The Miami Dolphins addressed the offensive line and cornerback in the first round of the NFL draft Thursday night.
After all the reaction to the picks of Alabama tackle Kadyn Proctor and San Diego State cornerback Chris Johnson, the immediate question becomes: What’s next?
Luckily for Miami, in this rebuild spearheaded by new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan, there’s no shortage of needs. He can take the best players available on his draft board while filling holes as the draft’s second round kicks off at 7 p.m., with the third round to follow later Friday night ahead of Rounds 4-7 all day Saturday.
The Dolphins’ next selection is No. 43, their lone second-round pick. They then have three third-round choices, at 75, 87 and 94 overall, following a deal that sent the No. 90 pick to the San Francisco 49ers to trade up for Johnson while picking up a compensatory fourth-rounder.
Initial thoughts on how Miami should handle its next pick go to edge rusher and wide receiver. The Dolphins passed on Miami Hurricanes defensive end Rueben Bain in selecting Proctor at No. 12, and they still have a glaring hole for new quarterback Malik Willis’ top pass-catcher after trading wide receiver Jaylen Waddle to the Denver Broncos for that later pick they had in the first round, originally No. 30 before moving up to 27.
Among potential second-round edge rushers available: Oklahoma’s R Mason Thomas, who played his high school football in Fort Lauderdale at Cardinal Gibbons, Missouri’s Zion Young, Clemson’s T.J. Parker, Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell and Illinois’ Gabe Jacas.
The edge group is an interesting position in Miami, as the defensive fronts could see some change under new coach Jeff Hafley. With an emphasis to be based with four down linemen, the Dolphins may want players who can fit the traditional 4-3 defensive end mold more, but Hafley wants his edge rushers to be versatile.
But the wide receiver replacement for Waddle could be a desirable addition. Washington wide receiver Denzel Boston was projected by many to go in the first round and is still available. He’s a big target at 6 feet 3 ⅝ who could let Willis throw the ball up to him against smaller defensive backs.
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Other wide receiver options, of different size and speed, include Alabama’s Germie Bernard, Indiana’s Elijah Sarratt, Georgia’s Zachariah Branch, Ole Miss’ De’Zhaun Stribling, Notre Dame’s Malachi Fields and Louisville’s Chris Bell.
But there are players at a variety of positions who could end up higher on the Dolphins’ board by the time the 11th pick of the second round rolls around.
Could long, rangy Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren be there to be the quarterback of the secondary for Hafley, who has a track record of coaching defensive backs? Or LSU’s A.J. Haulcy for that matter?
On that front, would Miami want another of the draft’s top cornerbacks to pair with Johnson, including the Tennessee tandem of Jermod McCoy and Colton Hood or someone else like Clemson’s Avieon Terrell and South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse? Or how about potential nickel prospects with South Florida ties in Miami’s Keionte Scott and Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds, a Chaminade-Madonna High alum?
The Dolphins defense has young defensive tackles, but Ohio State’s Kayden McDonald is still available and may be too good to pass up if he slides to 43.
If you’re looking at the trenches, guards Emmanuel Pregnon of Oregon and Chase Bisontis of Texas A&M could be there for the taking.
While Miami has so many directions it could go with the second-round pick, having three selections in the third round could afford the team the opportunity to even take another quarterback they like. UM’s Carson Beck, Arkansas athletic quarterback Taylen Green and Penn State’s Drew Allar are all signal-callers who have been linked to the Dolphins in the pre-draft process.