Speaker 1: Fail cutsdown Miami Run. What is up, Dolph Fans, and
Speaker 1: welcome to the Drive Time Podcast, part of the Miami
Speaker 1: Dolphins official podcast network, covering your team, your Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 1: How's it going everybody? It is Friday before Super Bowl.
Speaker 1: I am your host, Travis Wingfield, and I'm here to
Speaker 1: bring you your daily dose of Miami Dolphins football. And
Speaker 1: on today's show, We've got a great one for you, guys.
Speaker 1: We're talking all things from the Senior Bowl and draft
Speaker 1: with the athletics Dane Brugler as well as Miami Dolphins Draft.
Speaker 1: We'll get into the Dolphins presence in mobile coaching, the
Speaker 1: practices in the game, Danes first mock of the year
Speaker 1: fits for the Dolphins, breaking down this year's receiver's class
Speaker 1: in comparison to last year's wide receiver class, and we'll
Speaker 1: hear Dane's rookie, your evaluation on the Dolphins draft class.
Speaker 1: All of that and more on this loaded Friday, February
Speaker 1: the five edition of the Drivetime Podcast. So the Super
Speaker 1: Bowls coming up on deck. It'll be the Chiefs and
Speaker 1: the Bucks Sunday from Tampa Bay. Can't wait to watch
Speaker 1: that game, the final football game of the season always
Speaker 1: a better sweet moment, but that also means we get
Speaker 1: to turn ahead to the see time of season where
Speaker 1: people that like to play the fake GM role like myself,
Speaker 1: really enjoy the off season, free agency coming up, the
Speaker 1: Combine before that, and then ultimately the Draft at the
Speaker 1: end of April. And that's kind of our focus on
Speaker 1: this edition of Drive Time. The Dolphins were in Mobile
Speaker 1: to coach the Senior Bowl last week. We got Dane
Speaker 1: Brugler from The Athletic here talk to us about that,
Speaker 1: about this year's draft class, about last year's Dolphins draft class.
Speaker 1: Plenty of good stuff here on this edition of Drive
Speaker 1: Time that's not waste any more of your time, and
Speaker 1: get to Dane Bruegler from The Athletic and writing Shotgun
Speaker 1: Now on the Drivetime podcast is the Athletics NFL draft analyst.
Speaker 1: He's the co host of the Prospect to Pros podcast.
Speaker 1: Dave Brugler, Dane, Welcome in man, Hey, Dravits, appreciate having
Speaker 1: me on. Yeah, we're excited to have you in here
Speaker 1: because we tried to get you on during Senior Bowl week,
Speaker 1: but we understand that's a very busy time on the
Speaker 1: calendar for draft folks, and you did just finish up
Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl. Week up next would be the Scouting Combine.
Speaker 1: But I have to imagine as that changes in the NFL,
Speaker 1: it changes for you a little bit too. Yeah, oh yeah,
Speaker 1: it's it's going to be a very different draft process.
Speaker 1: And you know that's one of the reasons why the
Speaker 1: Senior Bowl is so important. Um, you know, we don't
Speaker 1: have a combine this year. We don't know what the
Speaker 1: pro day circuit is going to look like exactly. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, we we don't know, you know, we we
Speaker 1: know there's gonna be plenty of virtual interviews and things
Speaker 1: like that, but it's it's it's tough when you go
Speaker 1: back to the fall Scouts. Area scouts usually are on
Speaker 1: the road visiting campuses during the week, going to practice
Speaker 1: and you know, really laying the groundwork for the prospects
Speaker 1: in this class. But they weren't able to do that
Speaker 1: last fall. It's a lot of virtual things and you know,
Speaker 1: leaning on relationships at different college programs to find out
Speaker 1: all that information fill in the gaps. So it is
Speaker 1: a very very different year. But that's why the Senior
Speaker 1: Bowl was so important because teams actually got some face
Speaker 1: time with these players, none more than the Dolphins and
Speaker 1: Panthers who were able to coach those teams. So a
Speaker 1: really awesome opportunity for those two organizations. Yeah, I'm glad
Speaker 1: you mentioned. Let's go ahead and peel the onion back
Speaker 1: on that just a little bit more here, because you know,
Speaker 1: we talked a little bit off air about some draft
Speaker 1: analysts around around the country. We talked about you doing
Speaker 1: your podcast with landser Line, who I've referenced on Miami
Speaker 1: Dolphins dot com on the podcast here several times on
Speaker 1: Drive Time. So you're in good company, Dane. But all all,
Speaker 1: you know, I listened to Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks
Speaker 1: and they talk a lot about the process of you know,
Speaker 1: when you go scout a game live in the fall,
Speaker 1: you kind of watch the way a guy interacts with
Speaker 1: his teammates, the way he is on the sideline, maybe
Speaker 1: the way he has those conversations with coaches when they
Speaker 1: come over to coach him up or whatever it might be.
Speaker 1: Did you get a sense of that and mobile with
Speaker 1: the Dolphins coaching staff and and how valuable is that
Speaker 1: that one on one time with his kids on the
Speaker 1: practice field. Oh, it's everything, because you know, even if
Speaker 1: you're not going to draft the player, you know, who knows,
Speaker 1: maybe in in four years you'll be looking at him
Speaker 1: as a possible free agent addition, Um, you know, there's
Speaker 1: just so many connections. You know, he might be facing
Speaker 1: these guys in week two, and you know you need
Speaker 1: a game plan for him. Um. And you know that
Speaker 1: you could use it as as simple as you know,
Speaker 1: eliminating guys. You know it just okay, it wouldn't be
Speaker 1: a culture fit, wouldn't be a scheme fit. Um. But
Speaker 1: what being at these events live is a big deal,
Speaker 1: uh for evaluators. And you know, I've been going to
Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl for ten years now and it's you know,
Speaker 1: I learned early on from my scouting mentors that you
Speaker 1: know what, you can learn a lot by just being
Speaker 1: observant and just keeping your eyes open and watching to
Speaker 1: see how guys interact. And you know a great example
Speaker 1: of that was Dalen Hayes Notre Dame pass rusher who
Speaker 1: was on the national squad UH coached by the Dolphins,
Speaker 1: and every time he would come off the field from
Speaker 1: a rep from off the practice field, he would go
Speaker 1: directly over to one of the assistant coaches and start
Speaker 1: breaking down technique and talking about what he's trying to
Speaker 1: do there and what he needs and that this is
Speaker 1: a guy that understands the value of the Senior Bowl
Speaker 1: and you know, getting that NFL coaching. So it's it's
Speaker 1: a great, great opportunity for those players that were able
Speaker 1: to go to Mobile. There's about a hundred and forty
Speaker 1: of them that participated, and then just a great, great
Speaker 1: opportunity for the Dolphins to uh, you know, get a
Speaker 1: better sense of who these guys are and they probably
Speaker 1: have a little bit of a head start as we
Speaker 1: really dive into draft season, and that would likely be
Speaker 1: Dolphins outside linebackers coach Austin Clark, who really did wonders
Speaker 1: this year with some players like Andrew Van Giggle bringing
Speaker 1: their pass rush game along in his second year this season,
Speaker 1: plenty of good teaching going on in the field. We
Speaker 1: saw the all the ESPN You and NFL Network clips
Speaker 1: with Joe Alexander, Anthony Camp and Nellie Lemuel John Pierre.
