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Miami Herald
30-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Bowl executive, others dish on Dolphins' impressive group of undrafted rookies on defense
Feedback on the Dolphins undrafted rookie free agent signings on defense, from my conversation with Eric Galko, the East-West Shrine Bowl's director of football operations/player personnel director, and previous remarks from others: ▪ Minnesota cornerback Ethan Robinson: He had 24 tackles and three interceptions in his one FBS season (at Minnesota) and yielded a very good 76.4 passer rating in his coverage area: 27 completions in 48 attempts for 376 yards (a 13.9 yards per catch average), with three touchdowns permitted and three interceptions. Robinson, who previously was a standout at Bucknell, He will be competing with Artie Burns, rookie BJ Adams, fifth-round pick Jason Marshall, Isaiah Johnson, Jason Maitre, Ethan Bonner and others for two or three roster spots. (Marshall very likely will stick.) Galko said he's 'an impressive athlete. I thought the Pro Day field wasn't great but he had a chance to run a heck of a lot better. He's a 4.4 guy [in the 40] all day. One of better priority free agent signings. He can play in the slot or outside. Minnesota has a great track record developing' defensive backs, such as Antoine Winfield and others and 'all are tough, physical, high-IQ guys.' ▪ UCF cornerback BJ Adams: Adams, 6-2, had two interceptions and returned one for a touchdown last season; he missed three games with a back injury but finished with a strong 80.9 passer rating in his coverage area: 18 completions in 35 attempts for 262 yards, three TDs allowed and the two interceptions. Timed at 4.53 in the 40-yard dash, Adams had the two picks, 11 pass breakups and 88 tackles (including five for loss) in four seasons at UCF. He has a real chance to make the roster. Lance Zierlein projected him as a fourth- or fifth-rounder and said he's a 'man-cover corner with good size and great length but average ball production. Adams is at home in press coverage, where he can reroute the receiver. His foot agility and quickness are below NFL standards and he could struggle to stay connected against an NFL route tree. 'Average awareness and instincts cause inconsistencies from zone. But his burst to close and angles to the throw work in his favor, if he can trust what he sees. He has adequate speed and a crowd-and-grab coverage style that could bring feast-or-famine results as a pro. I love the competitiveness and traits to squeeze catch windows, but Adams' areas of concern could limit him to backup duty.' Galko's take: 'Like with Ethan Robinson, I was surprised BJ Adams wasn't drafted. Outstanding instincts. Football IQ jumps off the chart. Has good sense of [coverages], understanding cushion and working within a scheme and making plays on the ball. He's one of the better undrafted players.' ▪ Boise State safety Seyi Oladipo: The 5-11 Oladipo had 23 tackles for loss, four interceptions, eight sacks, 15 passes defended and two forced fumbles in 54 games over four years at Boise State. Last season, he had a strong 83.5 passer rating in his coveragea area: 21 passes caught in 29 targets, for 147 yards, no TDs permitted and no interceptions. offered this analysis: 'Some elements of Seyi Oladipo's game are comparable to Trent McDuffie of the Kansas City Chiefs. McDuffie is more talented and may have more of a cornerback background, but he can play anywhere on the field. He's also highly effective on blitzes, similar to Oladipo. 'Oladipo can play nickelback or safety. During the 1,973 snaps he played in his career, he lined up in the slot on 936 of them while playing in the box on 782 snaps. He also combined for 225 snaps lined up at the line of scrimmage or at free safety. 'Oladipo is excellent on blitzes, as he oftentimes the snap impeccably. He was second in the FBS among safeties with 21 quarterback pressures. According to Pro Football Focus, he was third in the nation with 37 defensive stops which were constituted as failures for the offense. ▪ Mississippi safety John Saunders Jr.: He had 47 tackles (two for loss), three interceptions and an SEC-leading four forced fumbles last season and had a solid 86.1 passer rating in his coverage area, with 35 completions in 58 attempts for 450 yards (a 12.9 average per reception) with four touchdowns permitted and the three picks. The Dolphins gave him $120,000 guaranteed — very good money for an undrafted rookie. Saunders, who played two years at Mississippi after three at Miami of Ohio, could win a job on the 53-man roster with a good camp, but five safeties enter the offseason likely ahead of him — Ifeatu Melifonwu, Ashtyn Davis, Elijah Campbell, Patrick McMorris and fifth-round rookie Dante Trader Jr. NFL Diamonds' evaluation: 'John Saunders Jr. has good overall pass coverage skills in zone and man as he is commonly asked to cover receivers in the slot and does so with routine success. He is good overall in run support from the free safety spot and has solid ability to