The Dolphins Drafts of the Last 10 Years: 2021

Leading up to the 2023 NFL draft, we're taking a look at each of the Miami Dolphins' past 10 drafts with an analysis of how each pick panned out, a grade for all those picks, players the team missed, and an overall grade for the draft class.

The grades will be determined on the basis of how the player's NFL career turned out, not how each did with the Dolphins. Picks also are curved on a grade, where more was expected of a first-round pick than, say, a fourth-round pick, as well as in relation to who else the Dolphins could have selected who was available.

We continue with the 2021 draft, and this is where we start pointing out that the grades really still be should be considered incomplete in many instances.

THE 2021 DOLPHINS DRAFT PICKS

Round 1 — WR Jaylen Waddle, Alabama (6th overall)

Round 1 — DE Jaelan Phillips, Miami (18th)

Round 2 — S Jevon Holland, Oregon (36th)

Round 2 — OL Liam Eichenberg, Notre Dame (42nd)

Round 3 — TE Hunter Long, Boston College (81st)

Round 7 — T Larnel Coleman, UMass (231st)

Round 7 — RB Gerrid Doaks, Cincinnati (244th)

BREAKING DOWN EACH PICK

-- Jaylen Waddle: The Dolphins took a circuitous route to get to Waddle, going from third to 12th and back up to sixth after trades with the 49ers and Eagles that netted them a fufure first-round pick. Waddle has been a star for the Dolphins, setting an NFL rookie record for receptions in 2021 and then leading the league in yards per catch in 2022. The next step for Waddle is postseason accolades. Who the Dolphins could have had: It's really hard to complain about the Waddle pick considering his first two seasons, but it's also hard not to look at that 12th slot the Dolphins owned after the trade with Philly and think about what Micah Parsons would look like in a Miami uniform. Grade: A-

-- Jaelan Phillips: Phillips already has made a mark in the community as the team's Man of the Year nominee in 2022, and on the field he has impressed with his aggressiveness and nonstop motor. Phillips got off to slow starts in terms of sacks each of his first two seasons before coming on in the second half. Who the Dolphins could have had: The two players who stand out as possible regrets between where Phillips and Holland were picked both were running backs, Najee Harris and Javonte Williams. Grade: B+

-- Jevon Holland: Sitting out the 2020 season because of COVID might have caused Holland to slide into the second round, which turned into a blessing for the Dolphins. Holland had the look of a star from the beginning. His production dipped a bit in his second season, but the outlook remains bright for him. Who the Dolphins could have had: The two players taken after Holland in Round 2 who have stood out both are offensive linemen, Landon Dickerson with the Eagles and Creed Humphrey with the Chiefs. Grade: B+

-- Liam Eichenberg: This one hasn't worked out so well. And it's not so much that Eichenberg has yet to establish himself as a bona fide NFL player (in part because of injuries), it's that the Dolphins surrendered a 2022 third-round pick to move up eight spots to get him. Who the Dolphins could have had: Watching the Chiefs get Humphrey at the end of Round 2 and then have him come an anchor the K.C. line has been painful. Grade: C-

-- Hunter Long: Long never was able to gain any footing in his first two seasons in the NFL, buried on the Dolphins depth chart behind Mike Gesicki and Durham Smythe. At least, the Dolphins were able to use him to land Jalen Ramsey in that trade with the Rams. Who the Dolphins could have had: In fairness, it's not like there were many other great options for the Dolphins besides Long. The one later third-round pick who's had some success in the NFL is Bills right tackle Spencer Brown. Grade: D+

-- Larnel Coleman: As a seventh-round pick from a smaller program, Coleman was a long shot all along to make it in the NFL, and he bounced on and off the Miami practice squad before the Carolina Panthers poached him last season. Who the Dolphins could have had: The one 2021 seventh-rounder who stands played for Vic Fangio in Denver, and that outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper. Grade: C

-- Gerrid Doaks: Doaks was an interesting late-round prospect at running back, but he wasn't able to make the 53-man roster. The Houston Texans signed him to their practice squad last year and will look to get something out of him in 2023. Who the Dolphins could have had: Five picks after Miami took Doaks, the Rams selected wide receiver Ben Skowronek, who started 11 games in 2022 and caught 39 passes. Grade: C-

2021 DOLPHINS DRAFT GRADE

After having five picks in the first two rounds in 2020, the Dolphins had four in 2021 and they pretty clearly nailed the first three with Waddle, Phillips and Holland. If Eichenberg can take a big step forward and become a solid starter, this could end up going down as one of the best drafts in team history.

Grade: A-

ADDITIONAL READING:

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2013 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2014 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2015 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2016 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2017 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2018 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2019 DRAFT

-- REVIEWING AND GRADING THE DOLPHINS' 2020 DRAFT