Speaker 1: It was fun, you know, as someone that knows these
Speaker 1: coaches and talks these coaches to to see them on
Speaker 1: the field in their natural habitat as it were, and
Speaker 1: it made me wonder Dame, because you're out through every day.
Speaker 1: You know, we watched Dolphins practice down and Davey, we
Speaker 1: see Danny Crossman, Dolphins special teams coordinator, getting after one
Speaker 1: of the best Dolphins are one of the best special
Speaker 1: teams units in the NFL. Did you get a chance
Speaker 1: to hear him yelling on the field out there at all? Oh? Yeah,
Speaker 1: you can't. You can't miss it. I mean if you uh,
Speaker 1: if you're out there, if you're at the stadium, you're
Speaker 1: going to hear it, so you know. And then there
Speaker 1: was I thought the Dolphins and nothing against you know,
Speaker 1: coach Rule and the Panthers, but I thought the Dolphins
Speaker 1: ran their practices much smoother. Um, you know, they just
Speaker 1: just from evaluation standpoint, it was everything was very quick
Speaker 1: and clean, and uh really really enjoyed Coach Flores and
Speaker 1: his staff and the way they did things. So uh
Speaker 1: now it was a a great first practice uh each
Speaker 1: day and it really really helped evaluators. Three these guys out.
Speaker 1: You're a natural podcast for day because you just led
Speaker 1: me into my next question talking about what those practices
Speaker 1: look like. And you know, because Flow always talks about
Speaker 1: taking the lessons you get from the classroom, putting him
Speaker 1: into the individual drills, and then carry it over to
Speaker 1: the team periods of practice. And his biggest thing has
Speaker 1: always been an improvement. And he talked about being better
Speaker 1: than you were in September by the time December rolls around,
Speaker 1: I was curious to get your take on how the
Speaker 1: national team progressed throughout the course of the week from
Speaker 1: Tuesday to Thursday. They say it's all about improvement in
Speaker 1: this week of Senior Bowl practices. Did you see that
Speaker 1: from the Dolphin side? Yeah, that that's that's exactly it.
Speaker 1: You it's tough when you're thrown into a game like
Speaker 1: this because you're working with coaches you never worked with,
Speaker 1: uh teammates you never played with, and you know you're
Speaker 1: thrown into this fish bowl and asked to perform at
Speaker 1: your best, and so it could be tough. And usually,
Speaker 1: you know, we try not to beat up on these
Speaker 1: guys too much, especially on that Tuesday practice. But what
Speaker 1: you do want to see is the show improvement throughout
Speaker 1: the week. Um as they gain that chemistry, as they
Speaker 1: start to really digest the playbook, you know, the abbreviated playbook,
Speaker 1: they book they put together and take the coaching that
Speaker 1: they're that's given to them by the staff. And so uh,
Speaker 1: several of these guys I thought throughout the week got better,
Speaker 1: uh Tuesday to Wednesday to Thursday on that Dolphin squad.
Speaker 1: I mean you could look at a guy like the
Speaker 1: Metric Felton from U c l A, who was a
Speaker 1: wide receiver in high school but they moved to running
Speaker 1: back at U c l A. He was their starter,
Speaker 1: but he was able to play more of a wide
Speaker 1: receiver role, uh down in mobile and I tell you,
Speaker 1: just getting some instruction from the staff in terms of,
Speaker 1: you know, the pacing the steps of his routes because
Speaker 1: obviously he's he's very unpolished in an area because he
Speaker 1: wasn't asked to run the downfield routes very often. But
Speaker 1: by the end of the week, he was looking a
Speaker 1: lot more comfortable, a lot more confident, catching the ball
Speaker 1: very well away from his body. So I thought the
Speaker 1: Metric Felton was, uh, you know, a great, great example
Speaker 1: of that who took the coaching and then got better
Speaker 1: and better each week. Trey Brown, the corner from Oklahoma,
Speaker 1: another one under size, so easy to overlook him, but
Speaker 1: the tenacity that he plays with the competitiveness. Um, you
Speaker 1: know he he was a little two hands on earlier
Speaker 1: in the week, and then as the week went on,
Speaker 1: started to show a little more, a little more savvy
Speaker 1: with the way that he would disrupt routes and you know,
Speaker 1: his presence and coverage. So, uh, you know, two examples
Speaker 1: there for guys that I got better and better as
Speaker 1: the week went on. That's great stuff. And you mentioned
Speaker 1: Trey Brown. How many times that guy intercepted pass and
Speaker 1: one on one drills like that doesn't happen very often,
Speaker 1: and he was doing it regularly. It seems like out
Speaker 1: there on the practice field. This is going a little
Speaker 1: bit off script D and so just hearing me here
Speaker 1: for a second, But you mentioned Metric Felton. You know,
Speaker 1: it reminds me of last year Antonio Gibson really kind
Speaker 1: of jumped into the to the spotlight in the Senior Bowl.
