Hyde: Should ’Fins draft Smith, Harris?

Is it as obvious as Dolphins taking Alabama’s Smith, Harris? Well ...

Is the decision this easy? Do the Miami Dolphins just not overthink it after watching Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith dominate Ohio State in the very same Hard Rock Stadium in which he could star for years?

Does Roger Goodell stroll to the podium in April and say, “With the third pick in the 2021 NFL draft, the Miami Dolphins select Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith?”

Then maybe: “With the 18th pick, the Dolphins take Alabama running back Najee Harris.”

That would fill the Dolphins’ two great needs with one exceptional and one very good player. Both of them have a working background with Dolphins quarterback and Alabama alum Tua Tagovailoa too.

When Smith left for the locker room at Hard Rock Stadium in the second half with an injured

finger, you half-hoped the Dolphins trainer told the Alabama folks he’d take it from there, thank you very much.

And yet.

It’s not that easy or that obvious. First, there’s the idea of Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is everything at 25 you dream of Tagovailoa becoming. Maybe it’s fantasy that Houston would trade a superstar like Watson, but that’s a fantasy you play out.

Even then — even if Smith is the idea — there’s some serious draft games to be played.

Consider Atlanta and its fourth pick. It has 36-yearold, $41-million man Matt Ryan. In his recent mock draft, ESPN’s Todd McShay’s has Jacksonville taking Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick, the New York Jets taking tackle Penei Sewell, the Dolphins taking Smith and Atlanta taking Brigham Young quarterback Zach Wilson.

Why wouldn’t the Dolphins leverage their pick against Atlanta? Several teams need a quarterback like Wilson or perhaps Ohio State’s Justin Fields (the dominant Fields against Clemson, not the troubled Fields against Alabama in Monday’s championship game).

In 2017, Chicago traded up one spot to get San Francisco’s second pick to draft quarterback Mitch Trubisky (yeah, I know, what was Chicago thinking?) San Francisco moved back a spot and got Chicago’s thirdround pick, one of its fourthround picks and a 2018 third-round pick.

So Dolphins general manager Chris Grier has to play his hand of poker and possibly trade back a spot for a few more chips and still get Smith. Or maybe he trades back four spots to Detroit at No. 7 for even more draft picks and takes LSU receiver Ja’Marr Chase?

There’s a philosophical question of team-building here for Grier to decide. Look at the NFL landscape with eight teams remaining.

Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans, the seventh pick in 2014, is the only remaining receiver drafted in the top 20. Baltimore’s Marquise Brown (25th pick in 2018) is the only other receiver taken in the first round.

Do the best teams take linemen (and quarterbacks) high? Well, you can push this how you want. Of the eight NFL teams remaining, here’s the breakdown of how many were taken in the first 32 picks: seven offensive linemen, seven defensive linemen, seven quarterbacks and eight defensive backs,

You balance that against Smith. He’s a rare talent with his polished routes, smart reading of defenses and ability to swing a game. In Monday’s first half, he had 12 catches, 215 yards and three touchdowns. Again, in a half.

Over the past week, he became the first player to win the Heisman Trophy and MVP of the championship game. Think the Dolphins could use a playmaking talent like that?

(Quick aside: Here’s the requisite Nick Saban-made-the-right-choice paragraph in leaving the Dolphins for Alabama. His choice of a goodbye meal to Dolphins owner H. Wayne Huizenga and his wife, Marti — seriously, beans and weiners? — was a little lacking. But all he’s done is win six titles at Alabama.)

Everyone knows the Dolphins need running backs too. Maybe that’s Harris.

Ohio State limited him to 79 yards on 22 carries. He’s a dual running and catching threat, but McShay’s recent mock draft has Clemson’s Travis Etienne drafted 16th and Harris going 28th.

Running back has been a diminshed position too. The only running back drafted in the first round by his current team (Jacksonville pick Leonard Fournette, for example, plays for Tampa Bay) is Kansas City’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire. He was the 32nd pick last year. He got hurt late in the year and is out.

So the results say a good offensive line is valued more than a good running back. Are the Dolphins there with their line? Will their investments organically develop into a solid line next year? Something else to consider.

Bottom line: No, it’s not as easy as reading Smith’s names off the draft card. There’s still some work to be done. But he’s the kind of rare playmaking talent this franchise hasn’t had in decades.

KEVIN C. COX | GETTY Alabama’s DeVonta Smith scores on a 42-yard touchdown against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff national championship game at Hard Rock Stadium on Monday night.