Phins’ 7th round pick: Some raw talent to work with

With the 7^th and final selection in the 2014 NFL Draft the Miami Dolphins decided to make history and select Defensive End Terrence Fede who was the first ever player selected from the small-school Marist. Most 7^th rounders do not even make it onto the 53 man roster, so it is not a bad move to take a flier with some raw talent, which in part makes it quite an intriguing prospect.  Once again football gambling fans will argue that the Phins had other positions that they needed to address more than DE, but as the New York Giants have proven over the years, you can never have enough pass-rushers.

Fede is a huge young man at 6’4” and 276 pounds and had an impressive pro day time of 4.76 in the 40 and a 1.62 10-yard split. (There are defensive backs that are not that fast in the 10-yard split). He is strong and has long arms, that he used to dominant the lesser competition when playing for Marist. He racked up 30.5 sacks over his career, and has lots of upside if coached right. He is extremely raw in terms of his robotic use of his hands, and to be honest his technical skills need to be thoroughly overhauled, because he is not going to be able to out muscle his way through NFL lineman.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with this pick, and if he can make the team or the practice squad then this will shine well on defensive end coach Kacy Rodgers, because Fede is going to need a heavy dose of coaching if he wants to make it in this league. It will be interesting to see if any of these late round draft picks for the Phins can actually make the team. If they do it will be a combination of desire and good fundamental coaching.