fill in at Strong Safety if needed. Due to his range and cover skills should be viewed as a free safety at the next level.' ▪ Auburn linebacker Eugene Asante: He had 47 tackles (five for loss) and 2.5 sacks last season. He spent three years at North Carolina and then three at Auburn. The 6-0, 220-pound Asante, who's a natural inside linebacker, has 195 career tackles, including 16 for loss, and 7.5 sacks. Among 48 Auburn players on defense last season, Pro Football Focus rated him only the 25th-best run defender. He wasn't great in pass coverage, allowing a 107.4 passer rating against (18 completions in 26 attempts for 217 yards and a touchdown). He's likely a long shot to make the 53. Galko said he's a 'plus athlete' but 'limited in what he can do. Is he a situational sub package guy? Good mover, good athlete, but can miss some tackles and maybe not be three down linebacker.' Lance Zierlein said he was good enough to be a fifth-rounder, adding: he's a 'reactive off-ball linebacker possessing average measurables but premium explosiveness as an athlete. Asante plays with average diagnosis and will need to rely on speed over instincts for his production. 'He has instant acceleration and the range to find the action but needs to become more consistent at coming to balance as a tackler to avoid a high miss total. Teams will need to weigh his spotty coverage and mental mistakes with his impressive upside as a blitzer. The play is uneven, but he's fast and tough, making him worthy of a Day 3 investment for further development and special teams value.' ▪ South Carolina defensive tackle Alex Huntley: Huntley, who is 6-4 and 305 pounds, had 82 tackles, including eight for loss, and four sacks in five seasons and 50 games for the Gamecocks. He has a chance to stick but is more likely for the practice squad if he impresses in the months ahead. The feedback is he grades out well with intangibles; he was a team captain in 2023 and 2024 who was steady, smart (made the SEC's All-Academic Honor Roll), a leader (named to the SEC Community Service team) and capable of the occasional big play, including a 2023 game against Mississippi State when he recorded two sacks, two pass breakups, a quarterback hurry, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick. He also has one career reception – a 1-yard touchdown against Vanderbilt. The Dolphins also signed Alabama long snapper Kneeland Hibbert to compete with Blake Ferguson. Here's my Tuesday piece with feedback on the Dolphins' postdraft rookie additions on offense.
Miami Herald
14-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Dolphins bring in draft cornerback prospect with very good size and length
The Dolphins, eager to add talented cornerbacks in the draft process, brought UCF's BJ Adams to team headquarters on Monday, a UCF source said. Adams, 6-2, had two interceptions and returned one for a touchdown last season; he missed three games with a back injury. Timed at 4.53 in the 40-yard dash, Adams had the two picks, 11 pass breakups and 88 tackles (including five for loss) in four seasons at UCF. Lance Zierlein projects Adams to go in the fourth or fifth round and said he's 'man-cover corner with good size and great length; average ball production. Adams is at home in press coverage, where he can reroute the receiver. He has adequate speed and a crowd-and-grab coverage style.... I love the competitiveness and traits to squeeze catch windows.' Zierlein mentioned his strengths as having 'an ideal blend of size and wingspan for press duties.... Quick, well-timed jabs help to hinder the release, operates with good patience when pedaling with the route... Triggers forward from off-man with good bend and burst... Adequate recovery acceleration to close on route frame and length to play through the catch space... Has experience and willingness to compete on special teams.' He told the 'Up and Adams' show that 'I got that dawg in me, and I'm not going to back down from anyone I'm going against.' He played cornerback, free safety, quarterback, running back and wide receiver for Arabia Mountain High School in Lithonia, Georgia. Teams can bring as many as 30 non-local prospects to their headquarters for meetings and medical testing. The Dolphins never release their visits, but they're bringing in a slew of players this week, including Adams and Washington State receiver Kyle Williams, who visited Sunday. Among players who took 30 visits to the Dolphins earlier in April: Texas A&M defensive tackle Shemar Turner, Rutgers defensive tackle Kyonte Hamilton, South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori, Penn State safety Kevin Winston Jr. and Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins, who's a possibility for Miami's second-round pick at 48. During Chris Grier's regime as general manager, the Dolphins have drafted some players who took '30' visits to Miami Gardens and some who did not. Though the Dolphins don't use 30 visits as smokescreens, there are some cases where the team simply wants to learn more information about a player or do medical testing.
