Finsmob Unleashed

The Dolphins first pick was made and it was a good one. I was definitely hoping we would choose an edge rusher. O-line should definitely be the next priority, but I felt EDGE was our top need. To be honest, it wasn’t Robinson that was my first choice. He wasn’t my second choice either. I was hoping Laiatu Latu fell, or Jared Verse, but as it happens, neither of them made it to our pick, but the need was still addressed. So for that I’m pleased. Brian in NY and M both both watch Penn State religiously, and Brian vouches for Chop, so I’m cool with that. What worries me is his lack of sacks at the college level, but he has what you can’t teach, maybe the most impressive burst in this draft class, and tremendous closing speed. Hopefully, the rest is coachable, and that results in a lot more production at the pro level. He’ll be ready to go right out of the chute, and they will use him in favorable situations.

We’ve discussed it here so many times, but the truth is we have no idea what the timetable is for our 2 OLB’s, Bradley Chubb (ACL surgery) and Jaelan Phillips (Achilles surgery), so therefore I felt, and the Dolphins brass also felt that OLB was as much as a priority as the O-line. In addition, the depth quality at EDGE is nowhere as deep as the O-line is, so I think we can still land a quality OL at #55. Players like, Zach Frazier OG Cooper Beebe, Christian Hayes, and Zak Zinter could help us now and down the line. One thing though about our first pick Chop Robinson though is that he will probably be a rotational player and used at multiple positions to maximize his skills. While that’s good, it’s also going to put a lot on his plate, so hopefully he’s up for that challenge. The comparison for Chop is Micah Parsons, but as one NFC scout said :

“I get the comparison to Micah Parsons, but I think Parsons was a little more polished as a football player when he came out. Chop is still a little green.” – NFC national scout

Another thing to consider is how much longer is Bradley Chubb with the team? This is his 2nd ACL surgery, and not that ends any NFL player’s career these days, I mean Frank Gore had 2 ACL surgeries before he got to the NFL, and he played 16 seasons and rushed for 16,000 yards. Chubb’s dead cap hit will be high in ’25 and in ’26, but it’s still possible he’s gone after this season or next, and of course Jaelan Phillips had his 5th year option picked up, but we saw Christian Wilkins walk, if Phillips has a great season this season and we haven’t already given him an extension, that could go poorly for us like it did with Wilkins.

As I’ve previously mentioned, the flux on the O-line is real, there are a lot of players that are here on one year contracts, so we need to find some players that will be here for a while, so I very strongly feel our next pick will be for the O-line. Sure, we could use a Safety, we could use another WR, a RB who runs with a nasty demeanor and has a little power to push the pile on short yardage plays and more. With the addition of TE Jonnu Smith, I put the priority low for TE. If Weaver follows suit from Ravens DC Mike McDonald, the safety position is important as he likes Swiss Army knife guys that play in multiple positions, so at some point in the draft I’d expect a safety to be chosen by us. Oregon State’s Kitan Oladapo who is a big Safety 6’2 216, more like a SS, but could due to his size play a little LB and excel in pass coverage against a TE. Utah’s Cole Bishop is another longer player who can also potentially cover a TE. Everyone’s favorite here thoough is Iowa’s Cooper DeJean, who is listed as a CB, but has Safety potential in the NFL. Don’t be surprised if Grier trades back either, considering once again, the huge gap between our picks from RD2 – RD5, over a 100!

GO DOLPHINS!!!