Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Deep draft for linemen a boon
Dolphins can’t afford to pass on one in early rounds
Outside of the need for a franchise quarterback and a few solid offensive linemen, the Miami Dolphins’ most glaring positional need may be on the defensive line, where the team lacks pass rushers.
Since 2014, when the Dolphins’ 39 sacks ranked 17th in the NFL, they have been in the bottom third of the league in that category. They had 31 sacks in 2015 (seventh-worst total), 33 in 2016 (11th-worst), 30 in 2017 (seventh-worst) and 31 last season, which ranked fourth-worst among NFL teams.
Longtime defensive end Cameron Wake, who had 98 career sacks in 10 seasons with Miami, is gone after signing a deal with the Tennessee Titans this offseason, and the Dolphins also traded defensive end Robert Quinn, who had 6 1⁄2 sacks last season, to the Dallas Cowboys last month.
What remains is a group of third-year players such as former first-round pick defensive end Charles Harris, defensive tackles Vincent Taylor and Davon Godchaux, and seven-year veteran defensive tackle Akeem Spence leading a group of unproven defensive linemen.
A conundrum Miami could face with the No. 13 overall pick in the first round of the NFL draft next week:
Can the Dolphins afford to pass up on a talented defensive lineman in what could be one of the most dynamic fields of talent in recent draft history?
Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa, a former St. Thomas Aquinas High would likely be in contention for the No. 1 overall pick if the Arizona Cardinals did not have their eyes reportedly set on drafting Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray.
Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams is also considered the best overall player in the draft, while Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver and Kentucky edge rusher Josh Allen are considered players with top-five potential.
The Dolphins could see themselves in a peculiar position if Alabama center/ guard Jonah Williams or Florida right tackle Jawaan Taylor are available at the No. 13 pick because either could help shore up the offensive line with the idea that it needs to defend all these talented pass rushers for years to come.
But that would mean passing on the first-round potential of players such as Mississippi State edge rusher Montez Sweat and defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, Clemson’s trio of tackle Christin Wilkins, end Clelin Ferrel and tackle Dexter Lawrence, Florida State and former American Heritage High standout edge rusher Brian Burns and Michigan defensive end Rashan Gary.
The Dolphins could potentially draft two or three defensive linemen and two offensive linemen during the draft with their seven total picks, but needs at other positions would factor into Miami’s decisionmaking.
Miami hopes Harris, who received hype for his passrushing ability before the 2017 draft after playing in a 3-4 defensive scheme at Missouri, can use that skillset to his advantage in new coach Brian Flores’ hybrid defense. To date, Harris has three career sacks in two seasons.
The Dolphins signed forstandout, mer second-round pick Tank Carradine, who has 5
1⁄2 sacks, this offseason, but the five-year veteran has played in only 45 career games with eight starts during his career due to injuries.
Other defensive ends on the roster are Jonathan Woodard and Jeremiah Valoaga, who each has a career sack. They were predominately fixtures on the Dolphins practice squad last season.
At defensive tackle, Spence (42 tackles, three tackles for a loss, two sacks) and Godchaux (48 tackles, six for a loss, one sack) started all 16 games last season, while Taylor was having a solid sophomore season with two sacks in eight games before finishing the year on injured reserve.
Former University of Miami defensive tackle Kendrick Norton and former UCF tackle Jamiymus Pittman remain from last year’s practice squad, while the Dolphins signed CFL outside linebacker Sam Eguavoen; former Alliance of American Football pass rushers Jayrone Elliott, Tyrone Holmes and Joey Mbu; and were allocated Brazilian defensive tackle Durval Queiroz Neto from the NFL’s International Player Pathway program.
The Dolphins’ group of defensive linemen has some potential, but it could use some top-end talent from the NFL draft to propel the unit during Miami’s rebuild.