The NFL Draft is now officially behind us. As is tradition, the writers of Phinphanatic.com are compiling their grades for the Miami Dolphins “Class of 2016”
***The views expressed in this column are the opinions of this writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of this site or any of its parent companies.***
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When calculating the grade for each player, and the Dolphins draft as a whole, I am basing my grade on (1) the particular player selected (2) does it fill a team need, and (3) assets surrendered to acquire the player.
Laremy Tunsil, OL, Ole Miss
Tunsil projects to be the starting LG in 2016 and the likely candidate to be Miami’s future LT in 2017. While there is no denying the value of getting the draft’s top talent at #13, the success of this pick obviously hinges on Tunsil’s ability to stay clean and on the field. Draft Grade: Incomplete
Xavien Howard, CB, Baylor
While Miami clearly needed a starting CB opposite Byron Maxwell, the Dolphins gave up a 4th round pick to trade up for Howard. While Howard ‘looks the part’ of an NFL cornerback, his college tape is too inconsistent to trust him as a reliable starter in year one. Draft Grade: C+
Kenyan Drake, RB/KR, Alabama
Drake will help immediately as both a kick returner and ‘gunner’ on special teams but doesn’t really fill Miami’s need at RB. He is an excellent pass catcher but tends to run more east/west than between the tackles.
I like the player but Drake was a reach in the 3rd round. Draft Grade: C-
Leonte Carroo, WR, Rutgers
Miami gave up a 2017 3rd & 4th round pick, as well as a 6th this year, to select Carroo. He’s a ‘hard-nosed’ WR with grit & attitude but the team had more pressing needs than a 4th WR.
While this pick may look good in 2017, it did very little to improve the team this year. Draft Grade: C
Jakeem Grant, WR/KR, Texas Tech
Grant has the ability to be Miami’s “Devin Hester”. Unfortunately, the NFL is fazing out kickoffs. Despite his major size issues, if Miami can find a place for Grant, his speed and shiftiness poses MAJOR match-up problems for opposing defenses. Draft Grade: B-
Jordan Lucas, DB, Penn State
Lucas brings depth to the cornerback spot. However, many experts believe he lacks speed for the position. Perhaps playing press coverage in Vance Joseph’s system may help minimize that deficiency. Draft Grade: C+
Brandon Doughty, QB, Western Kentucky
The scouting report on Doughty (average arm but a smart game manager) reminds me of Chad Pennington in 2008. Will he become Pennington? Probably not but he may spend the year on the practice squad and compete for the backup spot in 2017. Draft Grade: C
Thomas Duarte, TE/WR, UCLA
A hybrid WR/TE that is probably a liability as a blocker but as a pass catcher is a match-up nightmare for LBers and DBs. Duarte, and many others, compare him to Jordan Reed. If he lives up to those comparisons, Miami got themselves a heck of a value in the 7th round. Draft Grade: B
Overall: The Dolphins 2016 draft class will hinge primarily on the success of Tunsil and Howard.
In the end, though, Miami may poorly valued trades and concentrated on selecting what Chris Grier calls “alpha males” while failing to address most of the needs they had going into the draft.
Draft Grade: C