Phins will get to see some of the 2021 Draftees up close
The Miami Dolphins had an ugly end to the 2020 Season, but they’ve started the 2021 Season about as good as you could expect. With a critical season coming and four draft picks in the Top 50 selections, getting named as one of the two coaching staffs in this year’s Senior Bowl is a huge advantage. This is especially helpful because Dolphins Head Coach Brian Flores was a scout early in his career. Any extra edge will go a long way because they need to beat the good teams next year, so this was surprising and good news.
Senior Bowl doesn’t have all the top talent, though
For the most part, this extra knowledge and familiarity with the seniors won’t help Miami make a better choice with the 3rd Overall pick because the elite college players usually don’t wait until they are seniors to turn pro. Although, WR DeVonta Smith is a senior and bucks this trend and he does fit a need for Miami. While I wouldn’t pick Smith with the 3rd Overall pick because Penns LB Micah Parsons is more my taste, Phins might think otherwise. I know plenty of Phins fans would disagree with me on this, but I see Middle Linebacker as a huge need… even bigger than a receiver.
Still, you can bet with the pay per head bookie sites that this extra knowledge will go a long way throughout the rest of the draft. It will certainly help Miami finding another offensive linemen if they are looking for one. Three quality seniors will be on hand in interior linemen Creed Humphrey, Oklahoma, and Trey Smith, Tennessee, and Cole Van Lanen a left tackle for Wisconsin.
Some quality seniors that could help Miami
- ED Kwity Paye, Michigan 6’4”, 275 lbs
- OT Alex Leatherwood, Alabama, 6’6” 312 lbs
- RB Travis Etienne, Notre Dame, 5’10” 205 lbs
- ED Rashad Weaver, Pitt, 6’5” 270 lbs
- WR Tylan Wallace OSU, 6’0” 190 lbs
I have my eyes on OG Trey Lance as a second-day pick. Lance is a massive man at 6’6” 330 lbs who can move players in the run game. Erick Flowers was pretty good, but I don’t see him as a long term answer. Now, I don’t know how the Phins see Hunt long term. They could draft a Tackle and move him inside because it would help some of his weaknesses. Of course, they could be happy with what they have and not go with an O-linemen until late.
I’m hoping the Phins trade back and acquire more picks. You can’t have too many top picks and the salary cap will either be stagnant or decrease. This will add even more value to rookie. The whole QB talk at three isn’t my taste either. Some love T Peneo Sewell at #3 and others prefer WR WR Ja’Marr Chase over Smith. It’s all a long way off, plenty of time for that down the road.
The good news is that the Dolphins Front Office will get a slight edge in this draft… and I like that. Go Phins!!!