Film Breakdown, Analysis of Dolphins Seventh-Round Pick Ryan Hayes
The 2023 NFL draft is complete, and the Miami Dolphins made four selections across three days. While it was a mostly quiet weekend for the Dolphins, the four players the team selected will have an opportunity to make an impact (or at least a contribution) this season.
With that in mind, we’ve decided to review the film of each of Miami’s selections to provide fans with a look at what these rookies can bring to the Dolphins' roster.
The Dolphins selected Michigan tackle Ryan Hayes with the 251st pick, making him the team’s last selection. Hayes played in 40 games with the Wolverines, starting at left tackle 29 times.
So how does Hayes fit into Miami’s offense? Let’s dive in and see what the film tells us.
Note: Hayes lines up at left tackle and wears number 76 in all the film clips in this article.
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RYAN HAYES' PASS BLOCKING
Pass blocking is the most important trait any offensive lineman can have in today’s NFL, especially in an offense like Miami’s.
The play above demonstrates Hayes’ most significant weaknesses in pass protection — guarding inside moves and dealing with power. He’s matched up against Ohio State’s Zach Harrison on this rep, and he gets beat pretty quickly on his inside shoulder.
Harrison was the 75th overall pick in this year’s draft, and he beat Hayes handily all game.
Hayes needs to add better functional strength to his game. He can’t consistently anchor down against speed-to-power rushes, and NFL rushers will abuse that more than Harrison did.
Additionally, Hayes will need to find a way to deal with inside pass-rush moves much better. Ohio State beat him at least four times with those last season. Hayes tends to overset to protect his outside shoulder, and he lacks the lateral quickness to slide his feet and cut off rushers who attack his inside shoulder.
To Hayes’ credit, he did a much better job dealing with speed rushers. He’s got enough foot speed out of his stance to prevent rushers from beating him to the corner. That’s a valuable skill to have and is probably one of the reasons Miami took a shot on him.
However, once pass rushers figure out he can’t properly redirect his momentum to cover his inside shoulder, Hayes’ strength will almost become a weakness.
HAYES' RUN BLOCKING
Michigan's offense was known for its rushing attack last season, as it basically carried the Wolverines to the College Football Playoff. Without watching film, that would suggest Hayes is a mauler in the running game.
However, he’s much more of a positional blocker who takes advantage of angles and prefers to seal lanes rather than drive defenders off the ball.
The play above demonstrates some of Hayes’ best run-blocking traits. He’s capable of getting to the second level and sealing off lanes against linebackers and second-level defenders.
He also gets tossed to the ground at the end of the play by the Penn State linebacker. That shows his lack of functional strength once again. Hayes does enough to get the job done on this play, but it’s clear he won’t hold blocks for long periods at the NFL level.
For the Dolphins, Hayes’ strengths project well to their outside-zone scheme. Miami wants free movers who seal lanes. That’s what Hayes did at Michigan, so it makes sense the Dolphins would take a shot on him in the seventh round.
Still, Hayes will need to add more pop in his hands and strength to his frame to use his talents. It’s OK to be more of a finesse blocker in a zone-heavy scheme, but there is a natural-strength threshold Hayes doesn’t hit right now.
HAYES' DEMEANOR
Although Hayes isn’t a people mover in the running game, he does attempt to assert his will. This play against Iowa is an excellent example of Hayes’ demeanor showing up.
Again, you can see his athletic ability in space to get out ahead of the play and up to the second level. The important part is how he keeps blocking despite being away from the actual run. He was asked to down block to his right as the run went to his left.
His job is to prevent the backside linebacker from ranging across the field and making a tackle. Hayes does this well and even finishes Detroit Lions No. 18 overall pick Jack Campbell into the ground.
This block wasn’t overly crucial to the success of this run. Campbell probably doesn’t make it to the sideline in time to make a play. The more important part is Hayes displays the effort and demeanor necessary to improve in some of the areas he struggles in.
THE BOTTOM LINE WITH RYAN HAYES
Players are seventh-round picks for a reason. Sometimes it’s because of character or health concerns. Other times, it’s because their film dictates the seventh round is where they should be drafted. Hayes lands in the former category.
While it’s easy to see why the Dolphins would consider him in the seventh round, it’s more challenging to see Hayes being anything more than a backup at the NFL level.
His film is littered with poor reps against NFL-level rushers in pass protection and middling reps against those same rushers in the running game. It’s important to have realistic expectations about players drafted this late in the process. If Hayes makes the roster, it’s a total win.
Anything more than that would be icing on the cake for Miami. That isn’t meant to be an attack on the Dolphins. The team selected Hayes where his film dictates he should have been drafted — an objectively good thing.
Hayes fits well in Miami’s scheme and should have an opportunity to compete for a practice squad spot this summer.
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