Miami Dolphins 2021 NFL Draft Guide

Draft week is finally here.

We are just days away from all 32 teams and their respective owners taking to Cleveland, Ohio to conduct the highly-anticipated 2021 NFL Draft.

As of now the Miami Dolphins will be on the clock early, drafting with the No. 6 overall pick, as the three-day event gets underway Thursday night, and again at No. 18. 

Despite finishing 10-6 in 2020-21, Miami holds the Houston Texans’ first-round draft pick in this year’s draft — originally No. 3 after a 4-12 finish, but the Dolphins had since traded back within the last month to earn more draft capital. 

They moved back to the No. 12 overall selection to garner more future picks with the San Francisco 49ers. But on the same day, Miami also struck a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles to move back up to No. 6 without it costing the Dolphins too much.

All signs point to Miami targeting an offensive weapon with its top-10 pick. Having just two players finish with more than 700 receiving yards last season, it’s time for an upgrade. Upgrading the offense to balance a defense who was tops in scoring and takeaways will put it on a fast track to the playoffs.

The FPC Dolphins staff identified the top-three needs for Miami in the 2021 draft and each simulated the first three rounds in their own individual mock drafts.

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Kayla Morton, Managing Editor:

Biggest Draft Needs:

Safety, Wide Receiver, Center

Mock Draft:

No. 6: WR Ja’Marr Chase (LSU)

No. 18: LB Micah Parsons (Penn State)

No. 36: S Richie Grant (Central Florida)

No. 50: C Landon Dickerson (Alabama) or Creed Humphrey (Oklahoma)

No. 81: DE Joseph Ossai (Texas)

Brief Explanation of Mock:

Miami traded back three spots when it was all said and done knowing a top offensive playmaker will be there when it’s time to select. Will it be the perceived No. 1 offensive weapon? Maybe not, but with four top receiving options worth the No. 6 overall pick, the Dolphins are going to have options at No. 6 overall no matter what. 

Ahead of them, the Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers are a lock to take quarterbacks in my opinion. If the Atlanta Falcons stay at No. 4 and the Cincinnati Bengals stay at No. 5, I think the Falcons take the top defensive player on the board and the top offensive lineman respectively. Atlanta taking a QB is ridiculous in my opinion when MVP Matt Ryan can still play at a maximum level and it has so many holes, especially on defense, on that team. While the Bengals could reunite QB Joe Burrow with WR Ja’Marr Chase, their biggest problem is OL and protecting their franchise guy. With so many WR possibilities they don’t need Chase. But, if he’s gone, boo hoo, Miami takes TE Kyle Pitts. However, I like the Dolphins chances more to land Chase.

Despite me believing safety and center are the top two other biggest needs, head coach Brian Flores and General Manager Chris Grier will take the best player on the board at No. 18. That should be Micah Parsons. Miami hasn’t been thriving at the linebacker position anyway so I like the choice for another top playmaker.

Flores and Grier then address the safety and center in the next two picks, followed by depth at defensive end to round out day two.

– Kayla Morton is the Managing Editor for Full Press Coverage Miami Dolphins. She also has a new podcast coming soon. Like and follow on Follow @northdakayla74 Follow @FPC_Dolphins and Facebook.

Dylan Berger, Contributor:

Biggest Draft Needs:

Wide Receiver, Edge/OLB, Running back 

Mock Draft:

No. 6: WR Jaylen Waddle (Alabama)

No. 18: LB Zaven Collins (Tulsa) 

No. 36: RB Travis Etienne (Clemson)

No. 50: EDGE Joseph Ossai (Texas)

No. 81: OT Spencer Brown (Northern Iowa)

Brief Explanation of Mock:

The biggest offseason goal for the Dolphins has to be upgrading the offense in order to give quarterback Tua Tagovailoa the best shot at success as he moves into the full-time starting quarterback role in 2021. Selecting a WR at No. 6 should be the goal. While I’d love to have Ja’Marr Chase here, he goes No. 5 to the Bengals in my mock. As a consolation prize the Dolphins get Jaylen Waddle, the explosive speedster from Alabama. Waddle can provide a Tyreek Hill element to the offense making this an easy selection. 

At No. 18 I may have made a slight reach taking Zaven Collins this early, but absolutely love his fit as a do-it-all outside linebacker in the Dolphins 3-4 scheme. My thinking here is a better Kyle Van Noy. 

Moving on to No. 36 I decided to target a RB and selected Travis Etienne. He has proven over the years at Clemson to be capable of carrying the load in the backfield and gives the Dolphins another legit home field threat that is capable of scoring from anywhere every time he touches the ball. With Etienne and Waddle, the Dolphins will be bringing a lot more juice to the field in 2021. 

At No. 50 I found Joseph Ossai the edge rusher out of Texas. This could be an absolute steal at this point in the draft with teams possibly being scared off by his lack of experience to the position and his relative rawness. But Ossai is a plus-level athlete with impressive work ethic, motor and drive. With Collins anchoring the defense on one side Ossai will be able to focus on what he does best: getting after the QB, as he continues to round out his game. 

