Miami Dolphins make major upgrades early in seven-round mock draft
By Ian Higgins
Round Two
College Stats. Travis Etienne. 36. player. 59. Scouting Report. HB. Clemson
Productive with a combination of inexpensive talent, the Miami Dolphins managed to put together a solid group of backs to support Tagovailoa in his rookie campaign. After offering projected top selection Trevor Lawrence his services as a deadly checkdown threat, Clemson back Travis Etienne can look to bring similar productivity and reliable playmaking to a quarterback in need of such a target.
With 41 receptions last season, Miami Dolphins incumbent running back Myles Gaskin showed the need for a true receiving back to be brought into the Miami backfield. With four catches per contest in his final season and a 4.41 40 certifying his breakaway speed, Clemson’s Etienne capitalized on mismatches in coverage and replicates the play of some of the game’s current top backs such as Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara.
Kentucky. 50. player. Scouting Report. College Stats. LB. Jamin Davis. 59
An inside linebacker hoping to break into the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Kentucky linebacker Jamin Davis jumped off of the page with his pro-day measurables. At 6-foot-3, 234 pounds, Davis recorded a sub-4.4 40, 42-inch vertical, and 11-foot broad jump. For comparison, top-ten prospect Micah Parsons weighed in ten pounds heavier, ran the same forty, but came up eight and six inches short in the vertical and broad jump respectively.
Still needing work in his foundational skills as an inside linebacker, Davis will be drafted purely based upon his positional athleticism and ability to be molded into whatever his coaching staff needs him to be. With the opportunity to snag a top-20 athlete in the second round, the Miami Dolphins need to make the most of their limited selections in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Round Three
Tyler Shelvin. 82. player. Scouting Report. College Stats. DT. LSU. 59
After losing impressive defensive lineman Davon Godchaux to the New England Patriots in free agency, the Miami Dolphins find themselves in need of another true nose tackle for their three-man defensive line. Placed alongside rising stars Christian Wilkins and Raekwon Davis, the Miami Dolphins need a stout run defender who can attract attention on the interior.
At 350 pounds, LSU’s Tyler Shelvin is one of the most imposing physical presences in the 2021 NFL Draft not only because of his raw size but because of how that mass is packed into his frame at only 6-foot-2. Able to deliver his strength with exceptional leverage because of his stature, Shelvin is a near-perfect prospect physically to play the nose tackle position.