Dolphins are in prime position for another great pick in round 2

The Dolphins made an excellent pick last night with Minkah Fitzpatrick. With the way the draft has turned out thus far, they’re in line for another great pick in round 2.

The Miami Dolphins may have not wound up with a quarterback last night, but they did land a great pick in safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick will immediately help Miami’s secondary, particularly at the free safety position. He can play anywhere in the Dolphins secondary, and will be a tremendous help in covering tight ends, an area Miami was awful at in 2017.

I’m sure that there were some fans who were disappointed when the Arizona Cardinals traded ahead of the Dolphins at pick 10 to take Josh Rosen, but fans could not be upset at how the draft played out in Miami’s favor. It’s being said that Miami would not have taken Rosen even if he was available.

Even with Rosen off the board, the Dolphins still had their choice between Fitzpatrick, Derwin James, and Tremaine Edmunds. The only way that Miami could have screwed that up is if Roger Goodell came to the podium to call out Vita Vea, who would go a pick later to Tampa Bay. The Dolphins did the right thing though by getting, arguably, the best safety in this class, who can also help Miami’s linebacker issues.

Although the Dolphins were finished with Day 1 after their selection of Fitzpatrick, the draft continued to play out in their favor. While some players like James and Edmunds fell farther than expected, a lot of the first round played out like we expected. Some wide receivers and offensive linemen were taken off the board in the 20s. Other Dolphins hopefuls like Rashaan Evans and Sony Michel came off the board to no surprise. But there were some head-scratchers too, and it should benefit Miami for round 2.

The Saints made the most puzzling trade of the night, moving all the way up to 14th to take Marcus Davenport, when most people thought they were intent on taking Lamar Jackson. Davenport was already expected to go in the first somewhere so it doesn’t really impact the Dolphins much. Picks that were made late in the first do, however.

The biggest reach of the night had to be from Seattle by taking Rashaad Penny with Michel, Derrius Guice, and Nick Chubb on the board. Most people had a third-round grade on Penny so to see him come off ahead of these guys was quite the shock.

Another very surprising pick that was sort of hidden behind Ryan Shazier walking to the podium in one of the most memorable moments in NFL Draft history was Pittsburgh’s selection of Terrell Edmunds. Edmunds stock was sort of all around the place, but still somewhat of a surprise to see him go in the first.

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Those kinds of picks, however, help the Dolphins tremendously for round 2. Miami picks 10th today (42nd overall), and there is a variety of players still available for them. Our own Matthew Stevens has already rolled out his ten players that Miami could target today, and they are all terrific options.

Initially, I was not keen to the idea of Miami taking a running back this early, but if Guice or Chubb do remain available at 42 then it should be considered. Only one tight end, Hayden Hurst, was taken last night, still leaving Dallas Goedert, Mike Gesicki, and a strong class of others left to be had.

Other potential first-rounders like Harold Landry, Josh Jackson, Mason Rudolph, and Maurice Hurst, just to name a few still remain as well. There are some quality offensive linemen and wide receivers still available as well that Miami may have an interest in. These may not be areas of the highest interest in the eyes of the fans, but everything is on the table.

The Dolphins may be looking to move on from guys like DeVante Parker and Ja’Wuan James. If the right guy is available on the board at those positions, and Miami has a trade partner in mind to pickup an additional pick or two, they could pull the trigger. Both Parker and James have had their 5th-year options picked up by the Dolphins, and they may look to get something in return while they can.

There are a ton of options for Miami today, and it should be exciting. Just as they were yesterday, they’re in position to pickup another great player today in round 2, and possibly round 3 as well.