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After addressing a need on offense in the first round by drafting Louisville’s DeVante Parker, the Miami Dolphins decided to add depth to the defensive line by selecting Oklahoma’s Jordan Phillips in Round 2.
Miami originally had the 47th pick but traded the pick and its sixth-rounder to Philadelphia in exchange for the 52nd pick and two fifth-rounders.
Phillips is a mountain of a man at 6’5″, 329 pounds. His large arms measure out at 34 ¾“.
Even with such size, as well as the fact that he’s two years removed from back surgery, Phillips is athletic, as his former teammate Jamarkus McFarland described to ESPN’s Jake Trotter in 2012: “He’s the only 300-pound guy I’ve ever seen do a standing backflip in his pads, and he can dunk with two hands, which is amazing.”
Phillips wasn’t a need for the Dolphins, but he does help them do something they had problems doing in 2014: stop the run.
Per College Football Focus, Phillips was ranked fifth in run-stopping percentage, stopping the run 9 percent of the time it came his way. He also helps with his size and ability to free up space for linebackers to burst through to the line of scrimmage on run plays.
He has his concerns, as he’s still a raw pass-rusher. Due to his back injury in 2013, he only started 17 games in his time at Oklahoma. At times he looked lost on the field, and instead of rushing the quarterback, he attempted to merely bat down the pass.
As a fit on the Dolphins, Phillips should line up on run plays next to Ndamukong Suh. The rookie will be able to free up linebackers Koa Misi, Jelani Jenkins and Chris McCain to create havoc across the line of scrimmage and improve Miami’s run defense.
It will take some time for his pass-rushing ability to develop, but he’ll have the opportunity to learn with the veteran Suh next to him, which might be the best situation for his career.
There’s a lot of promise in Phillips, as NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein described:
Nose tackle with desired height, weight and speed. Flashes talent necessary to project a ceiling as a dominant run stuffer best suited for a 3-4 defense. Phillips’ ability to eat up blocks should help him earn a high grade, but it’s his potential as a big athlete with above-average range for the position that could turn him into a Pro Bowl nose.
If he can reach that promise with Miami, the team will have a steal. I just believe he’s a redundancy at this point with the Dolphins having so many other needs.
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