Speaker 1: Could you get the same stance in terms of that
Speaker 1: receiver running back type of convert, Like, how does the
Speaker 1: Metric Felton compared to Antonio Gibson. Yeah, Felton's making the
Speaker 1: opposite transition where yeah, Gibson was a wide receiver in college.
Speaker 1: But you know the Senior Bowl thought, okay, this is
Speaker 1: an opportunity for scouts to evaluate him and running back
Speaker 1: and Felton it was the obvious or the opposite. Uh,
Speaker 1: and so it'll be interesting to see. This is a
Speaker 1: very loaded slot wide receiver group UM this year and
Speaker 1: this year's class, and so he's kind of jumbled together
Speaker 1: with UH. You know there's Elijah More, Rondale More or
Speaker 1: Shy Smith, Key Johnson two to at well, UH, Dwayne Eskridge,
Speaker 1: who was another wide receiver who was outstanding throughout the
Speaker 1: week of practice at the Senior Bowl. So there's just
Speaker 1: a loaded group of wider stivers, especially in the slot,
Speaker 1: those inside guys that are going to go somewhere between
Speaker 1: the second and fourth rounds UM. And so I thought
Speaker 1: he helped himself in terms of just putting himself in
Speaker 1: that mix and really showing what he could do. UH.
Speaker 1: And that's and it's an example of you know, if
Speaker 1: he doesn't get to go to the Senior Bowl, you
Speaker 1: know he's if Antonio Gibson doesn't play at the Senior Bowl,
Speaker 1: he's probably drafted him with a six round as a
Speaker 1: wide receiver. And you know, teams aren't quite short to
Speaker 1: do with him. Dmitri Felton, same thing. If he does
Speaker 1: not able to go to the Senior Bowl, he's probably
Speaker 1: a late rounder, you know, and you're kind of a
Speaker 1: gadget guy, not sure what to do with him. Now
Speaker 1: he what he showed at the Senior Bowl that he
Speaker 1: can be more of a downfield threat as a receiver
Speaker 1: all of a sudden instead of a late rounder. He's
Speaker 1: probably gonna go so more in that third fourth range.
Speaker 1: It's awesome to get to get a chance to watch
Speaker 1: these guys go up against their peers that way, because
Speaker 1: you know, maybe competition in college levels not always on
Speaker 1: par with what you might see in the NFL. So
Speaker 1: seeing these guys against fellow NFL players, it's an awesome opportunity.
Speaker 1: It's and I think it's definitely a tip of the
Speaker 1: hat to Jim Naggie for what he's made the Senior
Speaker 1: Bowl and just his short time there. He did the
Speaker 1: podcast a couple of weeks ago, and man, he's getting
Speaker 1: like even just getting nausey. Harris and Landon Dickerson, Mac Jones,
Speaker 1: DeVante Smith, all those Alabama guys down there after the
Speaker 1: National Championship, What a what a feather in his cap
Speaker 1: that was you mentioned the receiver's day. I want to
Speaker 1: circle back to that here in just one second, but
Speaker 1: I want to come back to an article you posted
Speaker 1: after the Senior Bowl practices had wrapped. Maybe he was
Speaker 1: after the game. I forget who were your big winners
Speaker 1: of the Senior Bowl, just in general thirty two team perspective,
Speaker 1: not an individual club. Who are your big winners of
Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl. Well, it has to start with Quinn
Speaker 1: Miners from Wisconsin Whitewater. Uh. He coming into the week
Speaker 1: he was viewed, the highest grade I heard on him
Speaker 1: was a six round pick. That was the highest grade,
Speaker 1: just pulling different teams, and now he's probably the top
Speaker 1: one hundred conversation. He's probably a Day two pick with
Speaker 1: the week that he had. And he didn't play this year.
Speaker 1: Division three did not have a season. And you go
Speaker 1: back to his two as nineteen stuff and it was good,
Speaker 1: but it wasn't dominant. It wasn't amazing, um you know
Speaker 1: the way you wouldmit necessarily think at the Division three level.
Speaker 1: But the last year he was able to rework his
Speaker 1: body and really work on some of the finer points
Speaker 1: the position. He goes to UH two mobile and just
Speaker 1: was dominant from from day one. And not only that,
Speaker 1: but he was a left guard in college and he
Speaker 1: had never snapped before. And he goes to center and
Speaker 1: he's playing center during practice like he's done in his
Speaker 1: entire life. So Quinn Miners, Uh, just one of the
Speaker 1: biggest risers this year. Um, he's going to you know,
Speaker 1: make a big jump off up draft boards. Could be
Speaker 1: one of the first you know, three interior alignment or
Speaker 1: three centers I should say three centers drafted with Creed
Speaker 1: Humphrey and Josh Meyers. So it's just a really big
Speaker 1: jump for him. I thought Richie Grant, the safety from UCF,
Speaker 1: was outstanding. He had a third round grade on him
Speaker 1: coming into the week. He jumped up a full round.
Speaker 1: He's in the second round mix now. Could go easily
Speaker 1: in the top fifty range ball skills former wide receiver,
Speaker 1: so he does wide receiver like things at the catch point,
Speaker 1: which is what you want to see. He can run
Speaker 1: the alleys downhill and blow up, run support, blow upuys
Speaker 1: and run support. So there's just a lot of things
Speaker 1: you can do with the Richie Grant. He can play
Speaker 1: different positions on the field, and that versatility really is key,
Speaker 1: And you know, I think I mentioned D. S. Gridge earlier.
Speaker 1: I liked him coming in. I had I think when
Speaker 1: I my talk one hundred board he was seventies six overall,
Speaker 1: I believe. So I had a mid third round grade
Speaker 1: on D. S. Cridge coming into the week, but no
Speaker 1: one could cover throughout the week. And he's small, uh
Speaker 1: five nine. But when you have that gear changing acceleration
Speaker 1: where you just can keep defenders off balance and create
Speaker 1: your own separation like that and also be very strong
Speaker 1: at the catch point with your hands, uh, you know
Speaker 1: there there's going to be a place for you in
Speaker 1: the NFL. And I think that's going to translate. So
Speaker 1: I think D. S. Cridge he was already in that
Speaker 1: third round mix, and he even helped himself more with
Speaker 1: this week a Senior Bowl. So you made a couple
Speaker 1: of comments there that have have me going off script
Speaker 1: once again. Day. I want to pick your brain here, man,
Speaker 1: because this is great stuff you mentioned. You know D. S.
