Been looking at Dolphins drafts from 1990-2016 and on average each draft produced one great player, one decent starter and one role-player. Choose one of each from this draft and tell us who you pick: 1 22 Charles Harris DE Missouri 2 54 Raekwon McMillan LB Ohio State 3 97 Cordrea Tankersley DB Clemson 5 164 Isaac Asiata OG Utah 5 178 Davon Godchaux DT Louisiana State 6 194 Vincent Taylor DT Oklahoma State 7 237 Isaiah Ford WR Virginia Tech My choices... Great Player: Cordrea Tankersley Starter: Raekwon McMillan Role-Player: Charles Harris What are yours for our 2017 draft's Great Player: Starter: Role-Player: ?
I will say that Harris being a role player is not a bad thing. If the FO wanted a situational pass rusher because they felt (for example) on 3rd down and passing situations, that we need more pressure on the qb's, then I'm all for it. I hope he develops. I think Asiata will be a great player. I think Miami knew they needed guards, but didn't want to overpay. So they probably had their scouts on Day 3 guys and focused energies on that. McMillan has a chance to start on a team that is starving for LBs. The prior formula did not work. we are slowly and steadily adding to this unit. Love the fact he went to a big school with big competition. I think our two DT's can be role guys. Again, this team is starving to stop the run and have someone that can team up with Suh. They just need to take up space and allow those LBs to make plays.
This is actually tougher to do than I thought it would be. Great: McMillan - I think he's got the potential to become a star at LB. Starter: Harris - He's going to be a fulltime DE for us IMO. Role: Taylor - I'm going to call him the role player. I like him better than Godchaux, and I think he's going to be a rotational DT for us. Im classing that as role player.
Great Player: Raekwon McMillan Best Chance at Being a Starter: Isaac Asiata Role-Player: Charles Harris I think Tankersley will be limited for a few reasons- for instance, he makes Vontae Davis look smart. That's the nicest way i could put it and I think he's going to struggle with anything that's not man on man. The only place he excels is when you say, "You see that player over there? Shut his *** down this game." Then he's one of the best corners around in that particular instance. That's just not what most NFL teams do these days so I don't see him as an every-down starter. Extreme talent though so who knows....hopefully he develops. McMillian is a workhorse though and he has the most potential to turn into a Pro Bowl candidate in time. This kid is super smart, amazing work ethic, coaches love him, etc. He's everything you look for but he's also not 100% NFL ready today. I'm guessing he will start on special teams and move into that OLB slot as a starter somewhere around mid-year. Once he gets there though, that's where he's going to stay for a very long time. For Asiata, he was the strongest linemen in the draft, grades extremely well in run blocking and has the type of frame you look for. Very explosive guy that hits hard and gives 100% on every play, although he struggles with pass coverage. Given that we plan on being 50/50 with running and passing, I think he gets the nod on day one except on obvious passing downs. For Harris, I think he will have to fight to climb the depth chart and I'm not convinced that his agility translates to being an NFL starter. If we add a 4th category of "Best Chance of Being a Bust", he'd get my vote. I love the way he plays though- very high intensity, eager to stunt/freelance, good knowledge, great frame, etc. I'm just afraid that he's too much of a one trick pony.
When your "one trick" is pressuring the QB, that's a valuable trick. One could make a case that Cam Wake is just a pass rusher. He's certainly not stellar vs the run. Today's NFL is highly specialized and situational. And sacks are great, but sometimes overrated. What is important is pressure. Making a QB throw sooner than he wanted, keeping him from going through all of his progressions, and throwing off the wrong foot are things that will help our CBs immensely.
Agree. And in another thread Pauly brought some heavy statistical analysis to bear on the question of what factors into team success the most. Well, improving our passer rating is the top factor. It stands to reason, then, that if you improve your defense the thing you'd MOST want to improve is the part that DECREASES your opponent's passer rating. Charles Harris, pass rush specialist, is perfectly designed to impact the outcome of games.
Have you seen Cam Wake without a shirt on lately? Big difference between him and Harris, which is why Wake is so dominant...he has the power and the speed/agility to impose his will. I don't see the direct comparison since Wake can beat you a dozen different ways. Harris has two ways- beat you to the edge or spin back into the gap. His third dominant move is to freelance and stunt between the guard/center after they're engaged...but that doesn't work as well against the fast releases in the NFL. So we'll see. I'm not saying Harris doesn't have potential; he's just not the slam-dunk all star that some are making him out to be. At this point I'd put him closer to Dion Jordan than Cam Wake on the talent level- he's raw and has a lot to learn.
I think the edge Wake has is just he's a better athlete, Wake actually doesn't have a huge repertoire, he leans heavily on his outside rush, he's a quintesential bending edgerusher, he doesn't have a spin move as good as Harris and I think thats where Harris is better than Wake, not that he'll even be as good, but he has better fluidity than Wake.
