No immediate slam-dunk draft pick?

First, I will readily admit, the board did not go the Dolphins way. I would like to think if Verse or Fautanu were there, Grier would have snapped them up, but maybe not.

Second, I sincerely hope there is some immediate IMPACT in these picks because the Phins desperately need it.

But... after kinda/sorta ruminating on it, I have decided that the Phins have not done enough to close the gap on the Bills, and if A-A-ROd plays well, they may not even have enough to beat the Jets!!!

Here is a link to the Athletic Winners and Losers Draft Article.


2024 NFL Draft Winners and Losers

Here's the Dolphins Losers blurb:

Despite forfeiting their third-round pick because of impermissible contact with Tom Brady and the agent for Sean Payton, the Dolphins still finished the draft with seven picks. Yet they didn’t seem to hit on any big-time stars. Edge rusher Chop Robinson has upside, but he’ll need time to develop. So will second-round offensive tackle Patrick Paul. A team needing to shrink the gap between itself and the Buffalo Bills needed more slam-dunk selections.

I tend to agree with this. There does not appear to be any immediate "slam-dunk selections" in this draft.

Now, that doesn't mean that Chop may not turn out to be great, or Wright may not team up with Achane to give the Dolphins a deadly quick strike rushing attack, or Kamara doesn't play angry on the field, or Malik Washington doesn't turn out to be the slot weapon he looks likely to be... but... For every thing we hope this draft turns out to be, every one of the players the Phins picked have some valid reasons why they may turn out to not be as great as we are hoping they will be.

No slam-dunks on the initial viewing.

I sure hope at least two of these players turn out to be real difference makers for the Phins THIS SEASON!

Well, how many "slam dunk immediate stars" are in any draft? Not many, and I'd argue that this particular draft had even less. We all get caught up in how good these players were in college, but the fact is - most draft picks take time to develop

That said, I could see immediate contributions and difference-making plays coming from Chop, Kamara, Wright and Malik Washington - with a chance for Tahj Washington to be an immediate STs contributor, and possibly Paul starting by season's end. McMorris - we'll see. There will be growing pains for sure, but that is to be expected. These guys will get opportunities early and often.

Every single player selected in this draft has valid concerns/reasons for why they may turn out to be less-than-advertised. That's the nature of the draft. I'm not sure why the Dolphins' selections should be looked at any differently than another team's selections.

As for the rest of the AFC East:
--The Patriots are in full rebuild mode and should be setting up shop in the basement for the next couple of years.
--In a league where offense is king, the Jets are relying on a strong defense and an offense that is made up in large part of older MASH-unit veterans. They look like a lock to finish 3rd in the division and miss the playoffs.
--The Bills have taken a step - and maybe a very big step - back. They are the kings until they lose the crown, but they have lost a lot of significant players and I'm not sure they've adequately made up for all of the losses. Their coaching staff is likely on a very hot seat this season as well - something to consider.

I think the Dolphins will once again compete with the Bills for the division. The offense was one of the best in the league last season in points and yards, and they may be even better this season. Injuries will be the deciding factor in the end again IMO, but this time we seem to have more depth at key positions.

I know there seems to be a lot of poo pooing on Coleman, but that dude has an Oronde Gadsden like catch radius and hands of glue IMO.

I can easily see Coleman being Joshie boys favorite target this season.

Jets are a tougher call. Everything depends on AA-Ron staying healthy and making up for that tepid offense. If their Oline works, they could be fairly dangerous.

I have no clue about the Pats. I like Mayo, but who knows what you will get Post-Belicheck?

I have no clue about the Pats. I like Mayo, but who knows what you will get Post-Belicheck?

Personally, I think the Pats are in serious trouble.

They've got a defensive minded head coach and now they just drafted a "franchise QB" - problem is he's Drake Maye, and he's about as far from a "lock" as you can get. Odds are they break him in mishandling the grooming of a QB making the difficult college to NFL transition. We saw how Flores "handled" Tua, what do you think Mayo will do?

Belichek game planning has left the building. Don't expect their defense to be so well trained in the details and tailored to take away an opposing offenses best weapon. That was his wheel house and it's gone, it's just not reasonable to think they will have the same level of game planning and play calling on that side of the ball.

The Jets went all-in on veterans with injury problems. I give them until about October when the injuries will really pile up. And I'm not convinced they have "solved" the offensive line. But yes, with their defense if the offense is even average they will be a tough out. My preference would be to play them later in the season, when it's a near certainty the loss of starters will severely water down their talent level.

The Bills are still the class of the division. Look at how close they played the Chiefs in the playoffs, that just demonstrates how close they are to actually winning the AFC. HOWEVER.... something is wrong in Buffalo. I don't know what it is. McDermott appears to be 'losing' the squad somewhat... and Diggs forcing his way out of town is a symptom of some kind of broken dynamic inside the team. It's really strange to me how they have been dumping coordinators in the midst of sequential playoff runs. That makes no sense to me. They have really had our number for a long time. I'm still waiting for that to change. But I can see the potential. They don't seem to be getting better in any case. I think at best they are treading water.

Great posts, both white and FF.

FF - I could see the Bills' offense being run through the TEs in the passing game - but I also think there will be a much bigger focus on the run game with James Cook and rookie Ray Davis (who IMO was their best pick). That's a recipe that worked well for them late in the season.

As for Coleman, he'll be a target hog due to their weak-ish WR corps, and he has a big catch radius which will help Allen's sometimes erratic throws. He'll be a red zone beast. I'm just not sure how good he is overall, and he's a downgrade from Diggs. But as always - we'll see!