Speaker 1: Gridge might be a little bit undersized Dwayne Eskridge out
Speaker 1: of Western Michigan. That seems to be the case with
Speaker 1: a lot of receivers in this group. You mentioned too
Speaker 1: to at well earlier, people talk about Davonte Smith's slender frame,
Speaker 1: the slim reaper, Like how important is size in today's
Speaker 1: NFL at that position? Maybe in general? Like is it
Speaker 1: as big of a deal as it used to be.
Speaker 1: There's different philosophies from team to team. You know, the
Speaker 1: Ravens drafted Marquise Hollywood Brown in the in the first round,
Speaker 1: where a lot of teams would not have done that. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: I DK Metcalf in the same draft because the full
Speaker 1: round later. You know, I just there's different philosophies with
Speaker 1: different teams. And I think more than anything, more than size,
Speaker 1: more than it's just it's about speed. Can you can
Speaker 1: you create separation before and after the catch? You know,
Speaker 1: when I was, you know, learning how to scout and
Speaker 1: all that things, you know, I was taught when it
Speaker 1: comes when you're scouting receivers, comes down just two things,
Speaker 1: you know, just keep it simple. Can you get open?
Speaker 1: Can you catch the football? And you know that was
Speaker 1: that was a while ago, But now these days, I
Speaker 1: think there's a third element to that. Can you get open?
Speaker 1: Can you catch a football? And then can you create
Speaker 1: after the catch? That is becoming more and more just
Speaker 1: such an important part of today's NFL. UM and you know,
Speaker 1: you you're looking for those explosive plays, and defenses are
Speaker 1: trying to stop those explosive plays. So if you can
Speaker 1: find guys that can, you know, help create those those
Speaker 1: chunk plays, those home run plays, then you're you're in
Speaker 1: good shape. And that's why Davante Smith, even at a
Speaker 1: hundred seventy five pounds, is still going to be somewhere
Speaker 1: in you know, the top ten, top twelve mix because
Speaker 1: he's just he's proven himself as that big play guy. Um,
Speaker 1: and you know the guy like to to out well
Speaker 1: who I think it's very similar to a Hollywood Brown
Speaker 1: where he's five nine seventy pounds, just you know, a
Speaker 1: very skinny, slender frame. But when you watch his tape,
Speaker 1: he just looks like he's moving at a different speed
Speaker 1: than everybody else. He can fly consistently win over the top.
Speaker 1: So um, you know, run l Moore's in this mix,
Speaker 1: Elijah Moore a Maori Rodgers, who's another uh standout at
Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl. Uh. He's another guy in that day
Speaker 1: two mix who is a little bit undersized, but again
Speaker 1: he is play strength is a big part of what
Speaker 1: he does. So he might be short, but he's not small.
Speaker 1: He's he's pretty well put together. It's you know, size
Speaker 1: is something that you know, each each receiver brings something
Speaker 1: different to the table. But more importantly, it's about speed
Speaker 1: and create. You create this your own separation and create
Speaker 1: those big plays. Yeah, you mentioned create separation, catch the football,
Speaker 1: create big plays after you catch the football. I mean
Speaker 1: that reminds me of what to a tongue of Byloah
Speaker 1: had in spades at Alabama that really helped that offense explode.
Speaker 1: And isn't that kind of what you can capitalize on?
Speaker 1: The accuracy and the timing and the quick release and
Speaker 1: the kind of shark between the ears processing the two
Speaker 1: a tongue of Baloa has, Like, isn't that a great
Speaker 1: fit for him to have those guys that can create
Speaker 1: that separation because of that pinpoint accuracy that helps to
Speaker 1: create the act. Yeah, no question. Yeah you wanna you
Speaker 1: want to put these guys in position so they can
Speaker 1: catch the ball and stride and with if they only
Speaker 1: have a step of separation, that's all you need and
Speaker 1: just let them do something after the catch. And I think, yeah,
Speaker 1: with two uh, that's exactly what he can do. With
Speaker 1: he's got all that twitch in his in his arm
Speaker 1: where he can fire off those quick throws. Uh. And
Speaker 1: the way he sees the field, the way he can
Speaker 1: process before the snap, he understands where that vulnerable matchup
Speaker 1: is going to be. And so as he develops chemistry
Speaker 1: with his receivers, uh, you know, we'll see if they
Speaker 1: maybe add another receiver in the draft for this offseason.
Speaker 1: And as he gets you know, more comfortable at those
Speaker 1: guys and understands exactly where they're going to be. Uh.
Speaker 1: You know, I think there's a big jump coming for
Speaker 1: two uh. Uh you know, between his his first year
Speaker 1: and a second year. It's it's tough to play the
Speaker 1: quarterback position at the NFL and when everything is it's
Speaker 1: all predicated on timing, and I mean you have to
Speaker 1: be able to uh, you know, hit your receivers on
Speaker 1: time or you're just it's it's not going to end well.
Speaker 1: And so with the guy like to uh, I think,
Speaker 1: you know, he was so used to guys being a
Speaker 1: little bit more wide open um at the college level
Speaker 1: at Alabama, and he just has to adjust to the
Speaker 1: differences between college open and NFL Open. And in the
Speaker 1: NFL Open, those those those the windows are just a
Speaker 1: little bit smaller, and so I think you'll adjust. I
Speaker 1: think you'll get there. It's just, you know, it's it's tough,
Speaker 1: and you know, I think he's in for a big
Speaker 1: jump as a sophomore in his NFL career. Not to
Speaker 1: mention the NFL basically having no offseason and what he
Speaker 1: did have of an office, and he was rehabbing the
Speaker 1: hip that was injured just last November. So I mean,
Speaker 1: it wasn't that long ago that he was coming back
Speaker 1: off of a very serious injury. We're happy to see
Speaker 1: him healthy, moving around and feeling good down here. I
Speaker 1: can't wait to see what he does. Like you mentioned
Speaker 1: in year two, go ahead and turn this thing back
Speaker 1: towards the general draft. Outside the Senior Bowl, we've got
Speaker 1: Dane Brugler here of the athletic How much time, Dane,
Speaker 1: do you spend focusing on like scheme fits and team
Speaker 1: needs for particular clubs or for you since you kind
Speaker 1: of are, you know, a GM of all thirty two
Speaker 1: teams so to speak, is it more about just trying
Speaker 1: to stack your board from the best on down. How
Speaker 1: much does like team fit and scheme fit come into play?
