Dolphins NFL draft chatter:
### The Dolphins, who will be aggressive in filling their right tackle need in the draft, continue to be heavily linked to Notre Dame tackle Zack Martin, and nobody will be surprised if he’s the pick at No. 19. But a team official says the Dolphins would be thrilled if they could somehow snag Michigan’s Taylor Lewan, who is projected by most analysts to be gone by their pick at No. 19. An associate of Lewan said he is aware of Miami’s interest.
And Lewan isn’t the only Michigan tackle on Miami’s radar. So is potential third-rounder Michael Schofield, who played both tackle and guard in college. The Dolphins have told people they like him.
The concern would be if Lewan and Martin are both gone by No. 19. The Dolphins could trade up or hope that one of the second-round tackles falls to their pick at No. 50, which would be risky.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper projects Alabama’s Cyrus Kouandjio and Tennessee’s Antonio Richardson to go in the late 20s, and Virginia’s Morgan Moses in the 40s. Stanford’s Cameron Fleming could be an option with Miami’s third-round pick at No. 81, and Miami has expressed interest. Ohio State’s Jack Mewhort might be, too.
And the Dolphins this week will audition and dine with UM’s Seantrel Henderson, a potential third-round right-tackle option who couldn’t finish UM’s Pro Day on Thursday because of dehydration.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross has said he “thinks the world of Taylor Lewan,” and the high regard for Lewan inside the Dolphins apparently extends beyond Ross.
Mel Kiper projects Lewan ninth to Buffalo: “He has the prototypical length as a pass-blocker and really gets after it as a run-blocker.”
NFL Network’s Mike Mayock said Auburn’s Greg Robinson, Texas A&M’s Jake Matthews and Lewan are all top-10 talents. The only chance of Lewan falling rests on teams growing concerned about a couple of off-field issues.
Lewan's former teammate, kicker Brendan Gibbons, was expelled from Michigan in December for reportedly violating the school's student sexual misconduct policies in 2009, when he was accused of rape by another student. The alleged victim accused Lewan of threatening her, claiming he said he wanted to rape her if she pursued charges against Gibbons.
Speaking at the NFL Combine, Lewan insisted he made no such comment. "It's a situation between two people," Lewan said, alluding to Gibbons and the woman. "I've said a lot of dumb things, but those are not things I've said. I would never disrespect a woman like that. I consider myself a guy who holds doors, not threatens people."
Lewan also faces an April 18 arraignment in connection with an incident on Dec. 1, following Michigan's loss to Ohio State. Two Buckeyes fans claim they were assaulted by Lewan, who was charged with three misdemeanors.
“I wasn’t in any fight,” he said. “That’s not who I am off the field.”
Lewan added: "I definitely play through the whistle. I also think that's a weakness because everyone likes to comment on that. But I like to play through the whistle and put people in the dirt as much as possible."
As for Schofield, Kiper said he’s “underrated. I think maybe round three, round four. Michael Schofield can be a starting right tackle in this league."
### Kiper said Martin makes sense for Miami because of his “versatility, durability. He’s technically sound. Doesn’t have the arm length [but] worthy of being the 19th pick.”
But Kiper believes Martin might be snapped up by Pittsburgh at 15 or Baltimore at 17, and as a result, he advocates Miami taking Louisville safety Calvin Pryor at No. 19 in that scenario (which doesn’t make a lot of sense) and addressing offensive line with Nevada tackle/guard Joel Bitonio in the second round and Mewhort in the third.
### The Dolphins might draft two tackles --– one early and one later. They flew to Delaware to private audition potential late-round pick Erle Ladson and will bring in Purdue late-round tackle Kevin Pamphile for a workout this week.
### If the Dolphins go for a guard in the second or third rounds, possibilities include Stanford’s David Yankey, Clemson’s Brandon Thomas, Mississippi State’s Gabe Jackson, UCLA’s Xavier Su’a Filo, Bitonio and LSU’s Trai Turner. And Dolphins offensive line coach John Benton flew to Gainesville to work out and meet with Gators guard Jon Halapio, a potential mid- to late-round pick.
### Among players auditioning for the Dolphins this coming week: Former FSU and Miami Central High running back Devonta Freeman, who ran for 1016 yards (5.9 per carry) and 14 touchdowns in 2013.
### The Dolphins, deep at receiver, invited Clemson’s Martavis Bryant, a potential second-rounder, to visit team headquarters. He’s fast (fifth-fastest 40 time for a receiver at the Combine), has good size at 6-4, and caught 101 passes for 1464 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.
Teams can bring as many as 30 non-local players to team headquarters, but Miami to this point has not asked many of the prominent offensive linemen to visit South Florida, having spent time with all of them at the NFL Combine. Miami is using some of its visits for players not invited to the Combine, including two Arizona Wildcats: cornerback Shaquille Richardson and outside linebacker Marquis Flowers.
