Where Dolphins stand with their Hurricane collection. And exploring Day 2 Dolphins options

A Dolphins six-pack as we await the start of Round 2:

▪ Fans have complained over the years that the Dolphins haven’t mined the Canes for enough talent, but Jaelan Phillips is the 18th Hurricane selected by the Dolphins, the most drafted by the Dolphins from any school.

The others, with year drafted followed by round; the overall number of the selection; position and name:

▪ The Dolphins on Friday did not give North Carolina running back Javonte Williams any idea if they will draft him if he’s on the board at 36 on Friday, but they have made clear their interest. In recent weeks, he met with the coaching staff and front office on Zoom.

It’s possible the Jets or Falcons could select him 34th or 35th, before Miami picks 36th.

If the Dolphins don’t get Williams, they could use a middle-round pick on Oklahoma’s Rhamondre Stevenson or UNC’s Michael Carter — both of whom they coached at the Senior Bowl.

Stevenson fits the profile of the bigger back, which Miami needs, as would Oklahoma State’s Chuba Hubbard. And keep an eye on Virginia Tech’s Khalil Herbert, who impressed Dolphins coaches in Mobile.

▪ As we noted on our podcast with Adam Beasley, one challenge with sorting out the Dolphins’ receiving room is they likely will need to keep either Mac Hollins or Robert Foster as a gunner on special teams.

DeVante Parker, Jaylen Waddle and Will Fuller are obviously going to be on the team, and Preston Williams and Lynn Bowden are likely to stick.

So if Hollins or Foster is the sixth receiver, the question is how is there room for any among Jakeem Grant, Allen Hurns, Albert Wilson or Malcolm Perry?

It’s possible any of those four could be dealt for a late-round pick. One of them conceivably could stick as a seventh receiver, but few teams keep that many.

▪ We reported earlier this week that the Dolphins had no plans to take Penei Sewell at No. 6, but I do expect the Dolphins to take at least one offensive linemen at 36 or 50 or 81.

The question is whether it’s an offensive tackle (Oklahoma State offensive tackle Tevin Jenkins, Notre Dame guard/tackle Liam Eichenberg, Stanford’s Walker Little, Michigan’s Jalen Mayfield or North Dakota State’s Dillon Radunz would be justified second round picks) or a center (Alabama’s Landon Dickerson, Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey or Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Quinn Meinerz could all be justified selections on Friday).

If the Dolphins don’t take a center on day two, Georgia’s Trey Hill is a third-day option on Miami’s radar.

Right tackle isn’t pressing, with Jesse Davis and D.J. Fluker able to handle the position in 2021.

▪ You cannot rule out inside linebacker or safety if Miami goes best available at 36 and 50.

Notre Dame’s Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah could be the best player on the board to start the second round, and Missouri’s Nick Bolton and LSU’s Jabril Cox are worthy day 3 picks.

In that scenario - with one of those players drafted to play alongside Jerome Baker - the Dolphins could shift Benardrick McKinney to outside linebacker; he said he’s comfortable playing that position.

Several evaluators, including ESPN’s Todd McShay and NFL Net’s Charles Davis, have said Owusu-Koramoah would have been a justified pick for Miami at 18.

The top four safeties are on the board entering Day 2: TCU’s Trevor Moehrig, Oregon’s Javon Holland, UCF’s Richie Grant and Syracuse’s Andre Cisco.

And Alabama’s Christian Barmore remains available, giving the Dolphins the option of spending second-round picks two consecutive years on Alabama defensive tackles and making it work with a front three of Barmore, Raekwon Davis and Christian Wilkins.

And NFL Network reported Georgia and former Plantation American Heritage cornerback Tyson Campbell is going to come off the board very quickly on Friday night. Though the Dolphins don’t need another cornerback, nothing should be ruled out with this regime, which is full of surprises. A cornerback on Friday wouldn’t shock me.

▪ NFL Net’s Daniel Jeremiah with a prediction on Jaylen Waddle: “You are never going to see this kid get caught. It doesn’t happen on the tape. Ludicrous speed.”

Stanford coach David Shaw said Waddle “reminds me of Deion Sanders.”

▪ Mel Kiper Jr. listed the Dolphins as a Round 1 winner, with this explanation:

“I had Waddle behind his teammate DeVonta Smith, but he was my fifth-ranked prospect overall, and I can’t quibble with Miami preferring Waddle. He is electric with the ball in his hands, and he’ll really help Tua Tagovailoa improve his yards per attempt. Later, Miami picked up the draft’s best pure pass-rusher in Phillips, who gets to stay in Miami and get after quarterbacks under Brian Flores. Phillips might have been a top-10 pick had he not had a history of injuries from his time at UCLA. It’s another solid first round for Miami.”

Here’s my Thursday night story with tons of reaction and nuggets on Jaylen Waddle.

Here’s my Thursday night piece with eight analysts assessing Jaelan Phillips.

This story was originally published April 30, 2021 at 4:15 PM.

Barry Jackson

Miami Herald

305-376-3491

Barry Jackson has written for the Miami Herald since 1986 and has written the Florida Sports Buzz column since 2002.