The Miami Dolphins are coming into the 2014 season with a number of needs on both sides of the ball and GM Dennis Hickey may be targeting players like Eric Ebron, Jace Amaro, Carlos Hyde, Tre Mason and Jeremy Hill as potential picks, as the Fins offense was up and down last year, including the last weeks of the season when they scored just seven points over the final two games.
The Dolphins were one of the worst rushing teams in the NFL last season and that is one reason why many draft experts and scouts see the team picking at least one running back in May when the event starts up. According to ESPN.com, the Dolphins have a straight draft coming up in 2014, as they have seven picks coming in and those are spread across each of the seven rounds, meaning they have one pick per round and they could look to make a trade or two at some point to gain some back.
Last season the team moved up to take Dion Jordan and while the reportedly have looked into trading Jordan this offseason, they did not find any deals they liked. Jordan was inconsistent at times last season and the team is hoping that full offseason with the team will benefit his development after he was injured for part of offseason workouts last year. The Dolphins signed Knowshon Moreno a couple weeks ago, but that may not be enough for the team to stabilize the rushing attack.
Moreno is coming in after his first 1,000 yard season and double digit touchdown season in his career and he also set career marks in caught balls and yards receiving. Adding that element to the offense could be huge for the Dolphins and with Daniel Thomas and Lamar Miller not producing enough last season, Hickey could end up drafting a couple of backs this May. The team gained 90 yards per game on the ground last season and ranked 26th in the NFL and that makes names like Mason and Hyde prime draft targets this offseason.
Ebron and Amaro also could be targets at tight end after the way the team lost Dustin Keller last season and adding a young TE could be huge for Tannehill. Ebron and Amaro were very productive last season and Amaro set records, while Ebron has the build to be a Jimmy Graham type with the right teaching. The running backs are most likely, as Hyde is highly rated and he rushed for 1,521 yards and 15 touchdowns last season and was very strong for the Buckeyes. Mason was also highly productive and he ended up with over 1,800 yards and 23 touchdowns on the season.
