Miami Dolphins GM Chris Grier needs to make up his mind

Miami Dolphins general manager Chris Grier will call the draft this year and thus the direction that the Dolphins take in their rebuild but is being consistent?

When talking about free agents back in February, Chris Grier shared his views on “quantity versus quality” when it comes to his team philosophy.

"“It’s a little bit, like I talked about, of having long-term vision. Again, I’ve never been … The way I grew up there in New England, I’ve never been (wanting to) spend money – huge money – on a guy to come in, because to me, I’d rather have three really good players than one maybe great player who may or may not impact what you’re doing. I’d rather have three good players at positions that are going to help the team win.” –MiamiDolphins.com"

Compared to previous years, this is a much more solid plan and Grier appears to be following it.  No big name free agents have been signed.  No massive signing bonuses have been paid.

However, yesterday Adam Beasley from MamiHerald.com quoted Grier talking about trading back from 13 in the first round.

"“I would say you should always have — and again this is just me — a list of maybe a handful of guys that you definitely take no matter where,” Grier said. “They’re there, these are the guys you’re taking and these are the guys we feel are impact players."

So Grier believes in “three really good players over one possibly great player” when it comes to free agency but not when it comes to the draft?  Why the contradiction?

Other than the quarterback position, there are zero positions on an NFL team that a single player has a massive effect on the success of their team. What was the Raiders record with DE/OLB Kahlil Mack on the roster?

What about Tampa Bay with DT Gerald McCoy? Did the Giants succeed with WR Odell Beckham Jr?How about the Browns with LT Joe Thomas?

The point is that none of those “elite” players turned around the fortunes of their franchise.  Why would Grier believe there is a player in this draft that he must “definitely take”? Even his ‘mentor’, Patriots HC/GM Bill Belichick, believes in trading down to acquire more picks in the draft.

Chris Grier has been in charge of the Dolphins for three years and he has always taken the “one pick=one player” approach and, in the end, I don’t expect this year to be any different.  The question is “why?”