A top speedster, a big pass rusher and lots of questions in first round of NFL draft
A top speedster, a big pass rusher — and lots of questions in first round
They needed speed on offense? They got perhaps the fastest player in the draft.
They needed help for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa? They got his former Alabama receiver, Jaylen Waddle.
They needed the best available talent to help the Dolphins become a consistent playoff team?
Lean back in the chair and put your feet up on the table, folks. We’re going to be here a while appraising what the Dolphins did — and not just with their No. 6 pick.
At No. 18, they took edge rusher Jaelan Phillips of the University of Miami. A big talent. A great personality. A perfect fit for the Dolphins defense. And
someone who had three concussions and once quit playing football in college.
That’s a concern in today’s NFL. It’s not just for his health. It’s the Dolphins’ first-round investment if at some point Phillips concludes football is too hazardous and stops playing. Again, look around the NFL.
So do you feel lucky? And should you have to feel that way with a first-round pick?
Wasn’t the draft supposed to answer questions — not pose more? Well, Waddle is truly electric. That’s not the question with him. It’s more a philosophical issue about whether the Dolphins really got the kind of value they expected.
Because would you rather draft:
A. Florida’s not-just-a-tightend Kyle Pitts, who the Dolphins could have taken before trading the No. 3 pick.
B. Waddle after trading to No. 6 and effectively netting a fifthround pick this year and a firstround pick in 2023.
C. Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith and have two first-round picks. That’s what the Dolphins could have done if they’d stayed at No. 12 before trading back to No. 6.
Let me offer up a parallel draft to what the Dolphins did: Smith, Michigan edge rusher Kwity Paye (who was drafted No. 21) and having that extra 2022 firstround pick.
This isn’t playing the result. These are the decisions that make or break franchises. They’re what will fuel or sink this Dolphins rebuild. They’re the chess game that front offices play.
It’s easier to downshift to checkers and talk how good Waddle is. Because he is. He brings something this offense lacks. You can see it in 17 touchdowns he scored at Alabama. They averaged 44.5 yards. Averaged. Are you kidding?
That’s speed. That’s impact. That’s running after the catch. That’s the kind of player the Dolphins offense desperately need — the kind Tua needs to have the answer to the riddle of who he is, too.
But rating that pick isn’t as easy as saying Waddle is great, that a collegiate slot receiver can be a No. 1 receiver, that a 5-10, 182-pounder can live up to the comparisons made to Kansas City speedster Tyreek Hill.
If you want to talk the accumulated draft value of getting Waddle and a future first-round pick, you have to look at something else. You have to consider what might have been with some different machinations.
This isn’t so easy to follow. But it’s part of this draft’s story, too. The Dolphins initially traded from No. 3 to No. 12 with San Francisco for two first-round picks and a third-round pick.
They then traded with Philadelphia from No. 12 up to No. 6 for one of those first-round picks plus a fourth-rounder. That’s how they were in position to get Waddle.
Had they stayed there, they could have done what Philadelphia did: Trade the No. 12 pick and a third-round pick to Dallas and take Smith at No. 10 — and pocketed San Francisco’s two first-round picks.
Again, this isn’t a second guess. It’s the first order of business about this draft. It’s how Dolphins general manager Chris Grier’s legacy will be cast, up or down.
Waddle is great.
Will Smith and an extra firstrounder prove better?
Phillips is a special talent and, well, a personal favorite from watching at UM.
Will Paye bring the same game with less medical risk?
Lean back. Put your feet on the desk. We’re going to be watching what happens for a while.