This Dolphins rookie was told he would be drafted by the Bengals. And another starter lost.
A six-pack of Dolphins notes on a Tuesday:
▪ Nik Needham, one of the two undrafted rookie pleasant surprises on this Dolphins team, figured he would on the other sideline when Cincinnati and Miami meet on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
According to Needham, on the third day of the draft, a Bengals official called him and “said we have a lot of picks in the sixth round and you’re our guy and we’re going to draft you.”
That never happened, and when the Bengals called again, “they said they didn’t have any picks left” and it wouldn’t be happening.
Needham said he will “remember that” when the teams play Sunday.
“That will give me a little extra motivation,” he said.
Instead of drafting Needham, the Bengals drafted Texas A&M running back Trayveon Williams, Auburn linebacker Deshaun Davis and Oklahoma running back Rodney Anderson in the sixth round and South Dakota State cornerback in the seventh round.
Williams has been a special teams player without a carry; Davis was released by the Bengals and then Jaguars and is not in the league; and Anderson sustained a torn ACL in the Bengals’ preseason finale. The cornerback selected, Brown, was released by Cincinnati Aug. 31, and is now on Oakland’s practice squad.
So Cincinnati obviously should have drafted Needham.
Needham — along with injured receiver Preston Williams — has been one of two potential keepers to emerge from this undrafted rookie class for the Dolphins.
Needham ranked 24th in passer rating against among all NFL cornerbacks just two weeks ago, but is now 57th among cornerbacks who have been targeted at least 50 times after a couple of tough weeks.
Opposing quarterbacks have a 108 passer rating in Needham’s coverage area, having completed 33 of 60 targets for 510 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions.
▪ The Dolphins placed linebacker Raekwon McMillan on season-ending injured reserve with a hamstring injury and signed veteran linebacker Calvin Munson off New England’s practice squad. Undrafted out of San Diego State in 2017, Munson played 14 games with five starts for the Giants in 2017, producing 55 tackles, two sacks and one forced fumble. He spent much of the past two seasons on New England’s practice squad. McMillan finished with 72 tackles in 13 games, including 12 starts.
▪ ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay’s first mock draft has the Dolphins selecting Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa fourth overall (Miami currently holds the third spot) and then using the Pittsburgh first-round pick on Boise State defensive end Curtis Weaver at No. 20 and the Houston first-round pick on Alabama offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood at number 24.
Of Weaver, McShay said: ”It makes the most sense, considering the range, value and need, to go with an edge rusher here for Miami’s second pick. Weaver is extremely productive — 13.5 sacks this season — and one of the more underrated talents in the class. Stacking him next to 2019 top pick Christian Wilkins is certainly a good place to start in rebuilding the defensive line.”
On Leatherwood, McShay said: “Miami has allowed an NFL-high 54 sacks, and there are two games yet to be played. And if you’re going to use a top-five pick on a quarterback with an injury history, you better take a long look at your offensive line, too. Leatherwood can play tackle or guard and has good pop and quickness. This is a great value pick here to close out Miami’s eventful first round.”
▪ According to Pro Football Focus, the Dolphins who graded out the best on offense on Sunday against the Giants were tight end Durham Smythe, receiver Albert Wilson and right tackle Jesse Davis. Among players with at least 10 snaps, PFF said running back Patrick Laird, receiver Isaiah Ford and guard Shaq Calhoun graded out the worst.
On defense, PFF said linebackers Jerome Baker and Vince Biegel and safety Montre Hartage graded out the best, and linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel and Needham graded out the worst.
The coverage numbers among the four cornerbacks — all undrafted — were not good. Nate Brooks, in his NFL debut, allowed all three passes thrown against him to be caught for 36 yards and a touchdown and had a pass interference called against him. Linden Stephens, making his NFL debut, allowed his only target to be caught for 15 yards.
Needham allowed three of five targets to be caught for 102 yards, a touchdown and an interception. And Jomal Wiltz allowed five of seven to be caught for 63 yards.
▪ Quick stuff: Offensive tackle Julien Davenport allowed a sack on Sunday and has now given up six in six games, per PFF. Flores said “we’ve harped on consistency with technique” with him.... Center Daniel Kilgore permitted a sack Sunday and now has relinquished three this season. A decision looms on whether to bring him back for a nonguaranteed $3.1 million, with no cap hit if he’s cut.... The Dolphins have been using Sam Eguavoen as a pass rusher more recently than they did earlier in the season, and he responded with two sacks in the past three games. But the pass rush overall remains absymal. The Dolphins’ 18 sacks are the fewest in the league, with the Bengals next at 23.
▪ The last word: Apparently Ryan Fitzpatrick is not only good at sustaining a long career and being a leader, but also at comedy.
One thing Fitzpatrick has done multiple times in the huddle this season: “make funny faces,” according to guard Evan Boehm. The objective? “To lighten the mood” before or during a stressful period of the game, Boehm said.
Fitzpatrick, incidentally, is third-worst among starting AFC quarterbacks in passer rating at 81.9, ahead of only Baker Mayfield (78.7) and Andy Dalton (75.2). Among NFC quarterbacks, only Kyle Allen (80.6) is worse than Fitzpatrick in passer rating.
This story was originally published December 17, 2019 at 4:40 PM.