Speaker 1: For you. Well, yeah, I think from a general perspective,
Speaker 1: because that's how I attack this draft. I'm not scouting
Speaker 1: with a specific scheme in mind, or you know, culture
Speaker 1: in mind, things like that. I'm I'm scouting these guys
Speaker 1: and trying to best understand where they would fit at
Speaker 1: the next level. And so, you know, when I do
Speaker 1: my write ups, I do my reports, um, you know,
Speaker 1: I'll mention in there he's you know best as a
Speaker 1: SAM and a three four scheme, or you know best
Speaker 1: as a sub package rusher or you know, whatever it
Speaker 1: may be. Uh, you know, try to identify, uh, the
Speaker 1: key traits and then how that's going to translate. Some
Speaker 1: of these guys are very scheme versatile, you know, you
Speaker 1: think they could fit in wherever they're whatever offense that
Speaker 1: they're they're in, and where other guys are a little
Speaker 1: more scheme specific and they need a certain role to
Speaker 1: win at the next level. So, um, you know that's
Speaker 1: that's that's part of my job. It's kind of a
Speaker 1: a general evaluator of these guys. And that can make
Speaker 1: it tough when you're trying to stack these players, you know,
Speaker 1: because I could have you know, there are there are
Speaker 1: times where you know, I'll have a certain wide receiver
Speaker 1: over another. But once uh, you know, a certain player
Speaker 1: goes to a certain team on draft day, I you know,
Speaker 1: look at it and say like, oh, well, he's gonna
Speaker 1: outplay right draft him because he just went to the
Speaker 1: perfect spot. That's that's they're going to be used in
Speaker 1: the right way and things like that. So it's it's
Speaker 1: a little tough doing it from a very general perspective
Speaker 1: without a certain scheme in mind. But you know, I
Speaker 1: find that very I find a challenging but also a
Speaker 1: lot of fun because I get to kind of, you know,
Speaker 1: keep my mind open about, Okay, where would this guy
Speaker 1: best fit, how could we best use him, and then
Speaker 1: just kind of keeping an open mind about it. It's
Speaker 1: definitely different. I think it's like you mentioned, challenging is
Speaker 1: definitely the word I would use, because when you look
Speaker 1: at a certain team and you have the knowledge of
Speaker 1: of the background of that team, it definitely helps when
Speaker 1: it comes to picking out certain players for that specific team.
Speaker 1: And with that in mind. Since we are on Drivetime
Speaker 1: here part of the Miami Dolphins podcast network, we gotta
Speaker 1: jump into your last mock draft. I think it was
Speaker 1: one point, oh right back in January. I think it's
Speaker 1: two point Yeah, I think I've done two at this
Speaker 1: point so far. That's my bad. I apologize, Dane, but
Speaker 1: you did go with The Dolphins have four picks in
Speaker 1: the top fifty. Here pick number three. Davonte Smith out
Speaker 1: of Alabama, the receiver, Quitty Pay the defensive end out
Speaker 1: of Michigan, Travis et N the running back from Clemson,
Speaker 1: and Josh Meyers the center out of Ohio State. Can
Speaker 1: you walk us through that mock draft and how those
Speaker 1: guys fit here? Yeah? So, you know, starting with Davante Smith,
Speaker 1: you know, I don't it taking a receiver a seventy
Speaker 1: five pounds and number three overall seems like a little
Speaker 1: bit of a reach just on paper. But I mean,
Speaker 1: anybody that watched Davante Smith this year, you know, how
Speaker 1: could you not be impressed with his ability to get
Speaker 1: open and then just be be a dynamic playmaker. Um,
Speaker 1: he's just you do worry about the frail build a
Speaker 1: little bit. Um. You know, he's not a burner. He's
Speaker 1: not gonna run a four three, but he's so natural
Speaker 1: and everything that he does he finds space to work.
Speaker 1: He finished it, finishes catches, and he doesn't go down easy.
Speaker 1: He's a lot tougher than he looks. He's he's a
Speaker 1: lot more he's a lot more competitive than some two
Speaker 1: five pound receiver is out there. Uh. He's used across
Speaker 1: the formation, so he's not a you know, you have
Speaker 1: to play him at that that the Z, or you
Speaker 1: have to play him the slot whatever. He can play
Speaker 1: across the formation. Uh. And he's just he's got that
Speaker 1: explosive athleticism. He's an instinctive route runner and very natural hands.
Speaker 1: You're not gonna find many drops on his tape. So, uh,
Speaker 1: you reunited. Part of the mocking him to the Dolphins
Speaker 1: at three is reuniting him with two and talking Vola.
Speaker 1: And you know, you want to help your your young
Speaker 1: quarterback as much as you can. What better way to
Speaker 1: help him with a dynamic weapon that he's already comfortable with.
Speaker 1: So I think that'd be uh, you know, a great fit,
Speaker 1: a great pairing that you know, on paper, again that
Speaker 1: seems like maybe a little rich, but when you're talking
Speaker 1: about what he offers and how he can help specifically
Speaker 1: that Dolphins offense, I think it makes a lot of sense. Um.
Speaker 1: So going to the second first round pick I could
Speaker 1: he pay who is I think this is a This
Speaker 1: is a player that I think coach Floors is really
Speaker 1: going to appreciate because he can play, he can out,
Speaker 1: he's outstanding versus run, can shut down the edges. But
Speaker 1: he also can give you some twitch as a pass
Speaker 1: rusher and threaten the backfield and really forced them to
Speaker 1: get off rhythm. Uh, you can move up and down
Speaker 1: the line of scrimmage. He can slither around blockers. He
Speaker 1: also have some power in his hands. He's got that
Speaker 1: locked in attitude that you know, I'm not gonna let
Speaker 1: anybody out work me, out compete me. Uh, you know,
Speaker 1: out effort me type of type of attitude. And I
Speaker 1: think that's something that shows on film, shows on the
Speaker 1: stat sheet, and and something that coaches will certainly appreciate. Um.
