Dane Brugler of the Athletics top 50- we ended up with 4 of the top 35

[Finsup1981]

So in his initial rankings from before the season in August we ended up with 4 of his top 35 players.

If you had told anyone we got this haul back then including Ewers and Gordon back to back they would’ve thought you were crazy and that we had an all time draft. Funny how recency bias skews opinions on these guys.

They their ranking before the season and after, and where they ended up getting drafted.

22. Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona​

Final ranking: No. 55​

Where he was drafted: No. 37 (Miami Dolphins)​

Though I liked Savaiinaea quite a bit entering the season, I didn’t think his 2024 performance — albeit out of position at tackle — was consistent enough to feel great about him in the top 40. But, again, offensive line is a premium spot and often gets overdrafted. In this case, it took an expensive trade up by the Dolphins to get Savaiinaea at No. 37.

23. Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas​

Final ranking: No. 86​

Where he was drafted: No. 231 (Miami Dolphins)​

Seeing Ewers free fall on draft weekend was surprising yet not surprising at the same time. Opinions on him were all over the map, but the general thought among NFL scouts was he would be drafted somewhere in the third- to fourth-round range. Instead, Ewers was the 13th (and final) quarterback selected in 2025.

30. Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan​

Final ranking: No. 25​

Where he was drafted: No. 13 (Miami Dolphins)​

Grant was a polarizing prospect among scouts. His impact in college didn’t scream top-15 pick, but the NFL is a big man’s game and his package of tools at his size (6-4, 330) is what NFL teams desire.

35. Ollie Gordon II, RB, Oklahoma State​

Final ranking: No. 136​

Where he was drafted: No. 179 (Miami Dolphins)​

Fresh off a 1,732-yard rushing season in 2023, Gordon was an easy prospect to like over the summer. But the concerning flaws in his game were front and center over the first month of the ’24 season and he didn’t regain the optimistic vibes in the eyes of NFL teams.

 

[mwestberry]

The Dolphins need 3 rookies to make an impact in order to move ahead in my opinion.

The team has to be able to run the ball successfully, give the QB an extra 1.5 seconds, and pressure the QB on D.

When those three tasks can be accomplished with consistency, the team will take off.

The secondary is suspect so the front 7 HAVE to carry the load until ....
With Phillips and Chubb coming back, it's not hard to see an improvement in QB pressures.
With one of the DL who were drafted stepping up, it's easy to see success from the defensive front 7.

The second-round pick HAS to be a plug-and-play guy. Or someone could surprise, but the OL is the key to any forward progress.

The OL being successful is paramount to the running game.
Running the ball will protect the QB more so than holding your block longer. It will also open the pass windows.

Nothing looks "absolute".

The positions selected in the draft make it look like the plan is to shore up the trenches.

In your opinion, which three new players need to implant themselves in the lineup to make the impact needed?
Did the brain trust select the right players?
Can the coaching staff get the most out of the new talent?

Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona​

Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan​

Jason Marshall Jr., CB, Florida​

Luck may be needed, but what the hell ... the team is due some luck.

https://media.tenor.com/lvAYBBSJUV0AAAAM/do-you-feel-lucky-punk.gif

 

[MARINO1384]

Yeah a ton of mocks had these 4 as 1st rounders pre college season

 

[Danny]

all that is good and dandy but now they have to go out there and play. It doesn’t matter where they all got drafted. If we hit on those 4 guys then it was a great draft.

 

[The Captain]

So in his initial rankings from before the season in August we ended up with 4 of his top 35 players.

If you had told anyone we got this haul back then including Ewers and Gordon back to back they would’ve thought you were crazy and that we had an all time draft. Funny how recency bias skews opinions on these guys.

Ahhhh, is that actually what 'recency bias' means? I'm figuring that it's more like claiming that Philip Rivers was a better pro QB than Otto Graham was, or that "American Beauty" is superior to "Casablanca" as a motion picture.

Of course a player's final collegiate season is almost certain to affect how a draft prospect is evaluated by NFL teams, especially if his performance during it isn't considered to be as good as during an earlier season. These four Dolphins' draft selections clearly demonstrate that concept, don't they?

 

[AMakados10]

Jonah and Grant preseason predictions, post season rank, and slot drafted held as expected.

Was the prediction that wrong in Gordon/Ewers, was their play that bad, or is Chris Grier an evil genius that has spent 18 seasons sucking ass in senior positions waiting for the perfect draft when a RB and QB fell to day 3 (after trading all his day 2 picks) to strike!

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

The Dolphins need 3 rookies to make an impact in order to move ahead in my opinion.

The team has to be able to run the ball successfully, give the QB an extra 1.5 seconds, and pressure the QB on D.

When those three tasks can be accomplished with consistency, the team will take off.

The secondary is suspect so the front 7 HAVE to carry the load until ....
With Phillips and Chubb coming back, it's not hard to see an improvement in QB pressures.
With one of the DL who were drafted stepping up, it's easy to see success from the defensive front 7.

The second-round pick HAS to be a plug-and-play guy. Or someone could surprise, but the OL is the key to any forward progress.

The OL being successful is paramount to the running game.
Running the ball will protect the QB more so than holding your block longer. It will also open the pass windows.

Nothing looks "absolute".

The positions selected in the draft make it look like the plan is to shore up the trenches.

