NFL Draft Live updates: Dolphins add offensive lineman to help Tua, then bolster defense
It’s here. It’s finally here.
The NFL Draft is here. Action begins with the first round at 8 p.m. Thursday, and the Miami Dolphins will play a large role in how it all unfolds. Miami enters the three-day draft with 14 total picks, including three in the first round (Nos. 5, 18 and 26).
Will they pick their quarterback of the future in Tua Tagovailoa or Justin Herbert with their top pick or go another route? With they stay put or trade up? Will they end up with multiple top-10 picks?
All will be decided in due time.
The Miami Herald will be providing live draft updates throughout the day here. Follow along as the developments come in below.
12:10 p.m.: The first day of the 2020 NFL Draft is in the books. The Dolphins’ full haul: Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Soutern California Trojans tackle Austin Jackson and Auburn Tigers cornerback Noah Igbinoghene. Miami got its franchise quarterback and a tackle to potentially protect him, while also bolstering the defense.
The Dolphins have three picks Friday, including two in the second round. They’ll pick seventh in the second round — No. 39 overall — then again with the No. 56 pick and the No. 70 pick. Tackle, safety and running back will be three of the biggest priorities on the second day of the Draft.
Miami will wrap up the weekend Saturday with 10 picks in the final four rounds after it added a fourth-round pick Thursday via a trade with the Green Bay Packers.
11:58 p.m.: The Dolphins use their final pick of the first round to bolster their defense. Noah Igbinoghene is heading to Miami.
It’s a bit of a surprise pick: The Dolphins made a free-agency splash last month when they made Byron Jones one of the highest paid cornerbacks in the NFL. Now the Auburn Tigers cornerback joins a group which already includes Jones and former Pro Bowler Xavien Howard.
Igbinoghene is an upside pick. He started out in Auburn as a wide receiver before moving to corner ahead of his sophomore year. He’s also the son of two former Nigerian Olympians, so the bloodlines are impressive.
That should be it for the day for Dolphins, who have two more picks in the second round to potentially fill their glaring needs at running back and safety.
11:23 p.m.: The Dolphins landed one offensive lineman to protect new quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, but they won’t be doubling up yet.
After taking Southern California Trojans tackle Austin Jackson with the No. 18 pick, Miami traded its No. 26 pick to the Green Bay Packers.
The Dolphins move back to No. 30 in the first round and picked up a fourth-round pick. They now have 15 picks in the draft, including the two they already used Thursday.
The Packers, meanwhile, used their pick to take Utah State Aggies quarterback Jordan Love.
10:30 p.m.: The Dolphins are getting some protection for Tua Tagovailoa.
The top four tackles are all off the board, but it didn’t deter Miami from grabbing an offensive lineman. The Dolphins are taking Southern California Trojans tackle Austin Jackson with the No. 18 pick.
Miami still has one more pick to make Thursday and it’s not out of the realm of possibility the Dolphins could double up on tackles.
10:04 p.m.: Jerry Jeudy is the first Broward County off the board. The Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver, originally from Deerfield Beach High School, is headed to the Denver Broncos with the No. 15 pick.
Boise State tackle Ezra Cleveland remains the top offensive lineman available for the Dolphins and now the top-ranked wide receiver is gone, too. Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver CeeDee Lamb is still on the board, too, if Miami wants a potential No. 1 receiver.
9:37 p.m.: The run on tackles has begun and the Dolphins might have to make a move to get one of the top prospects.
The Cleveland Browns grabbed Alabama Crimson Tide tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. with the No. 10 pick, then the New York Jets followed immediately by taking Louisville Cardinals tackle Mekhi Becton with the No. 11 pick.
Three of the top tackles in the Draft are now off the board after the New York Giants took Georgia Bulldogs tackle Andrew Thomas with the No. 4 pick, which means the Dolphins might have to make a deal — perhaps with the San Francisco 49ers — to move ahead of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and grab a top tackle. Iowa Hawkeyes tackle Tristan Wirfs is a prospect Miami is particularly high on.
9:26 p.m.: The first South Floridian is off the board as Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson, a graduate of Miami Columbus, is headed to the Jacksonville Jaguars with the No. 9 overall pick.
A pick later, Alabama Crimson Tide tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. came off the board, heading to the Cleveland Browns. Iowa Hawkeyes tackle Tristan Wirfs remains on the board and he’s a player the Dolphins like a lot, although they might have to trade up if they want to get him.
9:03 p.m.: Not that you care anymore, but the Los Angeles Chargers took Oregon Ducks quarterback Justin Herbert with the No. 6 pick. Apparently, they wanted a quarterback, too.
8:55 p.m.: They tanked for Tua.
With the No. 5 overall pick, the Dolphins selected Tua Tagovailoa, the star quarterback from the Alabama Crimson Tide. Miami got its man.
8:47 p.m.: The Dolphins are officially on their clock and they have their choice of quarterback after the New York Giants selected Georgia Bulldogs tackle Andrew Thomas with the No. 4 pick.
Will it be Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon Ducks quarterback Justin Herbert? One of the biggest decisions in franchise history is less than 10 minutes away.
8:38 p.m.: The Detroit Lions made their pick quickly and they’re taking Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Jeff Okudah. The path is now open for the Dolphins to take their quarterback of choice at No. 5, unless someone jumps them by making a trade with the New York Giants for the No. 4 pick.
The Giants are on the clock. Miami will make its pick in the next 20 minutes.
