Dolphins offensive depth chart reveals draft intentions at a cornerstone (not QB) position
Do you know who Adam Pankey is? I understand if you don’t. Truth is the only reason I know is because he started in the season finale for the Miami Dolphins last season, after joining the team on December 10.
Pankey was claimed off waivers from the Green Bay Packers, who waived or signed Pankey no less than 10 times since 2017 when they first signed him as an undrafted free agent out of West Virginia.
Don’t be impressed I know this. I’m paid to know this stuff.
(Plus I have a postseason guide).
But Adam Pankey, mostly anonymous to Dolphins fans, is a very important name today because he serves as a huge clue to the Dolphins’ 2020 NFL draft plans.
Pankey is the Dolphins’ backup offensive tackle right now.
If you believe Ereck Flowers was signed to play guard, which he was after playing tackle with the New York Giants earlier in his career, then Pankey is the only backup tackle on Miami’s roster.
I will prove it to you. This is the unofficial two-deep depth chart for the Dolphins offense as it currently stands:
QB: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Josh Rosen.
RB: Jordan Howard, Patrick Laird.
WR: DeVante Parker, Jakeem Grant.
WR: Preston Williams. Allen Hurns.
WR: Albert Wilson, Isaiah Ford.
TE: Mike Gesicki, Durham Smythe.
LT: Julie’n Davenport, Adam Pankey
LG: Ereck Flowers, Michael Deiter.
C: Ted Karras, Keaton Sutherland.
RG: Michael Deiter or Danny Isidora or Shaq Calhoun.
RT: Jesse Davis, Adam Pankey.
[NOTE: If you want to view what the two-deep defensive depth chart looks like and what that means go here.]
Pankey is a twisted ankle, pulled hamstring or other minor injury from being in the game and protecting Miami’s investment at quarterback — which we all know will be sizable when the Dolphins draft a quarterback in the first round on April 23.
I’m telling you all this because there is no way the Dolphins should ask Pankey to shoulder that burden. I mean, the guy has potential, he’s young and he has some NFL traits.
But if Miami’s depth chart after the draft still suggests Pankey is one play away at either tackle spot when the Dolphins have 14 draft picks in the coming draft, then somebody in the Dolphins front office should be fired. Period.
And being quite certain the folks in the Dolphins’ personnel department have no desire to be fired, I can pretty much guarantee they will move heaven and earth — and perhaps multiple draft picks — to correct this situation.
So what does that mean?
The Miami Dolphins will definitely be drafting an offensive tackle in the coming draft. And it’s even possible the team might try to pick a couple of tackles in the draft.
I know this.
A club source has said this to me. And more importantly the Pankey situation tells me so.
The question then becomes who are the Dolphins thinking can fill that tackle pick or picks in the next few weeks?
Seriously? I can see a scenario where the Dolphins pick at quarterback at No. 5 overall and then pick a tackle at No. 18 overall and No. 26 overall — a first round in which the Dolphins go QB, OT, OT.
I can also see a scenario where the Dolphins pick their QB at No. 5, then trade up from No. 18 using other draft assets, such as one of their second-round picks, to try to pick an offensive tackle in the top 10-12 spots.
And the least likely of all the scenarios — which I’m not dismissing because it’s coming from the same person who told me the Dolphins wanted to sign Byron Jones and I dismissed it — is the Dolphins use the No. 5 selection on an offensive tackle and then add the QB later in the first round.
The way the draft sets up, the Dolphins should be able to land an offensive tackle in the first round.
And the way their picks set up, with six selections in the first 70 picks, there is no reason Miami can’t find two starting offensive tackles among the bunch.
So names ...
You know Chris Grier loves Jedrick Wills. The Alabama tackle makes sense if the Dolphins are picking him at No. 5 overall, which is probably a bit high, or if the team is taking the QB at No. 5 and then trading back into the first 10 or so picks.
You know Fake GM Mando loves Georgia tackle Andrew Thomas, and the Dolphins have done significant work on him, including meeting with him at the NFL Combine and doing the video chats all the teams are now doing with prospects.
I’m told picking Thomas at No. 5 is probably overdrafting him. I think he’s the best tackle in the draft, so I have no issues picking him at No. 5. But he’s more likely a guy the Dolphins look at picking No. 18 overall or perhaps trading up from 18 to get if they value him that way.
Speaking of Georgia, a team the Dolphins historically love to scout, they have right tackle Isaiah Wilson, who is a 6-foot-7 and 350-pound mountain. He is a candidate for one of Miami’s second-round picks.
I love Thomas because he’s a clean player. No issues off the field, great attitude, great in the locker room, and great on the field. I love Wilson because he’s nasty. Nasty is good for an offensive lineman.
Assuming the Dolphins pick their quarterback at No. 5 and still have picks No. 18 and No. 26, the offensive tackle candidates to be selected there are:
Houston’s Josh Johnson, USC’s Austin Jackson, and maybe Boise’s Ezra Cleveland. Cleveland feels more like a second-rounder to me. The Dolphins have liked Boise players through the years but most of them — such as cornerback Jamar Taylor — have not lived up to expectations. I guess Jay Ajayi in the fifth round helped the Dolphins for one season so he’s the exception.
Third-round possibilities include Auburn’s Prince Tega Wanogho, who is still learning the game, LSU’s Saahdiq Charles, who did solid work protecting Joe Burrow, and TCU’s Lucas Niang.
This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 12:07 AM.