Speaker 1: And then second round, what do we have In the
Speaker 1: second round? We went with Travis e t N. Then
Speaker 1: Josh Myers. That's right. Yeah, if you don't know, you
Speaker 1: don't mind. If you don't mind, because you just talk
Speaker 1: about E t N and the entire Wrinning back class
Speaker 1: kind of as it pertains that top a couple of
Speaker 1: rounds projections. Yeah, this running back class, I think that.
Speaker 1: You know, there's a couple of guys at the top
Speaker 1: that are clearly the top guys. And you know it's
Speaker 1: not as strong as last year's running back class where
Speaker 1: we had you know, five or six in the top
Speaker 1: fifty picks. UM, but you know there's a few guys
Speaker 1: at the top that are really intriguing, starting with Naja
Speaker 1: Harris and Travisy E t n Um. You know, Naja
Speaker 1: Harris is a great example of a player that got
Speaker 1: better and better and better UH as a senior, which
Speaker 1: we don't really see a lot of running backs come
Speaker 1: back for their senior year, but it worked out for
Speaker 1: Naja Harris, who is a much more complete player and
Speaker 1: has a chance to go in the first round. But
Speaker 1: Travis E. T n you know, he's also in that mix.
Speaker 1: He came back for a senior year to get better
Speaker 1: and you know he had more opportunities as a downfield
Speaker 1: pass catcher this year. UH got a little bit better
Speaker 1: in pass protection, so you know, he helped himself. He's
Speaker 1: now as a possible first round pick, which he probably
Speaker 1: wasn't a year ago. I think that's a possible marriage,
Speaker 1: UH that could work. And you know, you got Javonte
Speaker 1: Williams from North Carolina, Michael Carter, North Carolina. I think
Speaker 1: both those guys are Day two picks. Uh, Kenneth gain
Speaker 1: Well from Memphis as well. So it's a it's a
Speaker 1: solid running back group. Um. You know there's some you know,
Speaker 1: really intriguing mid round guys like Leo Herbert from Virginia
Speaker 1: Tech and Larry Roundtree Missouri. So a really interesting group
Speaker 1: running backs. But if they have a chance to get
Speaker 1: a playmaker like E. T N it'd be pretty tough
Speaker 1: to say no because he can impact the game in
Speaker 1: so many different ways. You can leave him home in
Speaker 1: the block, but he can also go out and pass, catch,
Speaker 1: and you think he's gonna get better and better in
Speaker 1: those areas with the more experience and the more reps
Speaker 1: that he has. And he just he has that starts starts,
Speaker 1: stop suddenness that you know, he can make full, full
Speaker 1: speed cuts without gearing down. It just makes it really
Speaker 1: tough on the defense. And so to add a weapon
Speaker 1: like that would certainly help the offense. And then Josh
Speaker 1: Meyers at the center, just a plug and play guy
Speaker 1: six five fifteen pounds. UM, I don't know that he's
Speaker 1: necessarily elite as you know, a mover or talking about
Speaker 1: from a power perspective. But he's just very well rounded. Um.
Speaker 1: You know, he's a guy that finishes the mission, gets it,
Speaker 1: gets the job done. He could play center or guard.
Speaker 1: He's got that experience at both. Um just a really
Speaker 1: quality plug and play type of interior alignment. I want
Speaker 1: to go back real quick to the Travis E. T
Speaker 1: N running back mentioned that you had there has I'm
Speaker 1: curious when it comes to Nausea and Travis, which you know,
Speaker 1: seemed to be the one two running backs on most
Speaker 1: boards ahead of you know, the North Carolina kids and
Speaker 1: then whatever comes after that. But I'm curious what difference
Speaker 1: does that do for your offense when you have a
Speaker 1: Nausea Harris compared to a Travis E. T M. Like,
Speaker 1: are those two things you're gonna have to prepare for differently?
Speaker 1: Are they just versta enough for it all kind of
Speaker 1: works out? Like, what's the difference between those two backs
Speaker 1: in a given offense? Well, obviously, uh, you know E
Speaker 1: t N. I'll use a baseball reference to kind of
Speaker 1: you know, make my point. I think E. T N
Speaker 1: has he's got more home run power. You know, you
Speaker 1: have to really uh you know, back up to the
Speaker 1: warning track, when Travis e t N gets the football,
Speaker 1: where Nausea Harris he's more of a doubles uh. You know,
Speaker 1: he's got doubles power. And you know, so you're talking
Speaker 1: about two different uh types of types of runners who
Speaker 1: could be equally productive, just in different ways. E t
Speaker 1: N has got that. He's got more juice, He's got
Speaker 1: more has his feet are a little more electric. Um,
Speaker 1: he's that that deadly start stop suddenness that I mentioned
Speaker 1: is that forces miss tackles. Where Naja Harris has a
Speaker 1: little more power. He doesn't think it. Only has one
Speaker 1: UM play of fifty yards or more uh in his career,
Speaker 1: which you know obviously is not many, where eat N
Speaker 1: I thinks twelve. So that's where I'm talking about the
Speaker 1: home runs versus doubles. Uh. You know, I think Naja
Speaker 1: Harris probably the better, more reliable pass catcher. Uh. He's
Speaker 1: gonna give you more as a between the tackles runner
Speaker 1: as an inside guy. But eat N can give you
Speaker 1: a little more juice on the outside. He can make
Speaker 1: you know, those chunk plays that we're talking about. So
Speaker 1: I think from a defensive perspective. Yeah, you're you're preparing
Speaker 1: for these guys in different ways, but both can be
Speaker 1: equally productive with the different strengths that they have. And
Speaker 1: from that running back position back out to the receiver group.
Speaker 1: And you know, I think I talked about Daniel Jeremiah earlier.
