Best player available is not what Chris Grier should be drafting but he says he might

The Miami Dolphins may be making a big mistake if they plan to draft the best player available instead of the best player available for their needs.

Speaking to the media ahead of next week's 2024 NFL Draft, the Dolphins general manager was asked bout his draft approach and whether the best player available is an approach that Grier will take.

Specifically, Grier was asked, per the Dolphins media department: "I have a best player available question if you can expound on it, please. How does that rule apply? Is that only the first round or is it every single pick? And if that’s how you do your draft, then is free agency when you fill your needs?"

"“I think the best player available, and again this is probably going back from years when I started to learn under Coach (Bill) Parcells years ago and going through Coach (Pete) Carroll, Nick Saban and stuff. You always stack your board and you work hard, but your board, obviously early in the draft, will always look kind of how you set it in terms of best player."

- Grier - Via Dolphins transcripts

He said that later in the draft it is a bit different as the draft boards change quickly but to focus on BPA in rounds one and two seems to be a mistake and many fans have questioned whether this approach is remotely a good idea.

Fans have pointed out that Grier's BPA idea didn't serve him very well with the Noah Igbinoghene pick and others have questioned why Austin Jackson was considered a BPA pick when he was taken. The reality is, that Grier's approach seems to be more wide open than pigeonholed like BPA.

There should always be exceptions. For example, a Laremy Tunsil-type fall is one of those times you may want to change your boards. This year, a Brock Bowers slide would be a reason to toss out your top draft board.

In reality, Grier needs to do a bit of both. He needs a BPA board but at the same time, taking the best player available that isn't part of your team's needs, is not going to make your team better. You don't draft a top CB if your CB room is already set, for example.

Miami needs to balance this. They need to approach this draft knowing that without question, they are drafting a day one starter in rounds one and two and in order to do that, your draft needs more often than BPA.

While Grier may have said that BPA is the route the Dolphins take, we have to assume that isn't the case considering the Igbinoghene draft but then you look at Minkah Fitzpatrick and wonder if he were a BPA selection that maybe a little more work on would have indicated he may not have been the right fit.

Then again, would anyone send a message to the rest of the NFL that your were taking needs over BPA? Not if you are hoping to increase potential trade opportunities.