In your opinion, which three new players need to implant themselves in the lineup to make the impact needed?
Did the brain trust select the right players?
Can the coaching staff get the most out of the new talent?

Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona​

Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan​

Jason Marshall Jr., CB, Florida​

Luck may be needed, but what the hell ... the team is due some luck.

https://media.tenor.com/lvAYBBSJUV0AAAAM/do-you-feel-lucky-punk.gif

The Dolphins need 3 rookies to make an impact in order to move ahead in my opinion.

The team has to be able to run the ball successfully, give the QB an extra 1.5 seconds, and pressure the QB on D.

When those three tasks can be accomplished with consistency, the team will take off.

The secondary is suspect so the front 7 HAVE to carry the load until ....
With Phillips and Chubb coming back, it's not hard to see an improvement in QB pressures.
With one of the DL who were drafted stepping up, it's easy to see success from the defensive front 7.

The second-round pick HAS to be a plug-and-play guy. Or someone could surprise, but the OL is the key to any forward progress.

The OL being successful is paramount to the running game.
Running the ball will protect the QB more so than holding your block longer. It will also open the pass windows.

Nothing looks "absolute".

The positions selected in the draft make it look like the plan is to shore up the trenches.

In your opinion, which three new players need to implant themselves in the lineup to make the impact needed?
Did the brain trust select the right players?
Can the coaching staff get the most out of the new talent?

Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona​

Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan​

Jason Marshall Jr., CB, Florida​

Luck may be needed, but what the hell ... the team is due some luck.

https://media.tenor.com/lvAYBBSJUV0AAAAM/do-you-feel-lucky-punk.gif

Good post. Pre-draft there was a lot of talk about Grant being a perfect fit for Weaver's defense. If he can develop as a pass rusher even better.

Besides Booker, I think Savaiinaea may be the most physical guard from this draft. He might end up being the most impactful simply because Miami has struggled to run inside.

If the Dolphins can continue down the road of drafting physical players, this thing could turn around. It took a few drafts for Philadelphia to get where they are.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Jonah and Grant preseason predictions, post season rank, and slot drafted held as expected.

Was the prediction that wrong in Gordon/Ewers, was their play that bad, or is Chris Grier an evil genius that has spent 18 seasons sucking ass in senior positions waiting for the perfect draft when a RB and QB fell to day 3 (after trading all his day 2 picks) to strike!

Plain luck is sometimes involved. Nobody thought Brock Purdy would be good, or Tom Brady. Heck, the great Dan Marino fell to Miami's draft spot.

I think, in the case of Ewers, his durability dropped him which is a fair concern.

 

[derek]

So in his initial rankings from before the season in August we ended up with 4 of his top 35 players.

If you had told anyone we got this haul back then including Ewers and Gordon back to back they would’ve thought you were crazy and that we had an all time draft. Funny how recency bias skews opinions on these guys.

They their ranking before the season and after, and where they ended up getting drafted.

22. Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona​

Final ranking: No. 55​

Where he was drafted: No. 37 (Miami Dolphins)​

Though I liked Savaiinaea quite a bit entering the season, I didn’t think his 2024 performance — albeit out of position at tackle — was consistent enough to feel great about him in the top 40. But, again, offensive line is a premium spot and often gets overdrafted. In this case, it took an expensive trade up by the Dolphins to get Savaiinaea at No. 37.

23. Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas​

Final ranking: No. 86​

Where he was drafted: No. 231 (Miami Dolphins)​

Seeing Ewers free fall on draft weekend was surprising yet not surprising at the same time. Opinions on him were all over the map, but the general thought among NFL scouts was he would be drafted somewhere in the third- to fourth-round range. Instead, Ewers was the 13th (and final) quarterback selected in 2025.

30. Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan​

Final ranking: No. 25​

Where he was drafted: No. 13 (Miami Dolphins)​

Grant was a polarizing prospect among scouts. His impact in college didn’t scream top-15 pick, but the NFL is a big man’s game and his package of tools at his size (6-4, 330) is what NFL teams desire.

35. Ollie Gordon II, RB, Oklahoma State​

Final ranking: No. 136​

Where he was drafted: No. 179 (Miami Dolphins)​

Fresh off a 1,732-yard rushing season in 2023, Gordon was an easy prospect to like over the summer. But the concerning flaws in his game were front and center over the first month of the ’24 season and he didn’t regain the optimistic vibes in the eyes of NFL teams.

Agreed, the body of work is what's important. Grant was clearly the most impressive of the lot, on a steady upward trajectory with plenty of room to grow.

Next was Savaiinaea, who was solid throughout his college career, even though he ended on a somewhat down note when playing out of position. Of course, he reminded teams of what he was capable of at the Senior Bowl. We know the Patriots coveted him for his scheme versatility.

Gordon's speed has pretty consistently been questioned, even during his big 2023 season. He backed that up with a so-so combine, so those concerns were not completely unfounded. The thing is, good line or bad, that down 2024 season still resulted in 4.6 ypc and 13 TDs. He was undoubtedly a good value at pick 179, which was only a little bit later than I figured he'd go. He's not an ideal system fit, but he is an ideal fit for a role grinding out tough yards, and he has room to improve.

Ewers, despite going a lot later than I expected, was up and down all the way, even though he had some signature wins. I think that it's clear some teams valued him more than others for their respective systems. I thought he was better than the 13th best QB in the draft, but went so low due to being taken off some boards for lack of fit.

 

[fin007]