Re: 2024 NFL DRAFT ROUND 1 THREAD

[CarsonChris]

I think Chop Robinson was a forced pick. With Chubb and Phillips hurt we drafted the 3rd best edge defender when there were better players available because edge became a priority.

[JMP]

One of my favorites, DT Darius Robinson, to the Cards.

[JMP]

I think Chop Robinson was a forced pick. With Chubb and Phillips hurt we drafted the 3rd best edge defender when there were better players available because edge became a priority.

Can't argue with that. Seems like a need pick rather than BPA. But I'm fine with it, because I love the kid's potential and it was by far our biggest need. The way the draft played out, edge rusher was probably the only position where we could have drafted a starter. Grier has this roster set so that edge was the only open position due to the Chubb/Phillips injuries.

[JMP]

Bills trade down...Chiefs now on the clock at 28. The Bills will still be in position to go WR at 32 if they choose to go that way - and they should.

I'm guessing Chiefs will take a DB - Nate Wiggins or Cooper DeJean. Could also go WR, but not sure they needed to trade up to do that. Or could they steal Tyler Guyton from the Cowboys??

[HalCHorn]

I think Chop Robinson was a forced pick. With Chubb and Phillips hurt we drafted the 3rd best edge defender when there were better players available because edge became a priority.

Can't argue with that.  Seems like a need pick rather than BPA.  But I'm fine with it, because I love the kid's potential and it was by far our biggest need.  The way the draft played out, edge rusher was probably the only position where we could have drafted a starter.  Grier has this roster set so that edge was the only open position due to the Chubb/Phillips injuries.  

PFF had him 40th on the big board, nfl.com had him the top player available, and 13th in their rankings. FWIW

[HalCHorn]

KC did trade up for a WR, Worthy.

[JMP]

I think Chop Robinson was a forced pick. With Chubb and Phillips hurt we drafted the 3rd best edge defender when there were better players available because edge became a priority.

Can't argue with that.  Seems like a need pick rather than BPA.  But I'm fine with it, because I love the kid's potential and it was by far our biggest need.  The way the draft played out, edge rusher was probably the only position where we could have drafted a starter.  Grier has this roster set so that edge was the only open position due to the Chubb/Phillips injuries.  

PFF had him 40th on the big board, nfl.com had him the top player available, and 13th in their rankings.  FWIW

I had Chop as the Phins' pick in my first Dolphins mock a few weeks back.  At one point I had him going to the Cards at 27, but ultimately I dropped him from round 1.  But he was right at the edge of late round 1/early round 2 for me, so I don't consider it too big a reach.  Honestly, BPA for me would have been a corner there.

[JMP]

Chiefs take Xavier Worthy. Now that will be fun to watch!

[JMP]

Guyton to the Boys.

[JMP]

Chop is almost identical in terms of size/speed/athleticism to Byron Young, who had 8 sacks as a rookie for the Rams this past season. Young is a bit faster, Chop is a bit bigger, but otherwise very similar.

FWIW - Chop had 9.5 sacks in 22 games in his final two college seasons, and Young had 12.5 sacks in 24 games.

If Chop plays like Young as a rookie, that's a home run.

[JMP]

Bills traded down again, so no first round pick for them this year.

[HalCHorn]

Bills traded down again, so no first round pick for them this year.

WR is their biggest need, deep draft for it, smart of them to accumulate draft capital. Dammit.

[JMP]

One more Chop note: he ran a 1.54 10-yard split at the Combine. That happens to be the faster ever split for an edge weighing more than 250 pounds. Explosive!

[DolFan 316]

Okay okay, so I couldn't resist taking a peek at the pick. I did manage to hold out for almost six whole hours, though   A LOT to unpack here so let's get started.

Cam Smith will keep the left side of the bench warm while Chopper keeps the right side warm.

