the dice that there would be one of them available. For me, it was literally a coin flip between the two of them, and when Herbert went one pick ahead of me, I was content to take Love. Love is another 21 year old player that flashed real playmaking skills as a sophomore, but regressed in his junior year when there was a coaching staff change and many of his targets from 2018 left school. Love has a good arm, good mobility, and can make plays on the fly. He needs some maturity improvements (got popped for marijuana possession the day after he declared for the draft), but should have a good mentor in Ryan Fitzpatrick. From a developmental standpoint, having a mentor like Fitzpatrick, wideouts like DeVante Parker and Preston Williams and a pass catching tight end like Mike Gesicki should give him a nice young corps to grow with.
Round 1 (25) - Xavier McKinney - FS Alabama - This was a trade that DFWJC came to me with that allowed me to move up and get the top safety on the board, and still keep my final first round pick in exchange for my first second round pick and my third (with me getting a late third back in return). Taking McKinney was a no brainer for me - he was good value at this slot, and provides a steady leader in the back four. Reshad Jones left a big hole at safety, and McKinney's range and intelligence should work well within Flores' defense. He's another 21 year old player (sense a theme here?) who will be an anchor for the defense for a while. Another hole checked off the list.
Round 1 (26) - Austin Jackson - OT USC - In doing the mock simulations prior to this event, I saw some value in doubling up at tackle to provide bookends for the quarterback that I would take. This trade allowed me to fulfill this desire to set the stage for a young QB to have success. Jackson is another athletic, quick footed player who was slowed at the beginning of last year following donating blood marrow, but his play really picked up at the end of the season. He's another player who just turned 21 years old, and can step in at left tackle while Wirfs holds down the right tackle position. In this first round, the Dolphins have the cornerstones of a developing offense for five or more seasons in place with what was able to be achieved in the first round. I gave consideration to Cesar Ruiz to man the pivot, but Jackson was rated higher on my board, so I went in this direction.
Round 2 (56) - J.K. Dobbins - RB Ohio State - Entering the second round, I figured that there would be a run at the running back position at some point, but I believed that I would be positioned to take a good one at this draft slot, or I could look at the defensive line for reinforcements. The running backs started going at pick #45, and three went off the board before my selection. I was hoping that Marlon Davidson would slide to my pick (would be a perfect 5T in the Dolphin defense), but he went five picks before my selection. I went with the highest rated guy left on my board in Dobbins. Dobbins is a tough, hard nosed runner who gets better with more carries. I think he has the ability to develop even further as a pass catcher, and he has been reliable in terms of protecting the football (5 fumbles in 800 career touches). He's also a sneaky good pass protector. Dobbins is yet another 21 year old building block for the offense, which looks a hell of a lot better now that it did prior to the draft.
Round 3 (105) - Jonathan Greenard - EDGE Florida - This was a brutal stretch waiting for this pick to happen. I saw that Raekwon Davis was sliding, and I made multiple attempts to trade up and get him, but I couldn't make a deal. In looking at the board, the value in this area was shaping up to be the edge rushers. The Dolphins have Charles Harris, Taco Charlton and Andrew Van Ginkel at this position, and this doesn't exactly inspire memories of Bill Stanfill and Vern Den Herder. At the time of the pick, I was between Bradlee Anae and Jonathan Greenard, both of whom had early third round grades on my board. While I liked both players, I think that Greenard has a little more upside than Anae, so I went with him. Greenard was productive at both Louisville and Florida, and produced against top competition. He's a gritty, effort based player who will be a factor on this defense, and will likely force Harris off the roster.
Round 4 (141) - Hunter Bryant - TE Washington - This was purely a case of the value being far too good for the player being available at this slot. Bryant was far and away the best value on the board - this pick was at the end of the fourth, and I had a third round grade on Bryant. Bryant is a good pass catching option at TE (could work out of the slot, or as an H back type) who needs work on his blocking. I considered Alton Robinson or James Proche at this slot, and there really wasn't a good interior defensive lineman available at this juncture of the draft, so I went with the value. Gesicki and Bryant can work in tandem as pass catching options for Love down the road, and threaten defenses up the seam.
I feel like I addressed a number of holes in this draft, but frankly, it would have been hard not to given the inventory of picks and the swiss cheese nature of the roster. With three more picks in the fifth, I think there would have been more opportunities to address the other needs. Kudos to tm1119 for running this event - it takes the patience of a saint to make it through this. Teams that were engaged did well in this event, with the Jets, Vikings, Ravens, Cardinals and Buccaneers, amongst others, having good drafts.
