So, now the Dolphins are even more loaded at cornerback, a position they already had lots of talent, and they remain suspect at positions such as tight end, right tackle and left guard. This is the offshoot of the Dolphins selecting South Carolina cornerback Cam Smith with their second-round pick Friday night.
You could say the same about the running back position after the Dolphins selected Texas A&M’s Devon Achane with their third-round pick.
These selections were the so-called BPA — Best Player Available — as opposed to picking for need.
Sometimes BPA is a welcome approach. On Friday, it was a head-scratcher — according to fans on social media.
But not to the Dolphins. They’re clear and resolute in the reasons for their selections. They want talent, regardless of position.
“You always try to position yourself [to] go into the draft to be able to take the best player, regardless of position,” coach Mike McDaniel said. “Sometimes you have depth more in other places than not, but we’re not going to take away the opportunity to have good players on our team.
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“It’s more of the players shape what the team looks like.”
The Dolphins were pretty good at cornerback among Pro Bowlers Xavien Howard and Jalen Ramsey, and reserves such as Kader Kohou, Nik Needham, Noah Igbinoghene, and Keion Crossen.
They didn’t need another cornerback.
They needed another tight end or offensive linemen.
But they chose to add more talent to a position where they say you can’t ever have too much talent, as injuries showed last season when Needham (Achilles) and Byron Jones (leg) were both sidelined.
Dolphins general manager Chris Grier covered this aspect of the draft recently when he was asked about drafting for need as opposed to drafting BPA.
[ RELATED: Dolphins select CB Cam Smith, RB Devon Achane on Day 2 of NFL draft ]
“We always look for the best player,” Grier said. “Then there are some occasions where you do take a position of need, but you try not to draft on need because again, I think that’s where you get in trouble.”
Here’s the issue with what the Dolphins did: quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s blind side, currently protected by right tackle Austin Jackson, is vulnerable, and that’s not an ideal position for a QB who has had concussion issues. Also, tight end remains questionable because neither Durham Smythe nor Eric Saubert, their two most experienced players, are strong receivers. And left guard is being eyed suspiciously among Liam Eichenberg, Robert Jones and possibly Dan Feeney.
Here’s what the Dolphins want you to know about what they did: It wasn’t a necessity to address right tackle, left guard or tight end in Friday’s second or third rounds.
Player additions/acquisitions is a continuum. The Dolphins can add players after the draft, during training camp, and during the season all the way up to the trade deadline.
They’re not worried about finding guys to fill those roles.
[ RELATED: Fast facts: Learn about Dolphins draftees Cam Smith and Devon Achane ]
“I think you guys are probably more worried than we are, in terms of the position depth at those spots you talked about,” Grier said. “But at the end of the day, we added a good football player. We’re happy.
“And like we say, it doesn’t end with the draft. There’s still guys we’re talking to in free agency, on the streets. So we’re still working through it, and we’ll keep adding the players we think fit for us.”
That explanation might not soothe the segment of the fanbase that’s stunned by the off-the-radar selections their team made Friday.
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And, yes, the crowded quarterback picture in the AFC East might have had a little to do with Smith’s selection.
“In this league, and especially in the AFC,” Grier said, “with a lot of talented quarterbacks and teams, we can never have enough corners as we experienced last year with the rash of injuries that we dealt with.”
Talent, not AFC East opponents, was the reason they drafted Achane. The Dolphins’ top running backs are the speedy Raheem Mostert, the slashing Jeff Wilson Jr., and now the speedy Achane. It’s a talented room.
Talent, for the most part, wins games.
Yeah, coaching is also a major factor, but this league is about talent.
The Dolphins think they added to their team’s talent base Friday.
We’ll soon find out whether they did the right thing by skipping over their needs and getting what they considered to be the best players available.
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