D
Miami Dolphins
Grand theft in slot 251: the Dolphins steal Williams and grade out a D.
by kpjohnson74gmailcom ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 16 picks
· 9 steals
· 1 reaches
The Dolphins lost the trade war and it was not close, handing partners the better end again and again.
With edge rusher unsolved, spending premium capital on DT-EDGE is the choice that costs them. They will regret leaving edge rusher for another day if the season turns on it.
The cost of the Milton III reach is exactly the players who went right after him. Williams at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
Add it up and it is a weekend the front office will hope everyone forgets, edge rusher very much included.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 21st overall pick they get protection for the quarterback. A real need, handled.
In No. 25 they get an anchor for the offensive line at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
Jackson Powers-Johnson at Round 2, Pick 21 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Nothing to complain about; Payton Wilson went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
McKinnley Jackson in the Round 3 slot is fair value, right on his grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They bypassed pressing needs at edge rusher to take Maason Smith, a DT-EDGE that was not the priority.
The board had Tykee Smith higher than the 108th pick, and the safety fell to them anyway. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Khyree Jackson at pick No. 138 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Circle this one: Max Melton at pick 145 is a fall that decides a draft. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Joe Milton III at No. 155 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Cole Bishop in the 157th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
McCallan Castles slid further than he should have, and the Round 5 slot is lovely value for the tight end. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They barely believed it either: Dadrion Taylor-Demerson still on the board at Round 6, Pick 11. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Chau Smith-Wade at slot 199 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
De'Corian Clark in No. 239 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
You do not let a running back like Miyan Williams reach slot 251 and blink. They did not. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.