Kyler Murray has declared, is he a viable option for the Miami Dolphins?

Earlier this week Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray declared his intentions to enter the NFL draft. The Miami Dolphins could have interest.

The Miami Dolphins are entering the final chapters of the Ryan Tannehill era. He’s likely not going to be the starter for the 2019 season. That leaves a lot of questions about who will be the next face of the franchise or when it might actually happen.

I’ve talked about QBs ad naseam. The 2019 Draft is not getting a lot of love at the quarterback position, but there are plenty of diamonds in the rough: Dwayne Haskins, Daniel Jones, Will Grier, Drew Lock and now Kyler Murray, presumably.

After a lengthy lead-up of will he, won’t he, the plot thickened with Kyler Murray’s official declaration on Monday, which was the January 14 deadline. It wasn’t unexpected; rumors were flying for most of January that Murray was going to declare.

While Murray hasn’t fully committed to the Draft, this was a necessary step to keep both the NFL and MLB doors open. The big tell on his intentions will come in February when he has to either report for camp for the A’s or get ready for the Combine.

Now a big question is how does Murray fit in with the Miami Dolphins? The Fins need help in the QB department as I’ve mentioned, so Murray is a player that is definitely worth doing the due diligence on. But it shouldn’t take that long to find the answer.

The short answer to the Kyler Murray-Miami Dolphins question is that he’s a godsend. I’ve mentioned my stance on the Dolphins’ strategies to get a top-tier quarterback before. Murray is dynamic enough that it has me re-adjusting the well-received pseudo-tanking and rebuilding process I recently promoted.

Kyler Murray is one of the best players I can think of to turn the Dolphins around. He’s hyper-dynamic and can make magic happen. His escapability would be a refreshing quality after six years of watching Ryan Tannehill get caught in a collapsing offensive line. He’d be a great foundational player to build upon now that the Dolphins are in a de facto rebuild.

I’m not even going to entertain counterarguments about his 5’10 height. Nowadays you can point to Drew Brees, Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield as poster children for the short-stature quarterbacks. But those cases have been made countless times, so I won’t expand into it too much.

My larger point, however, is that as a fan I’ve been both wrong and right about predicting what works and what doesn’t work in the NFL. I’m not discounting or knocking prospects based on height. Plenty of average and tall quarterbacks have failed to make the leap, so height is becoming less of a factor for draft prospects.

The evolution of the NFL offense is also conducive for Murray to more likely find success. Also, one of the Dolphins most athletic and exciting players to watch is Jakeem Grant, so there’s a formula to make it work for electric jitterbugs and other shorter players.

More from Phin Phanatic

Murray’s height would be unprecedented at quarterback but I’m not betting against him. He’d bring life back to a franchise that’s fallen from grace since the glory days of the undefeated ’72 team, dynasty of the 70s and Dan Marino era.

I’ve made my fondness of the 2020 Draft quarterbacks very clear, but Murray adds a wrinkle to that school of thought. Murray is one of a handful of names that will be turning pro in the next three drafts that could inject any team with a jolt of energy; Murray is the Senzu bean that Miami needs to refresh and reinvigorate the franchise.

I recently found a mock draft on The Draft Network by NFL Draft Analyst Benjamin Solak that placed Murray with the Dolphins. Murray falling to the Dolphins at 13 is a pipe dream, but I was elated by the sentiment nonetheless.

But here’s the real problem with that mock and wanting Kyler Murray to be the Dolphins QB of the future. He isn’t going to be available at 13 when the Dolphins pick. He’s going top 10. Before it’s all said and done, I reckon he goes top five. That’s an obvious problem for the Dolphins. It’d require a massive trade up.

And my perspective on that notion? Do it. The powers that be have my blessing if a trade-up is in the cards. I’m not so staunchly in love with the Tua Tagovailoas, Jake Fromms and Justin Herberts of the 2020 Draft that I’d look past selling the farm for Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins.

Both Murray and Haskins would require some trading, but they’re two more players on my short list of franchise quarterbacks. The bottom line here is doing what it takes to get the Miami Dolphins helmsman for the next 12-15 years and restoring the team back to levels of prominence akin to the ’70s or Don Shula regime. I’m not ruling anything out.

Home/Dolphins News