Rounding out this mock draft I landed Spencer Brown the right tackle out of Northern Iowa. Brown needs to be more consistent and continue to develop but brings elite length, good athleticism and a nasty demeanor to the field as a blindside blocker for Tagovailoa and has a chance to develop into a high-level player early in his career.

– Dylan Berger is a Sports Contributor for Full Press Coverage Miami Dolphins. Like and follow on Follow @TheBurgerKing5 Follow @FPC_Dolphins and Facebook.

Alessandro Senatore, Contributor:

Biggest Draft Needs:

Offensive Line, Wide Receiver, Cornerback

Mock Draft:

No. 6: WR Jaylen Waddle (Alabama) 

No. 18: OL Rashawn Slater (Northwestern) or OL Alijah Vera-Tucker (USC)

No. 36: DE Gregory Rousseau (Miami)

No. 50: CB Asante Samuel Jr (Florida St.)

No. 81: LB Nick Bolton (Missouri)

Brief Explanation of Mock:

With the biggest need and best offensive lineman already off the board with the Dolphins pick at No. 6, the next biggest need for Miami  is a true WR2. While it was good the Dolphins went out and signed Will Fuller, we don’t want some one-year replacement. Jaylen Waddle will not be a replacement and he’s too good to pass up. 

Still, Miami should address OL early and can go after guys like Rashawn Slater or Alijah Vera-Tucker and I think one of them will be there at No. 18.

On day two, the Dolphins need to address the defensive edge position because they do not really have a good edge rusher. Gregory Rousseau can fix that and would be a deadly addition that would give stability to the Dolphins for years to come. Finally, Miami needs to address the linebacker and a versatile cornerback/LB spot after cutting Kyle Van Noy and trading away Shaq Lawson. I’m not sure if Asante Samuel Jr. falls, but he could be a decent day-two option, and Missouri’s Nick Bolton is a sneaky round three option that can 100-percent get the job done.

– Alessandro Senatore is a Sports Contributor for Full Press Coverage Miami Dolphins who specializes in the NFL Draft and fantasy sports. Like and follow on Follow @AM_Senatore Follow @FPC_Dolphins and Facebook.

Christian Chappell, Contributor:

Biggest Draft Needs:

Running Back, Wide Receiver, Offensive Lineman

Mock Draft:

No. 6: WR Ja’Marr Chase (LSU)

No. 18: OL Alijah Vera-Tucker (USC)

No. 36: RB Najee Harris (Alabama)

No. 50: LB Pete Werner (OSU)

No. 81: OL Trey Smith (Tennessee)

Brief Explanation of Mock:

With no position players on the team going for more than 800 yards last season, it’s safe to say the Dolphins need some offensive explosion. To me, that should be in both the running back and wide receiver positions.

Before the offensive explosion, also comes offensive protection. Miami’s quarterbacks were hit for a combined total of 41 times last season, seven more times than the Dolphins laid hits on opposing quarterbacks of their own, which also goes hand in hand with their subpar rushing attack.

Miami needs to gain offensive weapons, while also protecting them and giving space for them to get open, and I also threw in a defensive playmaker to allow the Dolphins to apply more QB pressure as well.

– Christian Chappell is a Sports Contributor for Full Press Coverage Miami Dolphins. Like and follow on Follow @cmoneypc Follow @FPC_Dolphins and Facebook.

Daniel Roberts, Contributor:

Biggest Draft Needs:

Wide Receiver, Running back, Defensive Edge

Mock Draft:

No. 6: WR DeVonta Smith (Alabama)

No. 18: DE Kwity Paye (Michigan)

No. 36: RB JaVonte Williams (UNC)

No. 50: DE Joseph Ossai (Texas)

No. 81: DE Jayson Oweh (Penn State)

Brief Explanation of Mock:

The Dolphins have a few key positions that they will need to fill, but the biggest thing I feel that the team needs to focus on is giving quarterback Tua Tagovailoa some help at both running back and wide receiver, then switching gears to building their defense. 

There are plenty of standouts coming into the draft so there are many options of players the team can go with. 

WR DeVante Parker needs help in the receiving corps, and I feel at that point you need someone like DeVonta Smith, or as my other colleagues have gone with, Ja’Marr Chase. You can’t go wrong with either. Then, I think you have to address the defensive side of the ball with the No. 18 pick. 

The better defensive players will go first and in an effort to secure a strong defensive edge I feel that the team should get Kwity Paye at No. 18. On day two the team can focus on running back. Myles Gaskin needs some back up in the upcoming season. I feel that JaVonte Williams from UNC will be a great fit. The other two picks are just backup players for a Dolphin defense that could use some help and getting stops on multiple possessions.

– Daniel Roberts is a Sports Contributor for Full Press Coverage Miami Dolphins. Like and follow on Follow @dantheman1892 Follow @FPC_Dolphins and Facebook.