The Miami Dolphins made an addition to their tight end room yesterday, trading a late Day 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft to the Chicago Bears for former 2nd-round selection TE Adam Shaheen. The addition of Shaheen comes as a bit of a surprise, as Miami held firm on their tight end room throughout each of the big hurdles of the offseason process — avoiding addressing the position with any significant moves in either free agency or the 2020 NFL Draft after a big breakout season for TE Mike Gesicki in 2019.
But the addition of Shaheen isn’t one that should worry Gesicki — the two are entirely different athletes and players at the same position. Instead, Dolphins TE Durham Smythe is the one who is put on notice with the Dolphins’ most recent acquisition.
Adam Shaheen has yet to really live up to the expectations that come with being a top-50 pick in the NFL Draft, hence why he’s on the move. But even when Shaheen is at his best, it often times isn’t when he’s catching the football. Shaheen is a monstrous frame and his pass protection was actually one of his bright spots throughout the course of the 2019 season, as cited by Pro Football Focus.
Shaheen has caught 29 of 36 targets with 0 drops in his 3 year career, and earned a career high 70.6 pass blocking grade in 2019.
The #Dolphins add some TE depth behind Mike Gesicki#FinsUp https://t.co/6FAo23PfQb
— PFF MIA Dolphins (@PFF_Dolphins) July 25, 2020
And this is exactly where you should expect to see Miami implement Shaheen — with his hand in the dirt on obvious passing downs and helping in heavy run sets to collapse the edge. Mike Gesicki should only rarely be asked to pass protect, given his ability to stretch the seam and how effective he is when detached from the formation. Alternatively, Shaheen (and his primary competition for the TE2 role, Smythe) will be the “dirty work” players who help provide added time in the pocket and added push in the run game.
Shaheen passed through the NFL Combine in 2017 at 278 pounds and is now listed somewhere around 260 — he will provide Miami with another “high traffic” tight end and therefore should not be considered a significant threat to Gesicki’s 2020 forecast. He is, however, a legitimate threat to uproot Smythe from his role as the primary backup.