We needed a pass rusher. Wish the Chopper was 270

First, seeing CC feel up to posting again is the best part of the night and trumps any pick Grier would've made, good or bad I have two things to say that appear contradictory: One, Robinson is bigger than Turner, about as big as Verse, and only slightly smaller than Latu so size is actually not the issue here. Two, I'm convinced Robinson is more athlete than football player and reminds me of...Odafe Oweh. Same school, same position, both first rounders. He was even picked by the Ravens when Weaver was there. Oweh has all of 13 sacks in three seasons. But we'll see. Three, I kept telling everyone throughout the post FA process (and even before) that edge and interior O-line were the biggest needs on this team by far. And whaddaya know, all of a sudden ESPN agrees with me  Here's their postdraft analysis.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/draft/rounds

Post-Draft Analysis
Pass-rusher might not seem like a huge need for the Dolphins, but they lost both Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb to injuries last season and watched key reserve Andrew Van Ginkel leave in free agency. So this was quietly a pretty big hole on the roster. Robinson is speedy coming off the edge and will have immediate value as a situational pass-rusher.

Yeah, quietly my ass Anybody paying the least bit of attention to me HAD to know they weren't going DT with the first pick. I coudn't BELIEVE how many DolFans were willing to just ignore the massve, gaping hole at edge to take a DT when Grier signed half a dozen of them. Complete sheep, all of them. Not you guys though, you were at least willing to keep your minds and your options open.

Jags took WR Brian Thomas.  Glad the Bills didn't get him!!

Jets didn't take Bowers, Bills didn't get a chance at Thomas, Mims and Murphy were off the board so Grier wouldn't be tempted, it really feels like a couple of bullets were dodged. That's why I actually felt...good about the draft. And then...

The Dolphins got screwed with Verse and Fautanu coming off the board right before they picked.  I think they would have taken one of them for sure.  But Fautanu was the last of the top OL IMO, so I'm glad we didn't go OL at 21.

Absolute worst-case scenario with four picks left, and it all started when the damn Vikings traded up out of nowhere with the Jags, who certainly would not have gone edge there. I had not expected that (I don't think anyone on the planet did TBH), and had it not happened then Verse or Turner definitely would've been there for the taking

Lions just traded up with Cowboys.

Makes me wonder why Grier couldn't have traded with them (sighs.) Maybe he tried and failed. I'd be feeling a lot better having extra picks, and IMO Robinson still could've been taken. Or the other, bigger Robinson at least, he'd have been fine with me. I'm really hoping *somebody* at least asks him about that.

Chiefs take Xavier Worthy.  Now that will be fun to watch!

Yup...for everyone wanting the Chiefs to just die already This offseason seems to be heralding their long-awaited plunge. Or at least, their failure to reach the conference title game and beyond for once. I just hope the damn Bills aren't the team that takes advantage. Speaking of which...

Bills traded down again, so no first round pick for them this year.

WR is their biggest need, deep draft for it, smart of them to accumulate draft capital.  Dammit.

Bills did what I wanted Grier to do, and I don't understand how they could get the Chiefs to agree to it The hell of it is, they can still take Adonai Mitchell who most mocks lately had them picking at 28! Oh well, at least Mitchell is no Thomas. Him being taken was the reason they traded down to begin with, had to be.

My personal theme all week BTW has been having stuff happen that seems bad and almost catastrophic at first, but overcoming it. Seems like the Fins' draft might have continued that. So far. Take Beebe or even Haynes in the second and a safety later and I'm satisfied. Not overjoyed, but satisfied. Turner and Verse both going in the four picks before Miami's will sting for a while.

[DolFan 316]

A few things more: If Newton and JPJ were all that, they'd have been taken in the first round. Period. There's a reason they weren't. As you know I wasn't that high on JPJ from the beginning.

I just hope Chop Robinson over Marshawn Kneeland wasn't the latest Dolphins draft dud. What I'm glad of is that at least this time they didn't make the classic Miami mistakes of 1.) passing over a position of need to take a player at another position they didn't need at all and 2.) trading up or down and passing over a clearly better player at a position than who they took. Kneeland still might be better, but at least it wasn't an obvious consensus and all the draft experts didn't have him ranked higher. If Grier missed on this pick then so did everybody else. And it's not Grier's fault that Turner and Verse were gone. For what it's worth, CBS Sports says the Fins got one of the biggest draft steals (then again they're also giving the Jets credit for "stealing" Fashanu).

