Defensive tackles strength of draft

Dolphins beat writer Omar Kelly ends his 10-part series looking at the top prospects in the upcoming NFL draft (April 25-27) with the defensive tackles.

This is a loaded position in the draft, and as many as seven defensive tackles could be taken in the first round.

Alabama’s Quinnen Williams: Williams had a season worth of highlightreel-level production that allowed him to skyrocket to the top of the draft board. His one dominant season at Alabama, where he produced 66 tackles and nine sacks, has NFL teams concluding he’ll be just as productive as his former Crimson Tide teammate Jonathan Allen, who dominated as a rookie last year.

Houston’s Ed Oliver: Oliver is a quick and explosive trench player who was a wrecking ball at Houston when healthy, contributing 193 tackles (54 for loss), 13.5 sacks and six forced fumbles in the 33 games he played. Some teams will hold his small frame (6 foot 2, 280 pounds) against him, but others favorably compare him to Pro Bowler Geno Atkins.

Clemson’s Christian Wilkins: Wilkins, a fouryear starter at Clemson, is an athletic, productive 3-technique defensive tackle, who has outstanding character and plays with a high level of intensity. He wasn’t dominant, but he’s credited as the player who held Clemson’s defense together.

Clemson’s Dexter Lawrence: Lawrence, who produced 131 tackles and 10 sacks in his three seasons with the Tigers, is a massive nose tackle who has the potential to eat up double teams, opening up the field for his linebackers to roam free. But he missed Clemson’s final two games of 2018 after testing positive for ostarine, a performance-enhancing drug.

Mississippi State’s Jeffery Simmons: If Simmons, a three-year starter at Mississippi State, hadn’t torn his ACL while preparing for the draft, he would have likely been an early first-round selection because of his combination of size, athleticism and power.

Best of the rest

Notre Dame’s Jerry Tillery, Miami’s Gerald Willis III, Ohio State’s Dre’Mont Jones, Alabama’s Isaiah Buggs, Arizona State’s Renell Wren are all projected to be talents worthy of a second-day selection. Texas A&M’s Daylon Mack and Kingsley Keke, Auburn’s Dontavius Russell, LSU’s Ed Alexander, FSU’s Demarcus Christmas and Western Illinois’ Khalen Saunders are all players expected to be late-round picks.

Class grade: A

This position is top heavy, possessing a little over half a dozen 300-pounders who have the size, strength, athletic ability and stamina to become impactful NFL players. Most of them should be taken in the first three rounds. Teams who don’t select a defensive tackle in early rounds might be left making the most of the fringe NFL players that are left.

Teams in need

The Giants, Cowboys, Buccaneers, Saints, Falcons, Vikings, Seahawks, Cardinals, 49ers, Rams, Patriots, Dolphins, Bills, Titans, Colts, Ravens, Bengals, Browns, Raiders, Chiefs, Broncos and Chargers all need to fortify their defensive front by selecting a run-stuffing specialist.

Dolphins’ focus

Davon Godchaux, Akeem Spence and Vincent Taylor were all productive in spurts last season, but as a unit the Dolphins struggled to stop the run last year, allowing 145.3 rushing yards per game, which was the second most rushing yards allowed last season. Miami would benefit from adding a beefy nose tackle because all three of Miami’s returning veterans are on the smaller end of the scale for their position.