This year, due to multiple trades and the loss of a draft pick due to tampering with former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, the Miami Dolphins aren’t scheduled to make their first selection until pick No. 51.
We’ve gone through the recent history of that specific pick, seeing that there’s been some talented players brought into the league with it. However, how have the Dolphins fared when using this pick in the past?
Miami has had pick No. 51 twice before in their history. The first time was in 1966. At that time, the Dolphins were in the AFL. There were 20 rounds in the draft and only eight teams, so while pick No. 51 today is in the second round, it was the first pick of the seventh back then.
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The Dolphins used that selection on linebacker Don Hansen. Hansen was also selected in the third round of the NFL draft that year and opted to play with the Minnesota Vikings in that league. He played 11 years in the NFL with the Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks.
By the second time that Miami had pick No. 51, they were in the NFL. In 1978, the league had expanded to 28 teams and had cut the draft down to just 12 rounds. The Dolphins used their selection on quarterback Guy Benjamin.
Benjamin played in six seasons in the NFL, two with Miami, one with the New Orleans Saints and three with the San Francisco 49ers.
He never started a game, but he appeared in 19 contests, completing 57.4% of his passes for 439 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
The Dolphins should be hoping to get a player that impacts that game much more than Benjamin did. An 11-year career for a second-round pick, as Hansen had, should be a good goal for Miami with the selection. At least it’s unlikely that the XFL or USFL are going to be stealing any of these players away.
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