The Dolphins selected linebacker J.D. Folsom out of tiny Weber State because his motor never stops.  He is 6’3″, 230 pounds so he’s a tweener being too small for linebacker and likely too big for safety.  It will be interesting to see if the Dolphins want him to lose some weight to play safety or gain some to play outside linebacker.  Folsom made 149 tackles in his last two seasons at Weber State making the 1st and 2nd all league teams in the process.  He will likely get his initiation in the NFL on special teams before ever getting a chance to play defense.

The Dolphins took a chance here that Gardner will develop with good coaching at the pro level.  He has the body to add more bulk as he stands 6’7″ and weighs 304 pounds.  He was selected to the 1st team of the All-ACC two consecutive seasons.  The Dolphins will likely bring Gardner along slowly but he could develop into a decent player in due time.

Chris Clemons has the speed to be a impact player but he will need to improve in other areas to get onto the field for the Dolphins.  Clemons has nice size at 6’0″, 208 pounds and he was a three year starter at Clemson.  He made 323 tackles, broke up 20 passes and had 5 interceptions at Clemson.  Look for him to earn his shot on special teams before he gets a chance on defense for the Dolphins.  This was another reach pick by the Fins.

The Dolphins might have reached a little bit here as John Nalbone wasn’t expected to even be drafted.  He has solid size at 6’4″, 258 pounds but he will have to make a big jump in competition.  He caught 100 passes for 1,073 yards (10.7 avg) with 9 TD grabs in four seasons at tiny Monmouth.  This was a reach but Bill Parcells usually looks under every rock in the country for players so he could surprise.

The Dolphins once again reached for a player in Hartline that was projected to get drafted in the 6th or 7th round.  Hartline is too thin at 6’2″, 180 pounds to take a lot of punishment but he isn’t scared of contact.  He’s a good blocker in the running game because of effort and he’s a solid special teams player.  He runs a 4.5 40 so speed likely won’t be an issue but he will need to improve his strength to earn playing time.  In 3 years at Ohio State, Hartline played in 39 games (27 starts) in which he caught 90 passes for 1,429 yards (15.9 avg) with 12 TD grabs.  If everything breaks right for Hartline he could develop into a #3 WR for the Fins.

The Miami Dolphins were caught reaching in the 3rd round for WR Patrick Turner who wasn’t projected to get picked until the 6th or 7th round according to Pro Football Weekly.  Turner does have nice size at 6’5″, 221 pounds but he doesn’t have enough speed running a 4.65 40.  He will likely fit in as nothing more than a possession receiver for the Dolphins.  Turner played in 49 games (25 starts) in his four seasons with USC and he caught 138 passes for 1,752 yards (12.7 avg) with 17 TD grabs.  He doesn’t have enough upside to be drafted where the Dolphins took him.

The Dolphins have released 27-year old QB John Beck.  He was made expendable for the Dolphins when they drafted Pat White out of West Virginia.  The Ravens quickly snapped him up but he likely won’t come back to haunt the Fins at any point in the future.  Beck played in 5 games for the Dolphins and he completed 60 of 107 passes (56.1%) for 559 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 interceptions (62.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 9 times for 12 yards (1.3 ypc) with 1 TD run for the Fins in his career with them.  The Dolphins won’t miss Beck too much as he pretty much sucked for them!