8:33 p.m.: The Washington Redskins officially take Chase Young with the No. 2 pick, so the Detroit Lions are on the clock and ESPN reports they’ll be hanging on to their pick.
The Dolphins have hinted at the possibility of trading up to lock down a quarterback or offensive lineman, but instead they will reportedly stay put. The Lions, meanwhile, are the first potential destination for either quarterback Justin Herbert or Tua Tagovailoa if they decide it’s time to move on for Matthew Stafford or start grooming his eventual replacement.
8:25 p.m.: As expected, the Cincinnati Bengals take Joe Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick. The Bengals reportedly turned down all the Dolphins’ inquiries about trading up to land the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback.
The Washington Redskins are now on the clock. They’re pick is also all but assured as they have reportedly turned down offers for the No. 2 pick because they love Ohio State Buckeyes defensive end Chase Young.
After Washington’s pick becomes official, things get interesting. Miami has mulled a trade up to the No. 3 pick to either lock down its quarterback of choice or guarantee the first swing at an offensive lineman. There’s still absolutely no clarity as to what will happen after the Redskins take Young.
8:16 p.m.: After a very long introduction featuring Anthony Fauci and Harry Connick Jr., the Cincinnati Bengals are finally on the clock. They’ll make their Joe Burrow pick official soon.
With 10 minutes on the clock, the Dolphins are slated to pick a little after 9 p.m., unless, of course, they trade up to No. 3.
7:07 p.m.: Chris Mortensen reported on ESPN less than an hour before the draft that Tua Tagovailoa’s April 9 hip recheck that produced “pristine” scans was with doctors assigned by Dolphins.
7:05 p.m.: If there was any doubt who the Bengals were taking with the No. 1 overall pick when the draft begins in an hour (really? like there was any doubt), it’s all but shut down. Adam Schefter said on ESPN that Bengals president Mike Brown formally welcomed LSU QB Joe Burrow to Cincinnati on Wednesday, one day before the draft, by sending Burrow a letter that said he looks forward “to building championship football teams with you for many years to come.”
So there’s that.
6 p.m.: With about two hours until draft time, catch up on our latest stories to make sure you’re up to speed on what will surely be a wild night for the Dolphins:
▪ Mando’s gut is telling him something. It might be insightful intuition (or it might have something to do with the bacon).
▪ Caution or courage? What the Dolphins’ QB decision will reveal about Ross’ franchise
▪ Greg Cote on why this draft is the biggest ever for the Dolphins.
1:40 p.m.: Just because Beasley is skeptical that the Dolphins will actually trade up to No. 3 for an offensive tackle doesn’t mean everyone is.
Count Georgia coach Kirby Smart among the believers.
Appearing on NFL Network Thursday afternoon, Smart was asked if he buys the rumors that the Dolphins are going to trade up for Andrew Thomas.
His answer? Yes!
“It’ll be worth it,” he added, “I can promise you that.”
12:50 p.m.: We don’t know who the Dolphins will take tonight. No one does for sure. But we are hearing chatter that the “Dolphins are trading up to No. 3 for an offensive tackle” talk was a Lions smokescreen to squeeze the Giants.
And there’s new buzz that Justin Herbert (and not Tua Tagovailoa) will be the team’s pick at No. 5.
Keep in mind no team has any reason to tell the truth at this point, but we have heard that there are lingering concerns about Tagovailoa’s health, considering his smallish size.
Yahoo!’s Charles Robinson is apparently hearing a lot of what we are:
12:30 p.m.: Nick Saban is fed up with Twitter doctors weighing in on Tua Tagovailoa’s health.
Appearing on SiriusXM NFL Network with hosts Bob Papa and Charlie Weis on Thursday morning, the ex-Dolphins and legendary Alabama coach tuned up people speculating the worst about Tagovailoa.
“I think that it’s a little bit annoying to me that people speculate on Tua’s circumstance,” Saban said. “Look, we have some of the best doctors in the world here in Dr. Andrews and Dr. Cain that are very involved in the NFL and operate on a lot of NFL athletes and Major League Baseball players, and they’ve handled the whole Tua situation as professionally as you can. Tua’s done a great job with his rehab and he’s pretty much got a clean bill of health relative to where he’s at right now.”
Saban added: “I hate it when people in the media don’t stick to the facts, but I think it’s the world we live in.”
10:20 a.m.: Mel Kiper Jr. unveiled his final mock draft before the real thing starts tonight... and he has flipped his Dolphins decision from Justin Herbert at No. 5 to Tua Tagovailoa.
“It’s smoke screen season, and I’ve gone back and forth on this pick a few times,” Kiper wrote. “But I just can’t see Miami passing on a quarterback, and Tagovailoa is higher on my board than the rest of the QBs.”
Kiper also has Miami taking South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw at No. 18 and Houston tackle Josh Jones at No. 26
Kiper elaborates on his decision here:
8:45 a.m.: ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Thursday morning that the Dolphins reached out to the Cincinnati Bengals “on more than one occasion” to see if they could acquire the No. 1 overall pick.
“The Dolphins were told, in no uncertain terms, no,” Schefter added in the tweet. “Cincinnati would not trade the pick and would stay put at No. 1.”
That should, at the very least, settle one thing: LSU quarterback Joe Burrow is all but certain to be the No. 1 overall pick when the Bengals turn in their selection.
Uncertainty remains after that.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 9:14 AM.
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