There’s lots of people that agree with you, and it’s a good risk to take. JPJ looks like he will be good. However, I’d take Graham Barton over JPJ if they go OL in the 1st. A guy I’m coveting for our (5th) pick is Luke McCaffrey. There’s a small chance he’s there, IMO. But, if the Dolphins trade back in the first and pick up a 3rd I’d even take him there. He’s very smart and one tough SOB.
I know it would be deal dependant but realistically what's everyone's range for how far up/down they'd be willing to trade with that #21 pick?
I think it’s hard to tell. If they have someone high on their list, and they’re around 5 picks away, they could trade one of their 3rd rounders from next year to try and move up. With QB’s seemingly always being reached for and some depth at OL in this year’s draft, there’s a pretty good chance some top 10-15 guys will be available at around 20 or lower. Edge, DT, OL, and DB, IMO, are all reasonable picks with their number one. As for moving down, they if their number one guy is gone and number two looks to be sliding down a few places, trade back 3-5 slots, pick-up another pick(s), grab your guy and maybe now we’d have another 2nd or 3rd round pick to use this draft. Lots of scenarios. One thing is for sure… if they pick Edge, OL, or DT, those guys must be day one starters. They don’t need to be all pros in year one, but good enough to start is a must.
Yeah I suppose until the night of the draft, then there's too many variables to truly know. The price you'd be willing to pay if Alt was available at 15 would be different than if all the top Tackles were gone by then
I'd be willing to go back as far as early 2nd round. Based off of draft boards you'd still be able to get a solid starting G/DL combo.
Agreed unless someone like Verse falls to #21. I want us to at least trade down once either with our #1 or #2, we need more young cheap talent.
I have to assume the Dolphins first pick is going to be a “trenches” pick, OL or DT. It’s the only logical choice I can see them make, but the Dolphins have oh so surprised in the past. Last year’s draft, I thought for sure they were going to draft Washington, TE out of Georgia and Grier picked Cam Smith instead. Like you said Dan, whoever they pick with the 21st overall HAS to be a day 1 starter. If JPJ is there, GOD please pull the trigger. We’ve not had a dominant center since Pouncy. If it’s a DT, make it someone who will be with/to Seiler what Wilkins was. Right now though, we have NINE DTs on the roster. That’s insane. This is why I’m high on the OL. Hill isn’t going to be in Miami in 3 years I’m sure. If you want to draft a WR3 to become WR2 after Waddle becomes WR1, fine but this draft appears to be pretty deep at that position. No need to spend a 1st round pick there, especially with Harrison Jr a foregone conclusion to be gone (most likely to the Chargers). I’ll be in the ManCave Thursday night, Dolphins gear on, beer in hand eagerly awaiting our pick! Fins Up Baby!
I think the following are unobtainable: The big 4 QBs, the big 3 WRs, LT Alt, DE Turner. I'd rank the remainder in the order of how I would draft them: The 3 LT F troop (Fashanu, Fuatanu and Fuaga). After those it's Bowers at TE, then Edge Latu and Verse. I'd slot Latham after that, and that's kind of the end of the obvious picks and where I would consider trading down. I would be comfortable trading UP for any of those guys, though I wouldn't pay a ransom. Guys I would be comfortable drafting at 21 would be CBs Mitchell and Arnold, Edge Chop Robinson, CB/S Cooper DeJean and OL Guyton, Barton or JPJ. I would also consider Murphy or Newton at DT or DT/DE Darius Robinson. Again that's just me, I'm no scout or crunching loads of tape lol, just my view as a fan who is probably more into the draft than many, but not nearly as much as some. I'm not a big fan of WR at 21, not a big fan of Thomas and 21 imo is just a bit early for the Xavier's (Worthy and Legette). They or the secondary OL group (Barton, JPJ, Guyton) are all good targets if we trade down a few spots though. As far as trading back, it would depend on the compensation. If we miss out on my priority group, I wouldn't be mad if we traded all the way into the middle of round 2 (late 40s to 50s) as long as we got paid appropriately. There is plenty of talent at positions we could use.
I do not think that is a great assumption. They have worked hard to remove those as "need" positions and Grier and McDonald have both been tepid about spending big resources on interior OL. They could buck the trend to be sure, but I would be a little surprised. Now, if they do feel Barton could play at LT that might edge him into the winner's circle for us. Defensively, Edge guys are more of a need than DT at this point and we have shown a lot of interest in Latu and Verse (and Chop). Gotta keep in mind that Weaver's MO is rotations on the interior DL and getting unheralded guys to become high level players. Based on that, I think we have plenty of DTs and won't take one early unless the draft board just falls disastrously for us and someone like Murphy is the only real choice. Been awhile since we have had this level of intrigue though, they could absolutely go any of a dozen ways.
Yeah it's an interesting draft. Slotting in Bowers will be tough - on tape and talent he should be a top 5 pick ... but he's had a weird offseason coming off an injury stunted year and the TE position just isn't premium in terms of contract savings compared to a WR, LT, etc. And I mean, most of the top TE's aren't first rounders. Sam LaPorta, Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, George Kittle and obviously Kelce. Even Gronk was a second rounder iirc. But in the teens or twenties? Bowers starts to make a ton of sense. Will New England go chalk and draft Maye or throw a wild card and take McCarthy or trade out? Will Arizona trade out? San Diego? Did the Vikings get that extra first to trade up or are they gonna do something weird? Will the Raiders or Broncos feel pressure to secure a QB and how will they do it? What to make of all the RT guys who teams are squinting trying to project them as LTs? Man I love draft time!
I’ve seen a number of mocks that have Bowers going to the Jets at 10. I would hate to see him go there and give Rodgers another weapon, but I think they need OL help more than they need Bowers. PS. Mekhi Becton is now jobless, speaking of Jets OL PPS. The draft is so much fun - except for the year we had the #1 overall and had to take Jake Long because there were no qbs that year and the top pick had the least value possibly ever.
Yeah from a pure Xs and Os standpoint, Bowers would be a good fit and I don't think they could be really criticized for it. But when you compare the cost savings of a first round LT/WR to a first round TE it's a massive difference. As good as Bowers could be, it financially probably makes more sense to take someone like Fuatanu in round 1 and maybe TE Sanders in round 2 as opposed to Bowers and whatever LT prospect is left in round 2. It's why a lot of people were caught off guard with the Lions taking Gibbs in early round 1 last year. Yeah he was a good prospect but a RB probably won't be given a second contract and you lose the savings on elite tier positions. As good as Gibbs is for them, you have to wonder if someone like Christian Gonzalez at CB would have been a better investment. Then again, if they win the Super Bowl, who cares? T
Rumor mill really starting to heat up. Chatter that the Patriots are willing to move out of 3 but won't take anything other than a huge deal above traditional chart value to do it, most likely for the Vikings. After trading down, they would attempt to land a blue chip prospect and then later on take Penix (who is generating A LOT of buzz as a mid first rounder now). Also reports that the Raiders are going to make a big and bold push to grab Jayden Daniels, while Drake Maye to the Foot Commanders has gained steam. Arizona is open for business and not committed to MHJ but also not going to make a deal until the first three picks are settled and they are on the clock. Lastly, some noise that the Jaguars are not going to be complacent about WR and if they don't trade for an available high end veteran, they will try and trade into the top 10 for one of the big 3 draft prospects. Loving all this juicy stuff, I hope there is some wild things that go down lol. And I hope New England does the dumbest possible thing and eff it all up.
I wish people would stop mocking Newton to us. It's so disappointing to see a mock and come out disappointed in reading their selection and reasoning.
