Miami Herald Logo

Armando Salguero: Love hard to come by in first round for Miami Dolphins | Miami Herald

×
  • E-edition
  • Home
    • Site Information
    • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Herald Store
    • RSS Feeds
    • Special Sections
    • Advertise
    • Advertise with Us
    • Media Kit
    • Mobile
    • Mobile Apps & eReaders
    • Newsletters
    • Social
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Google+
    • Instagram
    • YouTube

    • Sections
    • News
    • South Florida
    • Miami-Dade
    • Broward
    • Florida Keys
    • Florida
    • Politics
    • Weird News
    • Weather
    • National & World
    • Colombia
    • National
    • World
    • Americas
    • Cuba
    • Guantánamo
    • Haiti
    • Venezuela
    • Local Issues
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • In Depth
    • Issues & Ideas
    • Traffic
    • Sections
    • Sports
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Pro & College
    • Miami Dolphins
    • Miami Heat
    • Miami Marlins
    • Florida Panthers
    • College Sports
    • University of Miami
    • Florida International
    • University of Florida
    • Florida State University
    • More Sports
    • High School Sports
    • Auto Racing
    • Fighting
    • Golf
    • Horse Racing
    • Outdoors
    • Soccer
    • Tennis
    • Youth Sports
    • Other Sports
    • Politics
    • Elections
    • The Florida Influencer Series
    • Sections
    • Business
    • Business Monday
    • Banking
    • International Business
    • National Business
    • Personal Finance
    • Real Estate News
    • Small Business
    • Technology
    • Tourism & Cruises
    • Workplace
    • Business Plan Challenge
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Cindy Krischer Goodman
    • The Starting Gate
    • Work/Life Balancing Act
    • Movers
    • Sections
    • Living
    • Advice
    • Fashion
    • Food & Drink
    • Health & Fitness
    • Home & Garden
    • Pets
    • Recipes
    • Travel
    • Wine
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Dave Barry
    • Ana Veciana-Suarez
    • Flashback Miami
    • More Living
    • LGBTQ South Florida
    • Palette Magazine
    • Indulge Magazine
    • South Florida Album
    • Broward Album
    • Sections
    • Entertainment
    • Books
    • Comics
    • Games & Puzzles
    • Horoscopes
    • Movies
    • Music & Nightlife
    • People
    • Performing Arts
    • Restaurants
    • TV
    • Visual Arts
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Jose Lambiet
    • Lesley Abravanel
    • More Entertainment
    • Events Calendar
    • Miami.com
    • Contests & Promotions
    • Sections
    • All Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Op-Ed
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Jim Morin
    • Letters to the Editor
    • From Our Inbox
    • Speak Up
    • Submit a Letter
    • Meet the Editorial Board
    • Influencers Opinion
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Blog Directory
    • Columnist Directory
    • Andres Oppenheimer
    • Carl Hiaasen
    • Leonard Pitts Jr.
    • Fabiola Santiago
    • Obituaries
    • Obituaries in the News
    • Place an Obituary

    • Place an ad
    • All Classifieds
    • Announcements
    • Apartments
    • Auctions/Sales
    • Automotive
    • Commercial Real Estate
    • Employment
    • Garage Sales
    • Legals
    • Merchandise
    • Obituaries
    • Pets
    • Public Notices
    • Real Estate
    • Services
  • Public Notices
  • Cars
  • Jobs
  • Moonlighting
  • Real Estate
  • Mobile & Apps

  • el Nuevo Herald
  • Miami.com
  • Indulge

Armando Salguero

Dolphins In Depth

Armando Salguero: Love hard to come by in first round for Miami Dolphins

By Armando Salguero

    ORDER REPRINT →

April 17, 2013 12:01 AM

The NFL Draft is at some level about falling in love.

Personnel men, scout and coaches watch games or study tape, then meet with the prospects. There are frank conversations. There are shared meals. And as the courtship progresses, these men representing teams find themselves loving some of the players they have studied and met.

They love a tough player’s heart, they love an offensive lineman’s feet or punch, they love a receiver’s hands or speed or quickness, they love a cornerback’s hips. They love a player’s value.

It takes that love for an NFL team to commit to a kid in the first round, particularly early in the first round, because there are reputations and jobs and a lot of money riding on how well that love is rewarded.

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to the Miami Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

So it’s a problem when a team doesn’t necessarily love the players it might be in a position to draft. And that’s where the Dolphins find themselves right now.

Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland says he has “a pretty good idea of three or four guys that I am looking at, absolutely.” He says he’s excited about the prospects in this draft. He believes the Dolphins will eventually land a good player.

But is he in love with one player right now, as he was last year when he already knew weeks before the draft he was picking quarterback Ryan Tannehill in the first round?

Is Ireland in love with a player he believes is the perfect marriage of ability and availability at No.12?

Not yet.

The offensive tackle position, one of significant need for the Dolphins following the free agent departure of Jake Long, is a perfect example of the Dolphins’ quandary. The club loves Texas A&M’s Luke Joeckel and even Central Michigan’s Eric Fisher.

But because this draft probably will not have two or three quarterbacks drafted in the top-10 picks like last year, those two offensive tackles will be long gone by the time Miami’s turn comes in the first round.

And the other highly rated offensive tackle, Oklahoma’s Lane Johnson, also might be gone when Miami picks, but even if he isn’t, Ireland isn’t totally in love with the prospect of picking him.

The Dolphins’ general manager likes Johnson. Believes he will be a first-round selection. Believes he will play in the NFL. But he has questions about Johnson’s game that keep him from loving the guy.

