Draft strategy depends on what kind of team we want to be.

GM

I hear ya....I only mentioned Watkins because I think he's the best overall player in this entire draft and I would be ecstatic if we traded up to get him. So, it's either trade up for Watkins or wait until the 2nd round for Jordan Matthews (all time SEC career record holder), who is the 2nd best WR in the draft, IMO.

 

Picks I could be happy with..

Mosley, Lewan, Martin, Ebron, Lee, Dix, Pryor, Moses, Barr, Robinson.

 

Normally, I wouldn't either, but IMO, Pryor isn't just "a safety". He's gonna be special.

 

I think in this draft the talent level between mid 1st & 2nd round skill players is wider than the talent level between mid 1st & 2nd round olineman. My stance is not a far reaching one, its just based on this specific draft. This is a very oline stacked draft.

 

If he's gone, then I don't pick a TE or WR. I either pick OL, CB or trade down.

 

I think even now our biggest issue is the offensive line, certainly more so than our WR corps, we actually have a good core group and Gibson should be coming back. I'd love to add a guy that can return though, Thigpen has to be off this team next season. We are still short a RT and a G, we have two huge holes to fill, its not like we just need upgrades, right now they are gaping holes. If we are taking a WR or TE we are possibly upgrading a position which is obviously great for the team but WR and TE aren't huge holes that we have no legitimate NFL talent for, RT and G are that bad right now. I guess we can hope a 2nd or 3rd round pick can contribute, but I'd rather take a 1st round tackle/guard and plug them right in and hope a 2nd or 3rd round WR can contribute than to have huge holes on our line filled by castoffs and late round picks.

 

Exactly, plus playmakers on offense is a need.

The Dolphins have one player on offense that can score due to his ability and he needs a perfectly thrown pass to be able to do his magic most of the time.

 

I think you're underrating the acquisitions of Shelley Smith and Jason Fox, not to mention Dallas Thomas potentially developing. I would not be surprised if Thomas is our starting LG/RG when the season starts and Fox is at least pushing a rookie/veteran if he stays healthy. John Benton can actually develop players unlike Turner which is why I'm not opposed to drafting an OL 2nd-4th. Castoffs and late round picks are starting for the best O-Lines in the NFL too.

 

corner is a bigger need than receiver.

 

I don't think we need to spend high picks to upgrade our weapons, we can get a quality return man and a developmental WR later in the draft pretty easily. Getting a starting caliber olineman that we need? Not really.

 

Meh I'm not counting on Shlley Smith and Jason or Dallas Thomas, I mean Thomas couldn't get a shot last year when we had the worst oline in our history. Counting on them and a few late round picks is kinda dumb and thats the exact attitude that got us in the mess we were in last year too. We need to draft at least one start on our oline, if thats a late round guy great, but the chances are that any late round draft picks we take are developmental guys that won't play all that much, counting on them is not too smart.

 

I agree with this but I disagree with Dallas Thomas, his tape is terrible. There is no reason to believe he will ever contribute.

 

If Brandon Gibson and Hartline are healthy going into the season, I think the Dolphins will be fine at the WR position. So assuming they will be ready to go 100% once the regular season begins, I think the Dolphins need to use their first two picks in the draft to upgrade the offensive line. That was the Dolphins main problem all last season on offense and I don't care how good some of these WR's may be in this draft. Unless Tannehill gets better pass blocking this year, they are bound to repeat the large number of sacks they had last year.

Tannehill needs the extra time in the pocket because he just doesn't have any real pocket awareness. I think this will continue to be a problem for Tannehill as long as he is in the NFL. As much as some people seem to think you can teach pocket awareness, I think QB's either have it or don't have it. If he has a solid line in front of him and has a little extra time, I think he can be an effective QB in the NFL.

Offensive line is still the biggest need on offense and I don't see Hickey going in any other direction if he decides to take an offensive player in the first round. Of course I think the LB's are the major weakness on the defensive side of the ball and if he decides to take a defensive player in the first round, I certainly hope it is the best LB still on the board when their selection comes around.