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/news/2024-nfl-draft-olu-fashanu-to-jets-at-no-11-dolphins-taking-chop-robinson-among-biggest-steals-in-round-1/

Speaking of which, I am not only convinced but adamant that Flores was behind that totally random tradeup to 17 specifically so he could screw the Fins over by nabbing one of the edges. Yes, I'm serious. At this point I just want him to leave my team the hell alone Someone needs to tell him it's over, he didn't prove racism for shit, he got his little victory anyway by getting draft picks docked, now get on with his life already and stop being so bitter and toxic.

I also do have the feeling that Grier did try a trade with the Lions and they balked because he asked for 61 and they thought that price was a tad too high to pay. Just my hunch until proven otherwise.

I think I'll be skipping tomorrow (later today) because having to wait for Beebe/Haynes to fall as far as 55 is too nerve-wracking for me to bear. I'm not even sure what the plan would be if that happened, I hope Grier at least has one.

[JMP]

Great posts, 316.

I'm convinced Robinson is more athlete than football player and reminds me of...Odafe Oweh. Same school, same position, both first rounders. He was even picked by the Ravens when Weaver was there. Oweh has all of 13 sacks in three seasons. But we'll see.

Oweh is a good comp from an athletic standpoint - absolutely. But so is Micah Parsons (see my thread about Chop) - also same school and same position, and similar athletic profile. FWIW - Oweh only had 5 sacks in his final two seasons at Penn State - Parsons had 6.5 and Robinson had 9.5. Once you hit the NFL, none of that means anything - but it does seem like the lack of production criticism is overblown.

[JMP]

As far as trading down, my guess is that Grier listened to offers but didn't get the compensation he wanted. It would have been great to get more picks, but it is what it is.

[JMP]

Check this out:

https://dolphinswire.usatoday.com/2024/04/26/dolphins-2024-nfl-draft-trade-chris-grier/

When the Miami Dolphins picked pass rusher Chop Robinson at No. 21 overall Thursday, general manager Chris Grier didn’t call it a night. He took a shot at putting together a trade for another pick in the first round.

“We were sitting there, there were a couple players at the end we were excited for, so we were active even trying to get back in to get another one here in the late first,” Grier said.

...

Unsurprisingly, Grier didn’t divulge which players kept him on the phones late into the night Thursday. Maybe one of those prospects is still on the board and the Dolphins will make an effort to climb early on Friday.

Safe to assume that Worthy was one of the players Grier was targeting?

[JMP]

As far as trading down, my guess is that Grier listened to offers but didn't get the compensation he wanted.  It would have been great to get more picks, but it is what it is.

Confirmed. From Barry Jackson: "Grier said 4 or 5 teams called to trade up for pick 21, but there was no offer enticing enough for Grier to do it."

[finfanatic]

Well... we have to hope that Chop Robinson and Haynes/Beebe or Whichever Olineman they draft in the 2nd will turn out to be better than Barton and Kneeland/Trice/Dorlus.

It was a little high, but I think I would have taken Barton.

I am not sold Chop is going to turn out to be very impactful. We'll just have to see. I can certainly understand why Grier went that way though, which after the last few drafts, was nice to see.

Actually, I would have taken whatever was the BEST trade down offer that gave me a 3rd and/or 4th rounder.

I am going to predict right now that Grier will trade some late round picks and some of next year's picks for more picks this year. That usually doesn't turn out well for Grier, but we shall see.

[JMP]

I'm not a big Barton fan. Seems like a guard to me, though he can play everywhere. I feel like he's already close to his ceiling and he's a decent, if unspectacular, player. The good thing is he's probably ready to play right away, but I just don't see anything special.

Chop is going to be boom or bust...but if he pans out it'll be a big BOOM! Much bigger potential impact than Barton.

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