The Miami Dolphins and the rest of the NFL have some last minute adjusting to do. The 2021 NFL Draft order has been set since the close of the season and, before yesterday, the only needed adjustments to the 1st-round were prompted by the Miami Dolphins themselves after a pair of trades with the San Francisco 49ers and the Philadelphia Eagles.
But upon the news of yesterday’s Orlando Brown Jr. trade, the Miami Dolphins are going to have to be ready for some different dynamic to be in play between their scheduled pick at No. 18 overall and No. 36 overall. The Kansas City Chiefs’ need as a team was prominently at offensive tackle (as evidenced by their trade for Brown). The Ravens are getting a returning Ronnie Stanley at left tackle and are expected to sign Aljandro Villanueva to replace Brown Jr. at tackle — which will push the team into other positions that could potentially clash with what the Dolphins are interested in drafting in the early second round.
Baltimore’s top needs include wide receiver, pass rusher and interior offensive line. Ironically enough, those are each of the Dolphins’ perceived top needs as well. So with the Ravens now owning picks No. 27 and No. 31 in the draft order, Miami will need to be wary of Baltimore double dipping at positions that could be of the same priority that Miami is interested in pursuing.
The Dolphins have plenty of NFL Draft capital at their disposal if they’re looking to aggressively pursue an individual player — so they’re more than capable of slamming the door shut on Baltimore if they perceive the Ravens to be targeting the same player.
The domino effect is something to be wary of here for Miami given their overlap of needs with the Ravens.
But based on the Dolphins’ past trends, they’ll likely trust their board and let the available players dictate what direction to go at No. 36 instead of panicking into action. That is one of the most consistent dynamics of Chris Grier’s tenure as the unquestioned general manager — he doesn’t make desperate moves and overpay.
