Assuming the Miami Dolphins don’t do anything crazy with their first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and stay put with the 5th selection, they’ll only need to wait thirteen picks before coming back on the clock again for their second pick. But what if that wait is deemed too long for Miami? The team has plenty of ammunition to, as general manager Chris Grier stated, “do whatever (they) want” in the draft, including possibly trading back up from 18 to go get an offensive tackle.
What would that cost look like for Miami? It’s certainly a better option than trying to trade back up for a quarterback and will cost Miami less in a hypothetical trade to move back up for a signal caller. But it very well may cost the Dolphins dearly.
If the Dolphins wanted to get back into the top-10, Carolina and Arizona look like their best candidates. Carolina will need future draft capital for their own rebuild project — while Arizona locked in big needs by resigning OT DJ Humphries and trading for WR DeAndre Hopkins.
According to the Jimmy Johnson trade value chart for NFL Draft selections, Miami’s 18th overall selection is valued at 900 points. Arizona’s 8th selection is valued at 1400 points, while Carolina’s 7th selection is valued at 1500 points.
The Dolphins’ first 2nd-round selection, which is 39th overall, is valued at 510 points — so theoretically a trade up into the top-8 could come at the cost of 18, 39 and a Day 3 selection to serve as a “pot sweetener”. If the Dolphins would prefer to hang onto their 39th selection, the team is probably looking at trading 18 and two second round picks (56 and one of their two 2021 picks) to try to get a deal done. Whether that would be enough or not is up for debate — but if Miami is serious about pegging a day one starting tackle, they may be prompted to give up a little extra on top of this to get it done.
But this should be considered the general cost. What say you? Would you be alright with Miami forfeiting a 2020 2nd-round pick (and maybe more) to secure a top-flight offensive tackle?