Miami Dolphins Draft Picks Stepping Up?

The Miami Dolphins are not exactly known for getting great drafts. For that matter they are not exactly known for getting players from their drafts on the field enough to even warrant being graded. Jeff Ireland never really lit up his draft boards and debate continues on who made the actual calls on the draft when Bill Parcells sat his fat rear end in an office at the team headquarters and played fantasy football on his iPad. What we do know is what Joe Philbin has done with the players he has been given. We just don’t know how much input GM’s have given the HC.

With three seasons under his belt Joe Philbin is now fully responsible for getting the players on the field and up to NFL standards. Here is a look at how the Miami Dolphins draft picks have fared thus for.

2012

Ryan Tannehill is no doubt a selection belonging to Joe Philbin and Mike Sherman. Tannehill has been the day one starter (unless you believe the Matt Moore/David Garrard competition). Three years into the NFL fans are still waiting on deep ball accuracy, consistency, and now waiting for him to acclimate fully to his first new offensive system since his first year in college. While Tannehill is the starting quarterback there are serious concerns about whether or not he is the teams future franchise quarterback.

Jonathan Martin is no longer with the team having quit during the 2013 season.

Olivier Vernon was a great surprise in 2013 but has not quite reached the same level in 2014. That being said he is still a force to handle opposite Cameron Wake and looks to be a very good value pick in round three. He could become a steal in another year or two.

Michael Egnew is no longer with the team after being released prior to the start of the 2014 season. Egnew failed to make any impact on the teams roster from the TE position and is currently on the Lions practice squad.

Lamar Miller has taken the reigns of the Dolphins offensive rushing attack after a disappointing 2013. He was replaced by Knowshon Moreno but an injury to Moreno thrust Miller into the starting role again and he has not disappointed. Miller is going to give the Dolphins a great one-two punch when Moreno returns.

Josh Kaddu is no longer with the team and made no impact.

B.J. Cunningham was released prior to the start of the season in 2012.

Kheeston Randall is no longer with the team.

Rishard Mathews has defined many of the odds that he was faced with being a 7th round pick. While he has not made it to the starting lineup outside of injury replacement he has become a very reliable WR off the bench.

Of the nine players selected in 2012 four are still on the team, three of them start.

2013

Dion Jordan has made almost no impact after joining the team. He is currently suspended for failing the leagues drug policy. Jordan has shown some flashes of potential but simply hasn’t been on the field enough to warrant a positive or negative review. For now, it’s looking like a big waste of a blockbuster trade up to the top three in this years draft.

Jamar Taylor suffered through injury in 2012 and is now saddled behind Cortland Finnegan and Brent Grimes. He needs to get more reps before he can be truly judged unfortunately those opportunities are not coming as fast as he would like.

Dallas Thomas should be a starter now but he isn’t. GM Dennis Hickey opted to look at free agency to find a starter at guard where Shelley Smith has taken over the duties. Thomas is now battling another youngster Billy Turner taken in this years draft.

Will Davis is getting the opportunity to play this season and is showing a lot of aggressive traits that you want from your corners but unfortunately some of those risks don’t pay off. Davis has a lot of ceiling to grow but like Taylor needs more reps. They will come with time and it will be his job to do positive things with every opportunity.

Jelani Jenkins is ranked 6th in the NFL in tackles and has been voted one of the surprise players in the NFL by NFL Network. Fans of the Miami Dolphins are also pleasantly surprised by the 4th round pick of Jeff Ireland.

Dion Sims has yet to become the receiver the Dolphins hoped he would. This season he has dropped one perfect touchdown pass and dropped a few others one of which was picked off. He is a good blocking TE thought but the Dolphins need pass catchers.

Mike Gillislee is on IR this year which is likely the only reason he is still on the roster at all. Gillislee was in serious position to lose a roster spot before being placed on IR, an injury that isn’t season long. He is not designated to return.

Caleb Sturgis is erratic and inconsistent but at least he has only missed one attempt this year. He needs to work on touchbacks as too many teams are returning his kicks.

Don Jones was a very solid special teams player last year for the Dolphins, this year he was cut. He is now part of the New England Patriots practice squad.

2014

Jeff Ireland is gone and Dennis Hickey takes over calling the shots.

Ja’Wuan James has been my biggest surprise player of 2014 and he has done an unbelievable job on the right side. James has been impressive in three of his four games and seems completely unfazed by higher touted opponents.

Jarvis Landry has yet to make a major impact on the offense and is already looking like he will be replaced on special teams but Landry is a receiver and there is a learning curve to playing at this level. When things go well for Landry he looks like he could be a steal in round two.

Billy Turner is a project and is competing with Dallas Thomas for playing time. He is likely another year away from making a real push for a starting job.

Walt Aikens is getting playing time in the secondary but will likely see that time reduced with Reshad Jones returning. While in the game Aikens has played well with good vision and speed but like all rookies has a tendency to become flat footed and show he has a lot of growing to do.

Arthur Lynch was supposed to be Dennis Hickey’s solution to the TE position but he is on injured reserve and will not return in 2014.

Jordan Tripp has battled some nagging injury issues but has shown that he may develop into a solid contributor quickly.

Matt Hazel is on the teams practice squad.

Terrence Fede, like Rishard Matthews defied the odds and made the final 53 man roster. More impressive was the tiny college he attended. Fede hasn’t received a lot of playing time but he has shown potential when he does.

In addition to this years draft class the Dolphins have five un-drafted rookies on the roster in 2014. Damien Williams, Gator Hoskins, Orleans Darkwa, Anthony Johnson, and Chris McCain have played well when the opportunities have presented themselves. Deandre Coleman is also on the roster as well but was not added immediately after the draft.