Miami Dolphins face another draft quandary at running back, including with Alabama’s Harris
There’s no question that elite Alabama running back Najee Harris would upgrade the Miami Dolphins’ running game.
The conundrum is not only whether the Dolphins can find the sweet spot in the draft to select him but also whether they can avoid a repeat of last April’s nightmarish scenario, when the Dolphins missed out on all of the draft’s top backs because they were tempted instead to take players at other positions.
Besides the third pick in April’s draft, the Dolphins also have the 18th, 36th and 50th picks, plus five other later selections. Much of that would change, of course, if Miami trades for disgruntled Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson, who has not been made available by the Texans. Houston owner Cal McNair reiterated Friday that “Deshaun is our quarterback... and we expect him to remain a Texan.”
But here’s the issue: Eighteen might be too soon to pick either of the draft’s top two backs — Harris or Clemson’s Travis Etienne.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has Harris as the first running back selected, 30th overall, by Buffalo. ESPN’s Todd McShay has Etienne 23rd and Harris 30th. But both could be off the board by Miami’s pick at 36.
Last year, the first running back drafted was Clyde Edwards-Helaire, by Kansas City, at 32.
So the dilemma is whether the Dolphins take Harris at 18; trade down from 18 to take Harris or Etienne later in the first round; or take their chances that a quality back will be there at 36 or 50, with Ohio State’s Trey Sermon and North Carolina’s Javonte Williams likely in play there. There’s an outside chance that Harris or Etienne could slip to 36, but Miami cannot count on that.
Waiting until 36 for a running back would allow the Dolphins to take a skilled defender at 18 — perhaps defensive ends Greg Rousseau (UM) or Kwity Paye (Michigan) — or another receiver such as Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman. But Harris could be sacrificed in the process.
McShay was impressed that Harris showed up at the Senior Bowl despite an injury. “He could have been an early second-round pick,” McShay said. “Now he’s the No. 1 running back in this class. And it’s because of the competitiveness and toughness he has shown throughout the year. Speed, power, pass-catching and pass-protection ability, Harris brings it all.”
One longtime former general manager said if he were the Dolphins, he would opt for Harris over Clemson’s Etienne and any other running back in this class.
Harris (6-2, 230 pounds) ran 251 times for 1,466 yards (a 5.8 average) and 26 touchdowns and caught 43 passes for 425 yards (a 9.9 average) and four more touchdowns in 2020. So that’s 30 touchdowns in 13 games as a senior.
And this is notable: Harris forced more missed tackles after the catch than any other Power 5 player (22).
“You can’t say he’s going to be as good as [former Alabama running back] Derrick Henry, but he’s better than Henry coming out of college,” said the former GM, who asked for anonymity because he’s still involved in the league. “Besides the power, he looks like he has the speed. It’s not 3 yards and a cloud of dust. To me, he would be a great pick.”
Longtime draft analyst Dane Brugler of The Athletic — who projects Harris to fall to the second round and Etienne to go 32nd (in a trade to Miami) in his latest mock draft — says: “It has been remarkable to see [Harris’] development from his sophomore year to senior year. Night [and] day difference in his reads, patience, tempo, etc. If Harris came out last season, he’s likely a mid-third rounder. Now? He has a chance to be a top-32 draft pick.”
NFL.com lead draft analyst Lance Zierlein said: “Najee Harris has improved his stock so much from the player I saw on tape during the summer. I’ve asked NFL personnel people and they agree as well. Najee isn’t going to run very fast [at his Pro Day], which could cause him to fall a little.”
Former Dolphins vice president/football operations Mike Tannenbaum, now with ESPN, said Harris’ pass protection is another asset: “He will come in and be ready made. I remember a couple years ago we drafted Kenyan Drake; he was a little bit of a smaller guy, but he came in with a great skill set and he knew how to pass protect from Day One.”
A veteran NFC scout said: “I would take Harris over Etienne. I’m still into the old mold of bigger is better in the NFL. You can get away with being undersized in college. I like Harris; he’s big and strong and powerful, has good hands. I don’t see Harris being special, but I think he’ll be good.”
That scout said he would prefer waiting until the second round for a running back and would be content with North Carolina’s Williams.
Dolphins coach Brian Flores emerged from Senior Bowl week praising three backs he coached there: Michael Carter (North Carolina), Rhamondre Stevenson (Oklahoma) and Khalil Herbert (Virginia Tech).
“All three of those guys had good weeks,” Flores said. “They’re all a little bit different. But they all have good skill sets. Stevenson’s a big back with good vision. Carter has got real good quickness, balance. Herbert’s the same. All three of them have good hands and can catch the ball out of the backfield.”
Agent Drew Rosenhaus -- during his weekly WSVN-Fox 7 segment -- predicted at least half of Miami’s draft picks will be players they coached at the Senior Bowl.
What’s clear is Miami cannot leave itself in the same predicament as the 2020 draft, when it kept passing on backs that the organization liked to address other positions, only to be left without one altogether.
DOLPHINS ATTEND LAWRENCE SESSION
According to NFL Network, the Dolphins were among 13 teams that were represented at Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s throwing session in front of NFL teams on Friday in South Carolina.
Lawrence is expected to be selected first overall by Jacksonville, two spots before the Dolphins select third overall, a pick acquired from Houston in the Laremy Tunsil trade.
So Miami’s attendance was mostly a case of due diligence. It also provided the Dolphins an opportunity to watch Clemson draft-eligible receiver Cornell Powell catch passes. Powell had 53 receptions for 882 yards last season (a 16.6 average) and seven touchdowns.
Former Jets receiver Charone Peake and former 49ers practice squad receiver Chris Finke were the other players catching passes from Lawrence.
WATSON DINNER
Watson dined with Dolphins players Christian Wilkins and Raekwon Davis in South Florida on Thursday night, and the group took a photo afterward that circulated on social media.
But there was a good explanation for the dinner even beyond Wilkins and Watson having a relationship as former Clemson teammates: All three players are represented by Athletes First; Bryan Burney, who handles marketing for the company, also was in attendance.
This story was originally published February 12, 2021 at 4:23 PM.
