NFL Mock Draft 15: Turtle's 7-Round Miami Mock Draft- 2.0

Turtle is back, and he has allowed the crazy free agency to settle down a bit. While there are still moves to be made, the majority of the major names have found their 2015 teams, and the draft order has been set. I will be using Fanspeak.com to tackle this seven round beast and using the PhinManiacs "mock draft board' to form my hopefully somewhat realistic player pool. I will not reset the mock to get players in my favor, what you see is what you get- this was my only attempt for my second mock draft.

But for now, Miami is on the clock...

Round 1, Pick 14- The Miami Dolphins select Kevin White, WR, West Virginia

6'3, 215 lbs-

For some strange reason, teams decided to pass on my top rated receiver in this draft. While I believe it is unlikely, there is a chance that any of the "Big Three" at the WR position may drop, with Kevin White being the least likely, in my opinion. However, seeing him at 14 was an easy decision even though names like Todd Gurley or Eric Kendricks were on the board still, and very tempting. White would slide in next to Kenny Stills and should by all counts be Miami's #1 receiver and prime red zone target. It probably won't happen seeing Kevin White on the board at pick 14, but if it does than White is an easy selection at pick 14.

Highlight Reel

Alternate Draft Pick: Todd Gurley (drafted 17 to SD)

Round 2, Pick 47- The Miami Dolphins select Cameron Erving, OL, Florida State

6'5, 313 lbs-

Once again Miami is on the clock and a top rated talent has somehow taken a tumble down the draft board. I don't make the mocks people, I just make the picks! While Erving may also not be available in round 2 (some analysts are projecting Erving to go to Miami in Round 1!), scenarios could arise where teams decide to pass on a top rated interior lineman because of his position not being so highly valued. While there were a few interesting options available such as LB Stephone Anthony or Denzel Perryman, I decided to take Erving for his greatest asset, his versatility. Erving can instantly slide into our guard position but he also has experience at center and tackle. This versatility would be worth gold for the Dolphins who can use Erving's strength to fill in any potential injury at tackle, and even when it comes down to deciding whether or not to extend Mike Pouncey at center. At pick 47, Miami's looking good with yet another high rated player to fall to them; Erving was simply too good to pass up.

Highlight Reel

Alternate Draft Pick: Stephone Anthony, ILB (drafted 49 to KC)

Round 4, Pick 115- The Miami Dolphins select Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, CB, Oregon

5'9, 192 lbs-

Olumo's game may be as impressive as his name. He is one of the top corners in the draft,  but his height and recent knee injury will not help his draft stock. Ekpre-olomo however, is a confident athlete who looks and plays like a natural corner. Drafting "IEO" would be a great get for Miami, and ideally he would be able to recover to full strength with hopefully Grimes, Taylor and McCain being Miami's starting corners by Week 1. IEO would be available as depth and hopefully would get to play sometime during the season. If he shined like he is expected to, he could end up replacing Brent Grimes at the end of his contract.

Highlight Reel

Alternate Draft Pick: Jake Ryan, LB (drafted 123 to ARI)

Round 5, Pick 149- The Miami Dolphins select Taiwan Jones, ILB, Michigan State

6'3, 245 lbs-

Finally, a linebacker. As you would probably guess, I would have loved to draft a linebacker earlier, yet there were better picks available at the time in my opinion. Taiwan Jones could play ILB or even outside if necessary, and has good size and speed. He's a big hitter and I see him being great competition to come in and compete immediately for the starting ILB spot. At worst, his size and speed would make him a great special teams player, so I think he would be on the field often, one way or another.

Highlight Reel

Round 5, Pick 150- The Miami Dolphins select Anthony Chickillo, DE, University of Miami

6'3, 267 lbs-

Miami gets the very next pick and stays at home with a homegrown Hurricane. While DE is far from a need, Chickillo made a name for himself after a stellar Senior Bowl performance. Miami needs to start thinking of their defensive end position, which features Cameron Wake, who's not getting any younger, and Olivier Vernon, who is going to get paid next year as a free agent (and maybe not with Miami). Miami needs to be proactive and not reactive to make sure they have top notch pass rushers to maximize Suh's impact in the middle of the line. The Dolphins wouldn't want to pay Suh 20-million/year only to have average pass-rushers line up next to him.

Highlight Reel

Alternate Draft Pick: Chris Conley, WR (drafted 168 to TB)

Round 6, Pick 191- The Miami Dolphins select Rannell Hall, WR, THE University of Central Florida

6'0, 198 lbs-

The Dolphins grab Rannell "Speedy" Hall with the last pick who is fast and tough despite his size. He can compete with Mathews for WR4 duties and immediately step up in special teams. Rannell Hall is like drafting a Ted Ginn, except a lot tougher and he's not costing us a 1st round pick! Check the video at the 4:22 mark to see him take a deep slant and run past EVERYONE against South Carolina (thanks to a key block by Breshad Perriman!). He's got a strong lower body and he's difficult to tackle, and after a strong Senior Bowl performance he could end up being a late round gem.

Highlight Reel

Alternate Draft Pick: Justin Cox, S (drafted 193 to DET)

In conclusion, while I would obviously be very satisfied with this draft... a few things are apparent. One, it appears on the surface that Miami definitely needs more draft picks. Miami would be wise to trade down if at all possible, in rounds 1 and/or 2 to collect more picks later in the draft. Six picks is not going to cut it, and this draft is especially deep in Rounds 2-3. At the current moment, after Miami's second round pick, they don't have another pick until pick 114 in Round 4. They would miss tons of talent in this gap if they don't look to trade down.

This team has more than a handful of needs from LB, WR, G, CB and possibly S and RB, and there just isn't enough firepower to make all of that magic happen. It appears that either way that Miami will possibly be looking to skip a few key positions in this year's draft and looking for a few young players to take a step up and claim starting roles. I am looking at the G, CB, LB and RB position here, specifically.

Well, that's it. Who was your favorite pick? Who was your least favorite pick? Feel free to sound off below and bash my mock. Either way, I'll be back with another soon enough!

-B

Former Mock Drafts:

Turtle's Mock Draft 1.0