*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***

---

Apr 21, 1996: -- Dolphins Take 12 Players in 1996 Draft --

As the 1996 draft winds down on Sunday night, the Dolphins finished up the draft with 12 picks, due to a complicated series of deals that involved the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The first player taken by the Dolphins was defensive tackle Daryl Gardener of Baylor. At 6'6", weighing 320 lbs and with 4.9 speed in the 40, Gardener is an impressive physical specimen who will make an imposing addition to the defensive line.

All in all, the Dolphins took 2 defensive tackles, 3 defensive backs, 3 running backs, 2 linebackers, 1 offensive lineman and 1 wide receiver. About the only positions missed were quarterback and kickers.

Dolphins Draft:

         Pick    Pick
Round  in Round Overall   Player           Pos.  Ht.  Wt.  40  School  
  1       20      20    Daryl Gardener      DT  6'6"  320  4.9 Baylor 
  3       18      79    Dorian Brew         CB  5'10" 183  4.5 Kansas
  3       19      80    Karim Abdul-Jabbar  RB  5'10" 195  4.6 UCLA
  4       18      99    Kirk Pointer        DB  5'11" 178  4.5 Austin Peay   
  4       23     118    Stanley Pritchett   RB  6'1"  232  4.7 South Carolina
  4       30     125    LaCurtis Jones      LB  5'11" 214  4.7 Baylor
  5        2     134    Jerris McPhail      RB  5'10" 200  4.4 E.Carolina
  5       18     150    Shane Burton        DT  6'5"  300  5.2 Tennessee 
  5       22     154    Zach Thomas         LB  5'10" 236  4.8 Texas Tech
  6       22     189    Shawn Wooden        DB  5'11" 189  4.6 Notre Dame
  7       21     230    Jeff Buckey         OL  6'4"  300  5.2 Stanford
  7       42     251    Brice Hunter        WR  6'0"  217  4.6 Georgia

My Comments:

This draft was very confusing for me, as Jimmy made a confusing series of trades to get 4 extra picks. Don't ask me to explain it because my head is still spinning.

Some of the strategy was pretty clear to me - draft for defense and worry about cornerbacks (3 taken) and the defensive line. Most of the players taken in the middle rounds seem to have one thing in common - almost all their reviews said that they were good special teams players, so JJ may be trying to shore up the special teams.

There were 2 big surprises to me - that JJ decided to chance taking Daryl Gardener first and that Abdul-Jabbar was still available in the third round. The reason for picking Gardener is pretty obvious - to give the Dolphins a big defensive push up the middle. As far as Abdul-Jabbar is concerned, I originally didn't want the Dolphins to go after him, but when he fell into the third round, he became a bargain and well worth the pick.

My biggest disappointment was the lack of linebackers taken. Jones is really too small to be an effective linebacker at 217 lbs and that leaves Zach Thomas as the only true linebacker taken. Thomas, however, may be a true diamond in the rough. The book on him is that he's a terrific competitor and has outstanding instincts. The only reason he wasn't taken sooner is that he is "too short".

I think it's silly to grade the draft on the last day of the draft, before any of the players have even been signed, so I'll refrain from making any blanket predictions. However, I admit to being mystified at some of the picks. Let's just hope that Jimmy knows what he's doing.

Related Links:

ESPN:
ESPN Live Draft Coverage

Sporstzone:
Sportszone Draft Coverage