Dolphins Get Some Offensive Line Help

On the day teams need to get down to an 85-player limit, the Miami Dolphins added a player when they swung a trade with the Carolina Panthers.

The Dolphins acquired offensive tackle Greg Little in exchange for a 2022 seventh-round selection. The trade was announced Tuesday afternoon by the Panthers.

A second-round pick in 2019, Little played 14 games with six starts over the past two seasons. He missed time in 2019 with a concussion and an ankle injury, and an ankle injury landed him on IR last December.

Little succeeded former Dolphins first-round pick Laremy Tunsil as the left tackle at Ole Miss and was the 37th overall selection in 2019, though he never quite realized his potential with the Panthers.

Publisher Schuyler Callihan of SI Fan Nation sister site All Panthers offered this scouting report on Little:

"The Panthers drafted Greg Little back in 2019 thinking that he could develop into the starting left tackle for years to come. After dealing with a nagging ankle injury in 2019, the Panthers made a move to trade for Russell Okung to help solidify the left tackle spot for the 2020 season, which shrunk Little's role with the new coaching staff. Unfortunately, that move didn't work out either as Okung missed nine games. Even then, the staff turned to Trent Scott over Little. The truth is, injuries have really derailed his development. He also missed time to an ankle injury and dealt with concussions this past season. With Taylor Moton being locked up to a four-year deal and Cameron Erving and Brady Christensen being added this offseason, the Panthers just simply found better options."

Panthers second-year head coach Matt Rhule was asked about Little's progress just last week.

"I think he's progressing," Rhule said. "I think he's way further ahead than he was in the spring. he's got stiff competition ahead of him but I think Greg is showing progress. I'll really have a better feel over the next three days. I think the next three days are the days I'll have a feel for the offensive line and the fullbacks."

At the very least, this is a low-cost move by the Dolphins to see if Little can come close to the player most draft analysts believed could become a big-time NFL player.

As a point of reference, his NFL.com draft profile made his NFL player comparison four-time Pro Bowl left tackle Duane Brown.

The Dolphins clearly could use some help on their offensive line, particularly at the tackle spots.

It's an issue we examined a week ago after a tweet from former NFL GM Michael Lombardi saying the Dolphins were inquiring about available tackles on the trade market.

While scouts believe Little could play guard in the NFL, it makes sense for the Dolphins to look at him at tackle, where Austin Jackson and Adam Pankey both had rough outings in the preseason against the Chicago Bears.

Other tackles on the Dolphins roster include Jesse Davis, Jonathan Hubbard, rookie seventh-round Larnel Coleman, Timon Parris, along with a handful of guards who could swing to tackle in a pinch.