Miami Dolphins draft is over but the real work is keeping them on the roster

The Miami Dolphins 2020 NFL Draft was good, some say it was great but until they hit the field and play a few years, well, that’s where the real job is.

When it comes to the Miami Dolphins and their recent draft history, one thing is certainly clear, they don’t do a very good job developing talent but a question that could be answered is this, is it talent or is it the coaches developing that talent.

We can break this down in a very simple way. How many draft picks are still on the roster and how many are still in the NFL? If it is just Dolphins coaching, then some of the Dolphins drafted should be playing elsewhere. Think of it as the Ted Ginn, Jr. experiment. Ginn, currently a free agent is still in the league and has carved out a pretty good career in the league. He may never have lived up to his first-round status, but clearly the Dolphins gave up on him too soon.

We can’t blame Chris Grier for the mistakes of his predecessor, but, it is still his job and the job of Brian Flores to change that narrative.

Going back to that draft in 2007 would be a waste of time. Most of those players are long gone from the Dolphins and most from the NFL. We will start with the 2012 draft class since that was the last time the Dolphins spent a draft pick on a first-round quarterback. Nine players were taken in that Joe Philbin/Jeff Ireland draft class. Seven of those nine are no longer in the league. Ryan Tannehill and Olivier Vernon are the only two still with jobs but Lamar Miller, who missed most of the 2018 season with an injury, is a free agent and could make a third.

2013’s class was not good. Miami Dolphins’ “busts” Dion Jordan and Jamar Taylor are still playing in the league as of last season. Jordan is not likely going to stick around much longer as teams are still kicking those tires but it won’t last. Taylor is still playing and is the best player in that class for Miami. Unfortunately, his best came with another team. The rest of the nine-member class is out of the league.

2014’s class should still be on the field for the Dolphins considering it was only six seasons ago. Instead, the best players in that class are gone. Ja’Wuan James and Jarvis Landry. To be fair, the Dolphins were smart to move on from James who has struggled with knee issues after leaving for Denver on a big free-agent deal, and Landry was traded because Miami refused to pay him more than $15 million a year. Billy Turner, a universal bust in Miami is still playing in the league and is grading out as one of the better guards in the NFL. Walt Aikens is still with the Dolphins. The rest are gone from the NFL.

2015 saw an incredible “bust” to “boom” player in DeVante Parker who never gave up on himself or the Dolphins. Parker was impressive in 2019 and is a building block on the offense. He and 5th round pick Bobby McCain are the only remaining players from that class. Two are out of the league and four are still playing or trying to play. This class included Jordan Phillips and Jay Ajay as well.

We start to get into the real meat of the last five seasons with 2016 and this is where it becomes important because these are draft picks that should be big parts of the team’s makeup. It is a mixed bag for 2016.

Laremy Tunsil was a big prize but was traded for a bounty of draft picks that Miami used this year. It was a good draft pick and a better trade. Xavien Howard is the stalwart corner with a big extension. Kenyan Drake proved his 3rd round value but was also traded last season. Jakeem Grant is still on the roster and signed an extension. Jordan Lucas won a Super Bowl ring with the Chiefs last season. Eight players were drafted that year. Grant and Howard are still contributing well, the rest of that class is either out of the league or somewhere else.

Now we get to where it counts. The players drafted from 2017 to 2019 should be a big part of the Dolphins makeup. That isn’t the case but as we move towards 2019 it does get better.

Seven players were taken in 2017. All but two are still with Miami. Isaac Asiata is living his 2nd career dream as a police officer and Vincent Taylor is playing elsewhere. The problem is of the remaining five players, Raekwon McMillan and Davon Godchaux are the only stars. Isaiah Ford gets a pass as a 7th round pick who is competing each season for a roster spot, and he is doing well enough to get one.

Charles Harris has been a monumental bust since arriving in Miami and last year may very well have been his last season with the Dolphins.

In 2018, Chris Grier had more pull in the Dolphins draft process. Mike Tannenbaum was on his way out but he and Adam Gase still had a lot of input in what happened in the draft. Tannenbaum had the final say even though Grier was the general manager. There is still debate on who should take the blame or the credit for the draft.

All of the players drafted, eight were still in the league last year. First-round pick Minkah Fitzpatrick was traded after displaying the kind of attitude that Brian Flores did not want in Miami and Quentin Poling is now with the Raiders. Mike Gesicki is still developing and Jerome Baker is still rising in status as the starting middle linebacker and defensive leader. Durham Smythe is still developing as well. Kalen Ballage has mixed reviews but his 2019 was horrible.

The Dolphins should have done better identifying mid-round talent in 2019 but you can’t complain about Baker by any means in round three. Miami could have done a lot better in rounds four and six. Jason Sanders taken in round seven was a good pick.

In 2019, Chris Grier took full control over the roster and the team. He hired Brian Flores and took the reigns of the draft. While it is way too early to know if that class is going to work out or not, only Isaiah Prince has a good chance of not being around this year as the Dolphins overhauled the offensive line through the draft and free agency this year.

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Miami had six picks in 2019 and they need to develop these players. This is the first-class under Brian Flores and this will be the class that we grade out three years from now to see what direction this team is actually taking.

So is it the coaching or is it the drafting? Looking specifically at numbers, we will let you decide.

62 players have been drafted since 2012. 37 of those players are still in the NFL. 14 of those 37 were drafted in the last two years. Quentin Poling is with the Raiders and Fitzpatrick was traded to the Steelers. If we remove the 208 and 2019 drafts from this equation, we get 48 players drafted since 2012, and 23 of those players still in the league. 25 players are no longer in the NFL that have been drafted by the Dolphins since 2012.

To go a tad bit further, 17 of those 25 players are no longer with the Dolphins from 2012-2017. So is it coaching, drafting, or something else? It’s a good question.