2018 Miami Dolphins draft results: What went right and wrong

What went wrong.

Jerome Baker –  Round 3 – Baker is not a bad pick. Far from it and in reality no one should complain about the selection. Baker is small if you want to consider a 6’1″ athlete small. He will need to bulk up but he has very good range and really good speed for a linebacker. There are parts of his game that need fixing, specifically how he attacks the run and his pass rush ability needs work but he can cover and this is an area Miami needs to improve in as well. Too many times the Dolphins in the last decade have given up the mid-range first downs on third down because the linebackers couldn’t cover. Baker should fix this.

So why is this a wrong pick? Baker doesn’t fix the linebacker unit and there is no guarantees that he will be an immediate starter day one. He could be and likely will be a situational player. When his selection is viewed with the potential of Fitzpatrick or McDonald moving closer to the line as a linebacker, he makes more sense. This is a pick that could go both ways. Miami could have drafted a very solid linebacker that will make an impact or another linebacker like Jelani Jenkins or Phillip Wheeler. Decent players but someone who down the road you need to replace.

Jason Sanders – Round 7 – It is hard to see what the Dolphins liked in Sanders who may have been available as an undrafted player. More importantly is what didn’t they like about Florida kicker Eddy Pineiro? Pineiro had visited with the team and has a big leg that can get the ball out of the end-zone on kick-offs and is strong enough to make the 50 plus yard kicks.

Sanders on the other hand isn’t considered to have a big leg and some have questioned his accuracy. In his four years with Mexico State, Sanders is 25 of 35 with a long of 53. Hardly matching the 38 of 43 stats of Pineiro. Something obviously didn’t sit well with the Dolphins and the Miami native.