Speaker 1: I think he said that last year's receivers class was
Speaker 1: the best he had done since he had ever since
Speaker 1: he came into the industry back in two thousand three.
Speaker 1: And then this year's class danger seems like it might
Speaker 1: be picking up right with that one left off. I'm
Speaker 1: curious how you stack the top of both those classes,
Speaker 1: like maybe your top five or X guys, how does
Speaker 1: it rank out from class and class with Jerry Judy,
Speaker 1: Henry Ruggs, uh Ceedee Lamb, Jamaar, Chase Davante Smith, Like,
Speaker 1: how did those guys stack up for you? Yeah, it's
Speaker 1: it's really fascinating exercise to do it. Um And Yeah,
Speaker 1: last year we had twelve receivers drafted in the top
Speaker 1: two round, which is an NFL record, And you know
Speaker 1: this year in my top one hundred, UM I had
Speaker 1: had seventeen receivers. So it's just, yeah, it's another loaded class.
Speaker 1: And you could argue that it's even more top heavy
Speaker 1: than it was a year ago when we didn't have
Speaker 1: a receiver taken in the top ten. This year, we
Speaker 1: could have two receivers take in top ten, maybe three
Speaker 1: in the top twelve. You know, we'll see how it
Speaker 1: shakes out. Jamar Chase. It's interesting because you know, we
Speaker 1: have an oct out. You know we did. This is
Speaker 1: something we really haven't had to deal with before from
Speaker 1: an evaluation standpoint, guys choosing not to play, Um, you know,
Speaker 1: with everything going on with the pandemic, and you know,
Speaker 1: you have to evaluate each one of these guys individually.
Speaker 1: And you know, but Jamar Chase did last year as
Speaker 1: a sophomore and that l s U offense. I don't
Speaker 1: know that he necessarily had to play another year to
Speaker 1: show us anything. I think we know what he is. Uh.
Speaker 1: He's a guy that has that gear changing acceleration. Uh,
Speaker 1: he's got that my ball attitude down the field where
Speaker 1: he's gonna come down with it. Just a really uh,
Speaker 1: you know, dynamic player with what he can do at
Speaker 1: all levels of the defense. And so, um, Jamar Chase
Speaker 1: to me is the top receiver this year. I think,
Speaker 1: you know, there's there's some maybe a little bit of
Speaker 1: recency bias out there, you know, with Davante Smith what
Speaker 1: he's done. But to me, Jamar Chase, he's the top
Speaker 1: guy at six ft two or ten pounds. Uh. He's
Speaker 1: got speed, he's got ball skills, he's got power, just
Speaker 1: that not many weaknesses in his game. I think he's
Speaker 1: maybe a smaller version of like a Larry Fitzgerald, that
Speaker 1: style of pass catchers. So I think there's a lot
Speaker 1: going on going for him at the next level. Davante Smith,
Speaker 1: you know we talked about he's he's also you can
Speaker 1: make an argument better than any of the receivers that
Speaker 1: went last year with Rugs and Judy and lamb Um
Speaker 1: and then even Jalen wat I mean, ja Litt Waddle
Speaker 1: is another guy that maybe isn't as if he had
Speaker 1: a chance to play the entire year. Maybe we're talking
Speaker 1: about Jalen Waddle a little bit more. Uh, but he
Speaker 1: you know, fractured his ankle and the fourth game or
Speaker 1: something like that, and so but he he's got that speed.
Speaker 1: He was a much better route unner this year. Uh,
Speaker 1: natural catching the football. Uh, He's he's a little further
Speaker 1: along than Henry Ruggs was at this point of their careers.
Speaker 1: So the top three are really impressive. And then after
Speaker 1: that Kadarius Tony from Florida, who is just it's watching
Speaker 1: him at the Senior Bowl. It just moves differently than
Speaker 1: everybody else. Um, you know, he's got that. I don't
Speaker 1: care what position you're playing, you know, if you're scouting edge,
Speaker 1: rusher or receiver, whatever you want, guys at that one
Speaker 1: step burst and that's what can Darius Tony has. He's
Speaker 1: got that one step burst that really uh forces coverage
Speaker 1: defenders to be in conflict. And so he's a weapon
Speaker 1: that could easily see him go in the first round.
Speaker 1: And then after that it's just a really loaded rounds
Speaker 1: two through four. There's a lot of slot sctions in there.
Speaker 1: There's some bigger guys like a terrorist Marshall uh Deanmomy Brown,
Speaker 1: a monrow st Brown. So there's a lot of different options,
Speaker 1: a lot of different types of receivers in this class.
Speaker 1: And you know, it's it's very comparable to last year,
Speaker 1: if not better. So it's just that maybe and that's
Speaker 1: where you get down to draft philosophy and if you're
Speaker 1: looking at it and say Okay, Well, there's a lot
Speaker 1: of different options in this class. Is it worth us
Speaker 1: passing on receiver in the top ten and maybe going
Speaker 1: in a different direction offensive tackle or or whatever, an
Speaker 1: edge rusher? Is it better going with another position and
Speaker 1: waiting to get our receiver? Or you know, is Jamaar
Speaker 1: Chase or Davante Smith or Jayala Waddle? Are they just
Speaker 1: that good where it's worth taking the receiver this early
Speaker 1: and then you know, just seeing how the rest of
Speaker 1: the positions play out. To me, that's why you do
Speaker 1: mock drafts. You find out where the cluster bussers are,
Speaker 1: where you can find different groupings of positions, and where
Speaker 1: guys might shake out later in the draft. Great stuff
Speaker 1: there from you, Dame Bruegler. I want to finish up
Speaker 1: with this question real quick because we talked about one
Speaker 1: draft class. Offense obviously well positioned with the third pick,
Speaker 1: with four picks in the top fifty, what about some
Speaker 1: stuff you'd like from the Dolphins rookie class. He talked
Speaker 1: about two a tongue bywa earlier, Austin Jackson, Noah Egnogny,
Speaker 1: Ray Kwon, Davis, Robert Hunt, Brandon Jones. List goes on
Speaker 1: what did you like out of that class this season. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you know, they had a lot of draft capital, and
Speaker 1: I think they really capitalized on on what they had. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, with with two. Like I said, I think
Speaker 1: he's in for a big jump as a sophomore. I
Speaker 1: think he's in for a nice little bump a year
Speaker 1: two as he continues to grow and develop at the position,
Speaker 1: gets it, gets healthy. Um. And then after that, you know,
Speaker 1: Austin Jackson I thought, and you know, he outplayed where
Speaker 1: he was drafted and and uh for several points of
Speaker 1: the season. I think, you know, you can look at
Speaker 1: him as you're the future left tackle and feel good
Speaker 1: about that. Uh. And then the same thing Robert Hunt
Speaker 1: on the other side, I think I really like Robert Hunt.
