Harris Pick: All-Pro In The Rough, A Reach, Or Missed Opportunity
Charles Harris is Certainly an Edger Rusher, But is That All?
I was duped by the Miami Dolphins apparent lack of interest in Charles Harris, so the pick was a surprise… despite Armando Salguero touting the opposite. Good call, Armando.
This sort of Sun Tzu type of move by the Front Office was pretty nice to see… for a change.
But, it will only be a nice long term IF Harris develops. And he does need to develop–a lot–to be anything more than a situational pass rusher.
So the questions now are: did Miami miss on a better prospect? Was it foolish not to use your best chip to fill a positional need with a starter? Was it smart to decline offers to trade back? And, at this point, the most important question is, will Harris grow into more than he is currently?
Until the draft is complete, it’s impossible to answer the first two questions.
I see Miami needing 2-3 starters, and 2-3 contributors from this draft to fill this team out enough to seriously compete in 2017. Yes, some surprise progression from players already on the squad and a couple of cheap post-draft Free Agents could fill in that gap, but those are not the kind of odds NFL football fans and best pay per head reviews want to bet the season on.
So, the two big factors in evaluating this pick are the loss of additional picks and Harris’ final product as a player.
It took a blue-chip plus a little extra to acquire Harris
The Miami Dolphins stated they had two offers for the 22nd pick. We don’t know how far back or what the compensation would have been, but likely at least a 3rd round pick was lost. So Harris isn’t just worth the 22nd overall pick, but a little extra as well. This puts the bar of justification for his acquisition even higher.
The bottom line is Harris needs to become, at the very least, a Pro Bowl alternate level player.
Miami could have had the extra pick and Forest Lamp, who both fills a need and is likely to be at least an above-average player.
Would I rather have an excellent DE / SLB or an excellent Guard and a shot at another player? I’d take the former at the drop of a hat. Unfortunately, Harris isn’t even close to being a starter, much less a Pro Bowl player.
Okay, so am I saying Miami screwed the pooch? No.
Actually, I liked Davis more due to his ability to make a bigger instant impact, and Harris under cursory scrutiny with a tail end of the first or second-round pick. But, after his pick, and looking at him with a finer toothed comb, I can say I really like the possibilities this kid offers… IF his game improves dramatically in two areas: run defense and play recognition.
The reality is, Harris is raw because of his lack of experience. He played only one year of high school football and was a two-year starter in college. That is much like Ryan Tannehill’s type of raw when he was drafted.
Now I’m a fan of Tannehill, and I think 2017 will end all the talk of him not being good enough.
I also think Harris can develop in the same way, but much faster. Can I say for certain that he will? No. But a few factors hint that he will.
Harris is a raw talent that can be polished into a gem
For Harris, all the physical talent is there.
Yes, he bombed the combine, but he nailed the Pro Day. As an example, his vertical went from 32 inches at the combine to 37 at his Pro Day. Let’s be clear, you don’t get lucky on verticals. You can have a bad day, but you can’t get lucky and have a good one. You got hops or you don’t.
He was smooth in footwork, and coverage, and had excellent hands. He demonstrated an ability to play the pass–and that is a huge asset, whether Miami uses him as a DE in coverage with Zone Blitzes, or as an SLB covering. This means Harris could be the Jack on this defense… if we can get some creativity out of a Defensive Coordinator. I like the thought of that.
So from both a physical and mental standpoint, Harris rebounded very nicely and dispelled the ugly episode with a comeback. That speaks to his resilience.
If you watch his tape Harris doesn’t lack effort. He is always chasing and attacking. It’s not Lawrence Taylor type effort or aggression, but he has juice.
Also, I’m a big believer in watching interviews to get a look under the hood of someone’s psyche. I like what I saw from him. He appears intelligent, clear thinking, and honest. All signs of good character. This combined with his physical talents leads me to feel very good about his chances to grow into more.
To be fair though, he didn’t seem to adapt to a new defense last year. Harris struggled until they brought back the scheme he was used to. So this isn’t 100% done deal.
