The Miami Dolphins got themselves possibly six future starters out of last year’s draft.  In the first round the Dolphins selected WR/RS Tedd Ginn Jr. instead of QB Brady Quinn and it caused a huge uproar in Miami.  Ginn played in 16 games (9 starts) for the Dolphins last season and he carried the ball 4 times for 3 yards (0.8 ypc).  Ginn also caught 34 passes for 420 yards (12.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  The Dolphins expect Ginn to improve as a receiver in the near future because of his blazing speed.  Ginn’s most important contribution to the Dolphins last season was his play on special teams.  Ginn returned 63 kickoffs for 1,433 yards (22.7 avg) and he also returned 24 punts for 230 yards (9.6 avg) with 1 TD return.  QB John Beck was selected in the 2nd round by the Dolphins and he was awful when they gave him the opportunity to play.  Beck played in 5 games (4 starts) for the Dolphins last season and he completed 60 of 107 passes (56.1%) for 559 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 interceptions (62.0 QB Rating).  Beck also carried the ball 9 times for 12 yards (1.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  The Dolphins will let Beck compete for the starting job with Josh McCown but it will be an upset if he wins the starting gig.  The Dolphins other 2nd round pick was center Samson Satele who started all 16 games as a rookie.  Satele was quite a pick for the Dolphins as he will likely be a starter for a long, long time for them.  In the 3rd round the Dolphins selected running back Lorenzo Booker.  Booker played in 7 games (1 start) last season for the Dolphins and he carried the ball 28 times for 125 yards (4.5 ypc).   Booker also caught 28 passes for 237 yards (8.5 avg).  Booker will likely be nothing more than a backup for the Dolphins in his career, but he will be a very solid one.  4th round pick DT Paul Soliai played in 8 games (0 starts) and he made 4 tackles for the Dolphins.  In the 6th round the Dolphins selected fullback Reagan Mauia who quickly became a starter for the Fins.  Mauia played in 16 games (9 starts) for the Dolphins last season and he carried the ball 4 times for 5 yards (1.3 ypc).  He also caught 2 passes for 5 yards (2.5 avg).  His game is blocking and he’s good at it so he could be a starter in the Fins’ backfield for a while.  The Dolphins’ other 6th round pick was OG/C Drew Mormino.  Mormino didn’t get to play at all last season but the Fins still like him as a backup.  Inside linebacker Kelvin Smith was the first of three 7th round picks that the Fins made last season.  He played in 4 games (0 starts) and he only made 1 tackle.  The 2nd of the 7th round picks was starting punter Brandon Fields.  Fields played in all 16 games last season for the Dolphins and he averaged 43.2 yards per punt last season (77 punts) and 36.6 net yards.  He only pinned opponents inside the opposing 20-yard line 10 times (13%) last season and he will need to improve on that if he wants to keep his starting job.  The last of the Dolphins’ 7th round picks was DE Abraham Wright who didn’t play at all last season as he was placed on the Injured Reserve List.

GRADE FOR THE 2007 SEASON:  C+

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  B

The Dolphins have signed cornerback Chris Crocker to a 1-year contract.  He played in 14 games for the Falcons last season and he made 55 tackles, had 1 sack, defensed 11 passes and intercepted 3 passes.  Crocker has now played in 74 games in his NFL career and he has made 277 tackles, has 6 sacks, defensed 26 passes and he has intercepted 7 passes returning one for the TD.  This was a good move for the Dolphins as Crocker is a playmaker.