What Should The Miami Dolphins Do With The #3 Pick? One Fan’s Opinion:
Just really quick thank you to anyone taking the time to read my first story, as starting a new opinion blog piece is never easy. That being said, for my first story I wanted to look at the very interesting position that the Dolphins are in for the 2021 NFL Draft.
In 2019, amid questions from the entire fanbase, the Miami Dolphins traded star Offensive Tackle Laremy Tunsil, Wide Receiver Kenny Stills, a fourth round pick in 2020 (which would eventually be traded back to Miami and become Offensive Guard Solomon Kindley), as well as a sixth round pick in 2021 to the Houston Texans in exchange for a 2020 first round pick (traded in a swap with Green Bay for the 30th pick which would become Noah Igbinoghene), a 2021 first round pick, a 2021 second round pick, Cornerback Johnson Bademosi, and Offensive Tackle Julien Davenport.
Bademosi spent very minimal time in Miami before being released by the team a couple months following the trade. Julien Davenport remains on the Dolphins roster as a backup Offensive Tackle.
On April 24th, 2020 Houston signed Laremy Tunsil to a monstrous three year, $66 million contract. The contract would give Tunsil the highest base salary of any Left Tackle in the NFL, and is currently the third highest cap hit of any Left Tackle in the league. Kenny Stills would be waived by Houston in November of 2020, and would later on sign with the Buffalo Bills before the 2020 Postseason.
Initially the trade was met with league-wide skepticism, as finding a franchise Left Tackle is among the hardest things to do as an NFL General Manager. The Texans were seen as an up-and-coming team, so the belief was that the first round picks Houston gave up were going to be later in the respective rounds thus less valuable. Surprisingly though, Houston would have a tumultuous 2020 season that would see their Head Coach/GM Bill O’Brien fired and their franchise QB Deshaun Watson vowing to never play another game for the Texans. Miami Dolphins General Manager Chris Grier is now receiving praise after the Tunsil deal, as the trade has netted Miami the third overall pick in the 2021 draft, as well as the 36th pick in 2021 (in addition to the first and second round picks that Miami already owned). Miami now owns four picks within the first 50 of the draft, but none of them nearly as interesting as the third overall.
Here’s where the fun begins.
Miami succeeded in their “tanking” efforts during the 2019 season, which rewarded them the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft. The pick would become the player most had the Dolphins taking as soon as they started losing games in 2019, Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa. Tua had high and low points during the 2020 NFL season, though it’s hard to fault him specifically for his shortcomings. Recovering from a major hip injury suffered in his Junior season at Alabama, COVID-19 shortening the NFL offseason which included cancelling all preseason games in his rookie season, and a sub-par offensive skills group led to an underwhelming rookie season. Despite all that he was up against, he still posted a respectable 6–3 record with 1814 Passing Yards, 11 Touchdowns, and 5 Interceptions. Following the 2020 season, which saw Miami miss the playoffs despite a 10–6 overall record, the Dolphins fired Offensive Coordinator Chan Gailey. A move which delighted most Dolphins fans as his play-calling with Tua under center seemed far too conservative, and didn’t allow his true talents to shine. One thing that is clear though is that Miami desperately needs to upgrade Tua’s supporting cast.
Aside from Devante Parker and Mike Gesicki, Miami’s skill position group has been underwhelming at best, and a downright disaster at worst. WR Preston Williams suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 9 vs. the Arizona Cardinals, and was the only other reliable WR the team had. After Williams got hurt, Miami would begin a carousel at the WR position with players that included Jakeem Grant, Isaiah Ford, Lynn Bowden Jr., Mack Hollins, Malcolm Perry, and even Antonio Callaway. None of the Wide Receivers mentioned would total even 400 receiving yards by season’s end. It’s clear that this group needs more talent.
Here’s where the third overall pick in the upcoming draft comes into play. Miami has a multitude of options for this pick, and we likely won’t know the final decision on what they do with it until they’re on the clock in late April. The clear favorite decision that most around the NFL sphere see the Dolphins making with this pick is staying at the #3 spot and drafting 2020 Heisman trophy winner Devonta Smith from Alabama, which I wouldn’t be too upset with. Smith would bring a skill-set to this WR group that they’re severely lacking: a speedy route-running specialist that can create separation and allow easy targets for the QB. There is also the added benefit that Smith and Tua already have prior chemistry while the pair were playing for the Crimson Tide. My only concern with Smith is his size. He’s not very tall, and there have been rumors that he refusing to allow scouts to get his proper weight total so there’s no way to verify if he can put on and maintain a weight most teams would want him to be at. With this concern in mind, I think that taking Smith as high as third overall is a bit of a reach, as most have him behind LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase and even his own teammate at Alabama Jaylen Waddle. So here’s what I think is the best course of action for Miami.
Trevor Lawrence is all but a lock for the first overall pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars, so a lot of what Miami is thinking of doing is going to rely on what the New York Jets do with the second overall pick. If the Jets take Zach Wilson, QB from BYU, then the options for Miami at #3 diminishes greatly. If the Jets don’t take Wilson however, then Miami could have a bidding war on their hands for the #3 pick to ensure that Wilson doesn’t slide to the Falcons at #4. With this in mind here is what I’m thinking gets done:
The Carolina Panthers seem keen on moving on from QB Teddy Bridgewater, and Carolina holds the #8 pick in the draft. Carolina may look into trading up above Atlanta to ensure that a QB they’re eyeing doesn’t fall to the Falcons. Miami can trade down with Carolina, acquiring the eighth overall pick in addition to a 2021 third round pick, a 2022 second round pick, and a 2022 fourth round pick. Drafting Smith at #8 would be much more reasonable than #3, although it surrenders any chance at taking Ja’Marr Chase as he will only fall as low as #6 overall to Philadelphia. If Smith is the guy however, then obtaining the extra picks will only sweeten the acquisition.
That is my opinion on what Miami should do with the #3 pick. If it seems like they won’t be able to trade down, then taking Devonta Smith at #3 won’t be the end of the world. If Miami can extract even more value out of the #3 pick, while still being able to be in a decent position to draft their guy, then of course they’ll do it. Chris Grier has done a great job assembling this roster, and along with the continued progress from Head Coach Brian Flores the future looks very bright for the Dolphins.