Speaker 1: He was my top guard coming out, but he played
Speaker 1: right tackle. UM and you know that's how the Dolphins
Speaker 1: were using him, and he did a nice job. But
Speaker 1: I think he gives you that versatility. If the Dolphins
Speaker 1: want to get an ad another tackle in this draft,
Speaker 1: they can move Robert Hunt inside. And so I think
Speaker 1: that versatility that he offers is something that's really valuable.
Speaker 1: He is a starter in the league, and it's just
Speaker 1: all about Okay, well where where's our Where do you
Speaker 1: want to put him to get our best five on
Speaker 1: the football field? Um, you know, really like what they
Speaker 1: did on day two with Rakewon Davis. I wasn't the
Speaker 1: biggest rackuon Davis, uh fan, we were talking about him
Speaker 1: as a top ten, top fifteen pick, but at pick
Speaker 1: fifty six, Yeah, I mean that's you do that all day.
Speaker 1: I mean what he can give you as a run defender, uh,
Speaker 1: in terms of uh, you know, blowing up gaps and uh,
Speaker 1: you know, understanding what the offense is trying to do
Speaker 1: and staying ahead of the play. He really did a
Speaker 1: nice job of that. Got better as a season went on.
Speaker 1: And then I was always a Brain and Jones fan
Speaker 1: watching him at Texas, whether you're playing him at nickel,
Speaker 1: whether he's trying to be more of a free safety,
Speaker 1: whatever you were doing with him. I thought that he
Speaker 1: had that versatility to you know, play in different areas.
Speaker 1: Very I love his competitive toughness. He plays through injurer
Speaker 1: injuries instantly and you know you you wouldn't know what
Speaker 1: He's not gonna sit there and complain is play doesn't
Speaker 1: necessarily suffer. UM plays with an excellent play speed, excellent toughness,
Speaker 1: and you can use those guys um at any point.
Speaker 1: And then you know, on day three when you can
Speaker 1: find a Solomon Kindley, uh, you know, a guy that
Speaker 1: obviously saw a lot of action as a rookie and
Speaker 1: you know, gave you a lot of positive reps and
Speaker 1: reason to believe that he's got a future in the
Speaker 1: starting lineup. You know, you have to take that as
Speaker 1: a win. So I think the Dolphins, you know, they
Speaker 1: had a lot of picks to work with, but you know,
Speaker 1: it's that it's one thing to have the picks, it's
Speaker 1: another to hit on them and you know, feel confident
Speaker 1: about what you did. But I definitely think the Dolphins
Speaker 1: can be optimistic about that class moving forward. Awesome stuff
Speaker 1: there from the Athletic the Prospects to Prose podcast with
Speaker 1: landser Line and you can find him at DP Brugler
Speaker 1: on Twitter. Dane, thank you so much for your time today. Man.
Speaker 1: I'm sure the fans are gonna love this podcast. We'll
Speaker 1: have to get you back on here again soon any time.
Speaker 1: I appreciate it, Thanks, Travis, and so there you have it. There,
Speaker 1: he goes, that was fantastic. Plenty of good information there
Speaker 1: are plenty of good scouting. Know it's from Dane as
Speaker 1: well as getting some insight there from the Senior Bowl
Speaker 1: in the Dolphins practices. You know, I talked about this
Speaker 1: back in twenty nineteen when I covered the Dolphins training
Speaker 1: camp practices as part of Locked On, and I was
Speaker 1: so impressed by the pacing of the Dolphins running those
Speaker 1: practices under Brian Flores for the first time I've seen,
Speaker 1: you know, college practices, NFL practices around the landscape, you know,
Speaker 1: over here in the Pacific Northwest. And I always thought,
Speaker 1: you know, looking back on those twenty nineteen practices, how
Speaker 1: impressed I was with the pace and how quickly they
Speaker 1: were able to get things done. It sounds like Dane
Speaker 1: saw the same thing down there in Mobile at the
Speaker 1: Senior Bowl and talking about the two rookie offensive lineman
Speaker 1: Ray Kwon Davis Brandon Jones to a tongue of Bloa,
Speaker 1: all the draft picks we have coming this year. It's
Speaker 1: good to hear a draft expert really kind of love
Speaker 1: what the Dolphins are putting together down here in Miami,
Speaker 1: and just a really good podcast guest here. In general,
Speaker 1: We're gonna have to get Dane back on here in
Speaker 1: the very near future, very very soon, but away he
Speaker 1: goes Super Bowl on Sunday. Who you guys got I'm
Speaker 1: gonna go with the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes. I just
Speaker 1: he's too good. To me, he's too good. I think
Speaker 1: that offense is too explosive, even for Tom Terrific and
Speaker 1: his tenth Super Bowl, which is just absurd to say.
Speaker 1: I think this the Chief's offense has too much firepower
Speaker 1: to handle, along with enough takeaways and big plays on
Speaker 1: defense from guys like Tyron Matthew and Chris Jones and
Speaker 1: Frank Clark on that Kansas City defense. So give me
Speaker 1: the Chiefs for their second consecutive Super Bowl victory, the
Speaker 1: first time a team will have repeated since the Patriots
Speaker 1: did back in oh three and oh four. That's my
Speaker 1: pick for the Super Bowl. Welcome back with you guys
Speaker 1: next week here on Drivetime and get back into the
Speaker 1: Dolphins off season ahead. Talk about more more about the
Speaker 1: season as well. Plenty of content here on the Drivetime podcast.
Speaker 1: As for today's time, that's gonna be my time you all.
Speaker 1: Please be sure to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast.
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