Saturday’s Senior Bowl to showcase some potential Dolphins’ draft picks

The next Miami Dolphins standout rookie — or draft bust, for that matter — might be found at the Senior Bowl on Saturday afternoon.

The annual college football all-star game that serves as an opportunity for NFL prospects to improve their stock early in the draft process is slated to kick off at 2:30 p.m. from Hancock Whitney Stadium at the campus of South Alabama. It will air on NFL Network.

The Dolphins’ next young blocker on the offensive line, receiving threat, running back or underrated gem might have been discovered this week, and will be on display in Saturday’s exhibition.

Senior Bowl week, with regard to the evaluation NFL teams make on prospects, mostly revolves around the three practice days from Tuesday through Thursday, but it’s also important for players to make the most of their opportunities in the game. The Dolphins had a group of executives and scouts that included general manager Chris Grier, assistant general manager Marvin Allen and special advisor Dan Marino among the team’s brass in Mobile.

The Senior Bowl is considered one of the first steps in the transition from the conclusion of football season into the draft process. Like its motto says, “The draft starts in Mobile.” Even before the scouting combine in early March, Senior Bowl practices allow prospects to compete against each other in 1-on-1 and team drills and showcase their on-field abilities. The 2022 NFL draft begins April 28.

“It’s been said that you can hide at the combine, but with a week’s worth of work it’s a lot harder to hide,” said Jets coach Robert Saleh, who is leading one of the game’s teams with his New York coaching staff. “So one of the things, maybe the biggest thing is their mentality, their ability to absorb the playbook. So we bring in a playbook that’s not so hard that they can’t get it, but we also don’t want it to be so easy that you can’t see if they’re able to absorb the information you’re giving them.

“The other part is you’ll see it’s going to be adversity for these kids. Someone’s going to drop a pass, miss a block. Think of the pressure on these young men to perform their job under this pressure. When they make a mistake, how do they respond?”

Saleh and his Jets staff are leading the National Team while the Detroit Lions’ staff, led by former Dolphins interim coach Dan Campbell, is coaching the American Team.

The National squad has as many as four potential offensive line prospects the Dolphins could be eyeing with one of their earlier picks. Miami’s first-round pick is No. 29, because the franchise has the San Francisco 49ers’ selection, while the Dolphins’ own pick (No. 15) was sent to the Philadelphia Eagles in a pair of trades made last offseason.

Miami’s greatest team need is indubitably the offensive line — specifically, improved pass protection from the tackles. The tackle prospects that are most likely to get selected around the Dolphins’ first choice, Minnesota’s Daniel Faalele and Central Michigan’s Bernhard Raimann, had uneven performances in practice throughout the week, but they could rebound in the game. Northern Iowa’s Trevor Penning, Kentucky’s Darian Kinnard and Boston College guard Zion Johnson are others to keep an eye on.

Among wide receivers to watch: Nevada’s Romeo Doubs, Boise State’s Khalil Shakir and South Alabama’s Jalen Tolbert. If the Dolphins are not able to bring tight end Mike Gesicki back in the offseason, Colorado State’s Trey McBride may be of interest after standing out in drills.

The wide receiver group working out at the Senior Bowl took a hit on Tuesday when potential first-round prospect out of Penn State, Jahan Dotson pulled out of the event. The same goes for Georgia running back and Miami Central product James Cook and top linebacker prospect Devin Lloyd out of Utah. Both play positions that the Dolphins were surely scouting.

Florida State edge defender Jermaine Johnson II had a great week of drills after a season in which he won ACC Defensive Player of the Year. As far as in-state college interest goes, Florida defensive lineman Zachary Carter, Gators running back Dameon Pierce and FIU running back D’Vonte Price are also involved.

The Dolphins had their second round of interviews for their head coaching vacancy on hold while they scouted Senior Bowl practices during the week. They now are completing interviews with candidates Mike McDaniel and Kellen Moore on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/KPX9bkR