With the 2015 NFL Draft behind us and rookie minicamps starting to get underway, we continue to break down how each team in the league did addressing their needs. Next up is the Miami Dolphins, who made the biggest splash in free agency with the signing of Ndamukong Suh. During the draft, they gave incumbent starter Ryan Tannehill some additional weapons.
Here are their selections with the round and overall selection included. You can also find scouting reports for select players:
First round (14th overall): DeVante Parker, wide receiver, Louisville
Second round (52nd overall): Jordan Phillips, nose tackle, Oklahoma
Fourth round (114th overall): Jamil Douglas, offensive guard, Arizona State
Fifth round (145th overall): Bobby McCain, cornerback, Memphis
Fifth round (149th overall): Jay Ajayi, running back, Boise State
Fifth round (150th overall): Cedric Thompson, free safety, Minnesota
Fifth round (156th overall): Tony Lippett, wide receiver, Michigan State
Miami obtained the 52nd, 145th and 156th selections in a trade with Philadelphia that had them send their second (47th) and sixth (191st) round picks to the Eagles.
Miami obtained the 149th selection in a pre-draft trade that sent wide receiver Mike Wallace and their 2015 seventh round pick to Minnesota.
Miami Dolphins 2015 NFL Draft Review
Best Player Taken: Jordan Phillips
I’m going to go a bit outside the box here and pick Phillips instead of their first-round selection DeVante Parker. In doing so, I’m taking a more optimistic assessment about his prospects as a pro. This was a best player available pick for the Dolphins as Phillips was expected to go earlier. The interior defensive lineman out of Oklahoma has freakish size, insane strength and above-average acceleration and speed given his 6’5″, 329-pound frame.
The biggest concern was the back surgery he underwent which ended his 2013 season. His production was also less than impressive in his last collegiate season. The problem was that the Sooners switched to a 3-4 scheme which didn’t utilize him in the most effective way. Miami runs a 4-3 and if he develops, him and Suh could be one of the scariest defensive tackle tandems in the league.
The continuing theme in the AFC East is how imposing the defensive fronts of practically all four teams appear to be. Expect a lot of old school smash mouth football when these teams face each other in their six divisional match-ups.
Biggest Head-Scratcher: Cedric Thompson
It’s tough to find a run of the mill “what were you thinking” kind of pick in this year’s draft class for the Dolphins. Overall, I thought they did a pretty good job addressing their major positions of need. If there’s one selection I’m going to zero in on, it’s one of their many fifth round picks (they had a whopping four including two in a row). In particular, the selection of Thompson strikes me as the most baffling of the draft for them.
Thompson aced his pro day with a 40.5 inch vertical jump and 21 bench press reps (not bad for someone who’s 6’0″ 208 pounds). His problem on the field lies in his poor game instincts. If those don’t improve, he’ll get eaten alive by high football IQ skill position players on the other side of the ball.
Of the players I think the Dolphins could’ve taken instead of Thompson, two come to mind. Derron Smith of Fresno State had second or third-round talent but ended up falling to the sixth due to concerns over surgery he had to repair a sports hernia. I’m incredibly surprised that Gerod Holliman, out of Louisville, ended up having to wait until the seventh round before he was picked by Pittsburgh. His 14 interceptions in 2014 led all of FBS. Both players were available with the myriad picks Miami had in the fifth round yet they passed and chose Thompson instead.
Most Surprising Pick: Tony Lippett
Between the existing players on the roster, those taken in the draft, plus recently signed undrafted free agents, the Dolphins currently have 18 wide receivers/tight ends on the roster. Though that number will obviously get cut down over the course of minicamp and the preseason, they’re definitely not worse for wear with respect to pass catchers at this point.
Lippett is an immensely versatile prospect who started on both sides of the ball for Michigan State both as a receiver and defensive back. He exhibits great work ethic and appears to be one of those presences you want in the locker room. That’s likely the rationale for this pick but he’ll be competing with a lot of other wideouts for a spot on the team.
Steal of the Draft: Jay Ajayi
The Dolphins’ running back play was mediocre at best in 2014 and Ajayi has great potential to eventually reverse that trend. He was an integral part of Boise State’s run to a New Year’s Six bowl game where they defeated Pac-12 runner-up Arizona. He had 134 yards and three touchdowns in the 38-30 win.
Ajayi is an agile runner with great lateral movement and exceptional burst. His times in the two shuttle events during the Combine was demonstrative of this. He was second and third-best respectively in the 60 (11.1 seconds) and 20-yard (4.1 seconds) shuttle runs.
Most scouts elicited concern over an ACL injury he suffered in 2011 and there might be minor character issues stemming from an arrest that same year. Still, this is a running back with a great deal of upside that fell into Miami’s lap considering he was taken in the fifth round. In a stacked draft at the position, Ajayi was easily expected to be off the board by day two.
Most Likely To Turn Heads in Training Camp: DeVante Parker
Parker could easily fall into the best player category but I’ve already mentioned the things I like about Phillips. Instead, he becomes that player who will likely showcase his instant impact abilities as the team prepares for the season opener in Washington, D.C. The Louisville product showcased his big-play ability in being one of the top wide receivers in college football from a yards per catch standpoint. He has soft hands, good instincts as a wideout, and an exceptional ability to both find space and win contested balls.
The Dolphins definitely have a potential opening day starter in Parker.
The Rest: Jamil Douglas, Bobby McCain
Their other two selections in the 2015 NFL Draft were aimed at giving Tannehill some added pass protection in addition to shoring up the secondary. The Dolphins are getting a shifty, athletic guard in Douglas who started 40 games in his college career for Arizona State. McCain is a bit undersized at 5’9″ but covers a lot of ground as a corner and could also function as a kick returner for the Dolphins.
Bottom Line
Overall, this was a fairly solid effort from head coach Joe Philbin and general manager Dennis Hickey. The Dolphins methodically addressed pretty much every need they had with their seven selections. Parker is a potential pass-catching stud who has an under-the-radar quarterback throwing to him in Tannehill. Phillips and Suh could, in time, develop into a juggernaut of a partnership on the defensive interior.
The team has had two straight close misses from a postseason standpoint. Can the new arrivals get them over the hump and bring playoff football to South Florida for the first time since 2008, potentially getting Philbin off the hot seat? We’ll find out soon enough.
My Grade: 8.5/10
Check out our other draft reviews here.
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