MOBILE, Ala. — When you peruse a list of the Dolphins’ second- and third-round picks during the past 10 years, it becomes a bit more clear why the franchise has hovered around the .500 mark for most of that time.
Overall, it’s been an average to slightly above average crew, just as the Dolphins have been during that stretch. There hasn’t been enough of a wow factor among those selections.
The Dolphins, whose first three picks in the April 27-29 draft are a second-rounder and a pair of third-rounders, need to hit on at least one starter among those picks, and it’d be nice if one of the other two was a regular contributor from scrimmage.
Finding such players is among the Dolphins’ many tasks at this week’s Senior Bowl practices at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Ala., and Saturday’s Senior Bowl game. In addition to scouting players on the field, the Dolphins also get to interview players, an important component of the draft process.
Among the 21 players the Dolphins selected in the second and third rounds in the last 10 years, two — cornerback Xavien Howard and wide receiver Jarvis Landry — have earned a Pro Bowl berth with the Dolphins.
Roughly half of the 21 were considered starters at some point during their time with the Dolphins, which is OK.
But 11 of the 21 second- and third-round picks of the last 10 years didn’t live up to their draft status, or haven’t yet lived up to their draft status.
If those picks were given a letter grade they’d get a C or C+.
The second- and third-round picks of the past 10 years include many success stories in addition to Howard (second round, 2016) and Landry (second round, 2014).
There’s safety Jevon Holland (second round, 2021), guard/tackle Robert Hunt (third round, 2020), safety Brandon Jones (third round, 2020), tight end Mike Gesicki (second round, 2018) and linebacker Jerome Baker (third round, 2018).
Gesicki seems likely to depart via free agency, but Holland, Hunt and Jones have Pro Bowl potential, and Baker has been an above-average starter for his career.
Those are all strong picks.
There’s also a handful of second- and third-round picks from the past 10 years that were decent players for the Dolphins, and that group includes linebacker Raekwon McMillan (second round, 2017), defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (second round, 2015) and running back Kenyan Drake (third round, 2016).
But most of the second- and third-round picks need improvement, or needed improvement, and that list includes linebacker Channing Tindall (third round, 2022), guard/tackle Liam Eichenberg (second round, 2021), tight end Hunter Long (third round, 2021), defensive tackle Raekwon Davis (second round, 2020), guard Michael Deiter (third round, 2019), cornerback Cordrea Tankersley (third round, 2017), wide receiver Leonte Carroo (third round, 2016), guard/tackle Billy Turner (third round, 2014), cornerback Jamar Taylor, guard/tackle Dallas Thomas (third round, 2013) and cornerback Will Davis (third round, 2013).
“Liam showed some really good signs of playing well for stretches after adjusting to the system and being asked to do stuff he had never done before,” general manager Chris Grier said during his season wrapup news conference.
In this year’s second and third rounds, the Dolphins could be looking at offensive tackles, cornerbacks and linebackers. Perhaps they look at guards or tight ends, depending on what happens in free agency. The second and third rounds might be too high for the Dolphins to draft a running back, especially if both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. return.
The shocker of a pick in that range would be a quarterback to back up starter Tua Tagovailoa. The Dolphins will need a second-team quarterback if veteran Teddy Bridgewater departs via free agency, but there’s almost no chance it’s a rookie, especially considering they drafted quarterback Skylar Thompson in the seventh round last year. It’s almost a certainty the Dolphins will opt for a veteran backup quarterback.
The Dolphins have been OK with their second- and third-round picks during the last 10 years, but continuing to do OK isn’t a path to the Super Bowl.
