Miami Dolphins pass on Tua Tagovailoa in 2020 re-draft

Bleacher Report did a re-do of the 2020 NFL Draft. The Miami Dolphins would look drastically different if things broke this way.

The 2020 NFL Draft was supposed to be the turning point for the Miami Dolphins franchise. They had a trove of picks, including three in the first round, that was going to help them become one of the youngest and most talented teams in the league.

While the jury is still out and the players are still young, there is a fear that Draft Night 2020 was a complete flop for the Dolphins. Austin Jackson (18th overall) has been underwhelming in trying to patch holes along the offensive line, and Noah Igbinoghene (30th overall) has struggled to even find any real playing time.

In what makes for an interesting read for Dolphins fans, Bleacher Report recently put out a re-draft of the first round of the 2020 Draft based on all of the information that we have gathered over the last two full years. If things broke the way that B/R outlines in their article, then Miami’s roster would look a lot different today.

5th overall pick: Chase Young – DE, Ohio St.

With the pick that they used to select Tua Tagovailoa in the real version of the 2020 Draft, B/R has the Dolphins selecting Chase Young, who slipped down from the 2nd overall pick. Quarterbacks Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert were understandably the first two players off of the board, followed by Justin Jefferson being selected by the Lions. Tristan Wirfs went 4th overall to the Giants.

Chase Young had an underwhelming second season while dealing with injuries, but the skill and potential are still there, and he would form a serious pass-rushing duo with Emmanuel Ogbah.

The fall-out would be obvious, and the Dolphins would obviously be without a quarterback in this scenario. Perhaps they wait until later in the first round to draft Jordan Love or pick Jalen Hurts in the second. Or maybe they wait a season and select one of the quarterbacks from the class of 2021. That would likely mean no Jaylen Waddle and no extra first-round pick in 2023, and we would likely have Trey Lance or Mac Jones under center.

Tua didn’t last long on the board of B/R’s redraft. Just two picks later, he was selected by the Carolina Panthers, making him the third quarterback selected instead of the second.

As for the other first-round selections for the Dolphins, those would have been interesting adds as well. With the 18th pick, B/R has Miami selecting Mekhi Becton, who is still a better offensive lineman prospect than Austin Jackson, despite his injury and weight concerns. With the 30th pick, it would be safety Xavier McKinney from Alabama.

The immediate repercussions would be obvious. There would be a different quarterback and different wide receivers, and there is likely no need to select Jevon Holland in 2021.

Yes, the Miami Dolphins probably should have drafted Justin Herbert instead of Tua in 2020. But if all the teams were supposed to be so smart, then Herbert wouldn’t even have been available at pick number 5, and the future of the franchise would look drastically different. For better or for worse.