Tagovailoa reportedly ahead of schedule, and Dolphins face this other tough decision
A six-pack of Miami Dolphins notes on a Tuesday:
▪ Daniel Jeremiah, NFL Network’s lead draft analyst, unveiled his first mock draft Tuesday, and naturally, Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is slotted to the Dolphins at No. 5 because that’s apparently the requirement for every mock draft on Earth.
But when I look at the players Jeremiah had heading to the Dolphins at 18 via the Pittsburgh pick (Georgia running back D’Andre Swift) and 26 via the Houston pick (Southern California offensive lineman Austin Jackson), one question inevitably came to mind, as it will for the next three months:
Will the Dolphins end up with the 18th and 26th overall picks or only the 18th? Or will their two second-round picks need to be sacrificed for Tua?
As word spreads that Tagovailoa is ahead of schedule in recovery from hip surgery — with NFL Network the latest to report that last week — you can be sure that the Detroit Lions, sitting at No. 3 in the draft, eventually will tell the Dolphins that it would behoove them to give them that 26th pick or a zillion second-round picks to move up from No. 5 to No. 3 to ensure they get Tagovailoa and prevent any real chance of being jumped by the Jaguars or Chargers or any other Tua-craving team.
(This presumes that the Redskins will snap up Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young at No. 2, after LSU quarterback Joe Burrow goes first to Cincinnati.)
The whole question of the offseason is whether the Dolphins will ultimately deem it necessary to move up and the cost to do so. It would be a somewhat painful, but potentially necessary, step if they believe Tagovailoa will be the elite quarterback they’ve lacked this century.
As we’ve reported, the Dolphins love Tagovailoa’s skills. But they want to have a comfort level with his medicals before pursuing him at No. 5 or in a possible trade up. Agent Leigh Steinberg is doing his job by telling everyone how well Tua is recovering, but the Dolphins will want to see it for themselves.
“The reason that there’s optimism is people around him say you wouldn’t know he had surgery six or eight weeks ago, whatever it was,” NFL Network analyst Mike Garafolo said on Saturday. “The way he’s moving around. He’s training twice a day with the first workout starting at 4:30 in the morning ... He’s getting a lot done.
“Apparently, these workouts are going extremely well. That’s why his agent Leigh Steinberg is saying he’s going to throw separately for teams in April.”
If the Dolphins love Tua in April every bit as much as they do now — and if they’re convinced his health isn’t a huge risk — then they might ultimately decide to move up to avoid being leapfrogged.
But make no mistake: It would sting at least a bit, because if you give up the 26th pick or both of your second round picks, you are taking away a potential starting running back (Swift or Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor or Ohio State’s JK Dobbins), a potential starting offensive tackle (Jackson or Houston’s Josh Jones or Iowa’s Tristan Wilfs if he surprisingly slips) or a potential starting edge rusher (Boise State’s Curtis Weaver or Auburn’s Marlon Davidson or Wisconsin’s Zach Baun, as examples) or perhaps a cornerback.
Perhaps the Dolphins, in this scenario, could entice the Lions with one of their two first-round picks in 2021 or multiple second-round picks (Miami has two this year, two next year).
After all, the Jets moved from 6 to 3 to take Sam Darnold by giving the Colts the Jets’ first-round selection (6th), two second-round pick (37th and 49th), and a second-round selection in 2019.
Perhaps general manager Chris Grier counters with something like that, but keep in mind that Tua — before the hip injury — was considered a better prospect than Darnold.
If the Lions insist on the 26th pick, and Grier feels like his back is against the wall, he should ask for a second-day draft pick from the Lions as part of a trade. So perhaps something like the 3rd overall pick and a second-rounder for the fifth and 26th overall picks.
If Tagovailoa checks out medically, this cat-and-mouse game with the Lions becomes the most intriguing story of the draft for Miami, and one of the most important trade negotiations that Grier will ever handle.
Bottom line: Grier cannot lose a chance to get a franchise QB but he can’t get snookered, either, and that’s a tough line to navigate, with no clear-cut right answer.
▪ The Dolphins told safety Adrian Colbert in his exit meeting that they would like to keep him. But it remains to be seen if Miami will use the lowest tender on him ($2.2 million) or bring him back for less. Colbert, who started Miami’s final five games, could compete with Steven Parker and others for a third or fourth safety role next season.
▪ Though safety doesn’t appear to be a big need, don’t rule out a Dolphins pursuit of Patriots free agent Devin McCourty. We’re told Brian Flores holds him in high regard. Miami could always pair McCourty or another veteran safety with Eric Rowe and move Bobby McCain back to nickel cornerback. We’re not predicting a McCourty pursuit will definitely happen; we’re merely saying we’ve been told Flores likes the player.
Among other impending Patriots free agents, Miami is expected to call about linebacker Kyle Van Noy and guard Joe Thuney.
▪ One player said nobody was very upset about the dismissal of offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea because some (not all) didn’t like his play-calling. They liked O’Shea personally. He has since resurfaced as passing game coordinator and receivers coach for the Cleveland Browns.
▪ We hear linebacker Raekwon McMillan has gone from a player the Dolphins weren’t sure about to one they want to keep around through this rebuild…. Restricted free agents who could be in line for multi-year deals include linebacker Vince Biegel and punter Matt Haack.
▪ Flores, asked this week about hiring an Ohio high school coach, Curt Kuntz, as assistant defensive backs coach: “It’s funny, I think there are good coaches in Pop Warner, high school, college, NFL level. I think there’s this idea that because it’s a high school coach, he’s not ready to coach in the NFL. I just don’t agree with that.
“Good teachers are good teachers are good teachers. That’s what coaching is about. It’s about putting guys in good position. Teaching the fundamentals, teaching the techniques. In my conversations with Kurt, I got the sense that he was definitely that. There are actually a lot of coaches in the National Football League that were high school coaches at one time.”
How did he even learn of Kuntz?
“I’ve always got my eyes out for good coaches. I happen to meet them in varying ways. Sometimes it’s by chance, at the supermarket. When you’re a coach, people come up to you and talk to you about where they’re coaching, the things they’re doing. I get to meet a lot of people that way, and Kurt was one of them.”
This story was originally published January 21, 2020 at 4:49 PM.