And Johnson is not the only player who presents issues for the Dolphins.

The Dolphins need help at cornerback — regardless of Ireland’s insistence that the position is well-manned — so if Florida State’s Xavier Rhodes, big and physical and more than fast enough, could play zone and off-man techniques as well as he plays press, he might be the pick at No. 12.

But the Dolphins don’t think Rhodes is suited for their defense. He’s not a good fit for their system.

“We don’t play a ton of press, but we do play a lot of man-to-man. There is a difference,” Ireland said. “So, is it extremely important that we get a guy who plays 90 percent press? No it’s not, but it’s important that the guy we draft can play man-to-man. But also, we play some zone and we play some off-man. Off-man is very difficult. There is a different skill set to that, so finding a guy that can have a pretty good skill set that is not strictly one thing or the other is important.”

Rhodes and Johnson aren’t the only players the Dolphins don’t exactly love. Tavon Austin is a great slot receiver and perhaps the most promising playmaker in the draft.

But he’s barely 5-9, and his shorter arms don’t make him a good target on the outside for Tannehill. And Ireland loves players with prototypical size. And the Dolphins just spent a ton of money on signing three receivers in free agency.

So the Dolphins like Austin. But for the stated reasons, they don’t quite love him.

The truth is some players would be easier to love if Miami wasn’t picking so high. The Dolphins really like Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro, who was in town visiting the team Tuesday. They really like defensive tackles Sheldon Richardson and Sylvester Williams, cornerback D.J. Hayden and even Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o.

So are the Dolphins ready to commit to any of those players at No. 12? No, they all appear possibilities in a trade-down scenario, where the increased value of the picks could bring the Dolphins to loving any of those players, particularly Vaccaro.

But if the club stays at No.12, love will continue to be hard to find. Defensive tackle Star Lotulelei is great example of that.

He’s more than a good value at No. 12. He plays a position that Randy Starks and Paul Soliai currently play, so that makes him a good fit for the future because Starks is tied only by a one-year franchise tag and Soliai is in the final year of his contract.

But Lotulelei’s problems are he admittedly takes some plays off and he also plays a position that is not a huge need right now. Next year? Sure. But now? No.

So can Ireland get past those issues and pick Lotulelei?

It would depend on if he finds a way to love the guy.

Related stories from Miami Herald

latest-news

Lane Johnson a possibility for Miami Dolphins if they trade up in NFL Draft

April 17, 2013 12:01 AM

latest-news

Possible Miami Dolphins draft prospect, safety Kenny Vaccaro, is in town

April 17, 2013 12:01 AM

HOMEPAGE

Miami Dolphins Blog | Dolphins in Depth

January 07, 2012 11:41 AM

  Comments  

Videos

If you’re going to the theater, show some respect!

Honduran Immigrant Reina Gomez Ramírez, who has a rare blood disorder, can stay in the U.S. for one more year

View More Video

Trending Stories

Federal prosecutors broke law in Jeffrey Epstein case, judge rules

February 21, 2019 02:51 PM

Americans arrested in Haiti with arsenal of guns won’t face U.S. charges

February 21, 2019 04:06 PM

These players Miami Dolphins are discussing in team’s plans. These they’re not, probably aren’t

February 21, 2019 03:08 PM

He quit the NFL to save lives. Now this former FSU star is accused of sexual harassment

February 20, 2019 12:04 PM

Kyler Murray available to Miami at No. 13 overall would be great for multiple reasons

February 20, 2019 12:34 AM

Read Next

These players Miami Dolphins are discussing in team’s plans. These they’re not, probably aren’t

Armando Salguero

These players Miami Dolphins are discussing in team’s plans. These they’re not, probably aren’t

By Armando Salguero

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 21, 2019 03:08 PM

The Dolphins, with a newly empowered general manager and new coaching staff, are talking up players they see as pat of the future, but are declining to talk about prominent players such as QB Ryan Tannehill because he’s probably not in their future plans.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to the Miami Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE ARMANDO SALGUERO

Kyler Murray available to Miami at No. 13 overall would be great for multiple reasons

Armando Salguero

Kyler Murray available to Miami at No. 13 overall would be great for multiple reasons

February 20, 2019 12:34 AM
Rating Reggie McKenzie’s Oakland drafts a preview of what he can bring to Miami Dolphins

Armando Salguero

Rating Reggie McKenzie’s Oakland drafts a preview of what he can bring to Miami Dolphins

February 19, 2019 12:59 AM
Miami Dolphins rebuild? Here’s a plan for an aggressive tear-down to start

Armando Salguero

Miami Dolphins rebuild? Here’s a plan for an aggressive tear-down to start

February 08, 2019 12:37 AM
Brian Flores arms self with powerful weapon other Dolphins coaches didn’t utilize

Armando Salguero

Brian Flores arms self with powerful weapon other Dolphins coaches didn’t utilize

February 07, 2019 12:21 AM
No one buys Dolphins keeping Tannehill while Chris Grier might have hurt QB’s trade value

Armando Salguero

No one buys Dolphins keeping Tannehill while Chris Grier might have hurt QB’s trade value

February 06, 2019 02:23 AM
The task for new Dolphins coach Brian Flores is simple: Do the impossible

Armando Salguero

The task for new Dolphins coach Brian Flores is simple: Do the impossible

February 04, 2019 07:38 PM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Icon for mobile apps

Miami Herald App

View Newsletters

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
  • Public Insight Network
  • Reader Panel
Advertising
  • Place a Classified
  • Media Kit
  • Commercial Printing
  • Public Notices
Copyright
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story