I would love to see the Dolphins trade up and draft either Matthews for the OL or Mack for the LB position. Unfortunately drafting at 19 isn't going to give them the resources necessary to trade up high enough to get either of these players.

 

- Shelly Smith is a solid guard who many believe is ascending.
- Dallas Thomas was moved around too much in TC (because of our issues, not because he sucked) to ever get a solid grasp on a spot.
- Fox's only problem is injuries.

We are not as bad off as you think.

 

That is also one of my major issues.

One of my issues with Ireland is the fact that he drafted for need, especially when there were runs on a position.

 

Would I Prefer Moses over another WR? Yes I would because I just see the OL as the biggest need for this offense at this time. Some individuals think that the players are already on the roster who can step up and make the plays this year. My feeling is that the Dolphins have only two offensive linemen, Albert and Pouncey which I have any confidence in going into this coming season.

If he is still on the board when the Dolphins select in the first round, I would prefer Martin over Moses, but if Lewan, Martin, and Matthews are already off the board, I would have no problem with the Dolphins taking Moses with their pick. Of course if Moses is their pick, I suspect it will be because they traded down in the first round and they get him toward the end of the round 1.

 

I'd love to have another good WR so if we draft one I'm not going to be upset at all but I still think oline is a much higher need and its not even close in my mind. Most WRs don't contribute much in their first year anyways and we are a team looking at making a playoff run. I think a Olinemen that we take at #19 will contribute a lot more than a WR. I think people are getting cute and overthinking things because the draft is further off. I still believe that unless the draft falls apart for us and there are like 5 linemen taken before us that we will take one in the first round. I think this draft has a lot of WR talent too so getting one in the 2nd or 3rd is not a bad thing either. I think a guy like Bruce Elliington is going to be a great player and he'll be available later on.

 

the way you positively spin everything is impressive.

lol is this like your slogan? you might as well make it your sig...it's pretty similar to what you told me about the OL last offseason when I shared my concerns.

"we have 3 pro bowlers dude!"

 

I just can't buy into drafting an OL in the first round. Especially at #19.

Every time I look at this draft and what angle we should take, it always leads back to taking WR in the first 2 rounds and a RB in round 3 or 4. We need one fast twitch WR, one big body WR, and a complete reboot at RB. It absolutely won't happen but in my opinion the perfect first 3 picks would be Cooks/Robinson/Mason.

If Cooks is gone, take Beckham or Lee. If Robinson is gone, take Matthews. If Mason is gone, punt on RB in round 3 and draft for need. Should be a solid OL available. Then take Seastrunk in round 4.

Use the rest of the draft for a couple of OL and whatever value you can snag. I don't think that we need to build our line on early picks. There will be value in the middle rounds.

This is our best chance to be a great team again. I can't stand seeing Zach Martin in every single mock draft. Zach Martin won't make our team any better than it's been the past 10 years. Playmakers will. Playmakers will change the entire dynamic of this organization. Anyone that thinks that we are set at WR is out of their minds. Wallace is not a #1 and our current #2 and #3 WRs are coming off of knee injuries.

If you enjoy the same mediocrity that we have seen from this team over the past 15 years then you'll be really happy when we use early picks on trench players AGAIN.

 

Thats a fair point. Though I'd say shoring up the pass pro is as important as anything right now. If there's a guy who can help do that and strengthen the run game I think it's a no brainer.

 

And the flip side if that is the view of our specific team.

Whoever we take at G or T stands a good chance of starting in week 1. Otoh any receiver we take is probably the 3rd or 4th guy, maybe 5th if Matthews continues to improve.

 

No.

Moses by far, but again not at 19.

 

I would not have a lot of problem w/ it depending on who is there. Like you if a play maker is there I feel like I would take them. Most of they guys I want that early will be gone such as Donald, Evans and the top 3 tackles. Maybe a slight reach for Cooks at 19 but I would be fine w/ that, especially if I get to wave goodbye to Thiggy. Ugh.

 

If he's a quality starting RT for the next several years then yes. I get your point about waiting till later but I wouldn't want to take the risk on a WR unless it was potentially a perennial Pro Bowl type player.