Chris Grier jammed his flag deep into the ground on this one. Tonight will offer more clarity on Miami’s future. Harris’ review won’t be as quick… it may take a season or more. Given last year’s big question marks left on the 2016 Draft, Harris could be a make or break moment in this regime. I see the potential, but it’s up to Harris and Miami to make it realized. Go Fins!!!
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…potentially great pick in Harris …hope we see him start at LB in place of Misi …he has the ability to pass rush with strong potential at DE and Jack …but this is shades of Dion Jordan where they tried to make a gifted LB into a DE by adding bulk and it turned into a disaster …bring him into the NFL as a LB who can blitz and then work with him to see if he can naturally transition into DE …don’t force it …have to pray Gase won’t make the same mistake as Philbin
…I don’t see a single starter in the remaining picks with the possible exception of Asiata at G …and there only because our current “starters” are among the very worst in the NFL
…that’s not to say the picks won’t be starters, even pro bowlers, in a year or more …but they don’t look to be the immediate starters we needed
…this will be a hindsight draft …with the exception of Harris, we passed on “guru” selected starters like Foster, Cunningham, and Lamp …did T-bum get it right and everyone else have it wrong? …we likely won’t know for another two years …but the Caroo trade from last year and T-bum’s Jet’s history doesn’t bode well
…really frustrated by the taking of another WR in the 7th …dear god, we are loaded there like nowhere else …almost any other pick on offense or defense might have landed competition for at least a backup role …but WR? …we have 3 pro bowl caliber WRs now, one possible in development …and now we have a real receiving threat at TE and two RBs who are as well …why waste even a 7th on another WR?
…overall, a frustrating draft for me …the early QB and DB run dropped Harris to us …but with him it also dropped Foster, Lamp, Cunningham et al and we passed on them to select less well rated players, at least as ranked by the so called media gurus …like everyone, I wanted to see starters in our first three picks …but here’s hoping that our scouts got it right for once …me, I look at our recent draft record and don’t see any thing there to keep much hope alive
…once more we go to training camp with all hope riding on Gase and his staff to produce another year where the whole is better than the parts
Lemmus,
It’s not doom and gloom. The Dolphins had a plan to go with BPA in first and second rounds and they stuck with it. This year I can see what they are doing vs previous years.
Round one, I did not expect Harris to still be there at 22 and he was so they took him. Was not the player I liked but my guy Barnet was gone at 14. Harris you could say will be Wake’s replacement.
Round two, it was between McMillian and Cunningham. They see Mcmillan playing SAM this year and replacing Timmons in year two or three.
Round three, Tankersly fits their prototype for CB but he is raw and will be groomed this year so that next year when they have to make a decision on Byron Maxwell, he will potentially be his replacement.
The rest of the picks were for need and all those guys had higher round grade than 5th and 6th except the WR. I completely agree with you on why take a flyer on a guy who may become great but may not make the 53 because the position is crowded.
I think the first and second rounders are solid and will contribute this year. The rest, we shall see.
Fritz, to agree with you and piggy back Lemmus. This draft… and last years, will come down to the staff coaching them up and them getting the players to buy in. IF they can get a successful relationship with 4 players in this draft, then they have won. They need to get Harris brained and buffed up. They need to get McMillian to technique up. They need to get Tank to commit his body, technique and patience up. They need Asiata to cool down and play under control and they need the DT’s to learn their role, follow scheme, and get in NFL condition. These are generally the issues I see… although there are likely more. These aren’t crazy things to expect. And they are quite possible. Working it out in my brain… to find rationals or excuse…however you see it and it turns out. But, the pit of my being is calm with one fact: Miami finally has a plan, it’s a high-level one, but a good one–and they have the balls to stick with it. and while Ill say I don;t like this or that, and shout out my doubts, I’m down with this regime, till proven otherwise.
“but this is shades of Dion Jordan where they tried to make a gifted LB into a DE by adding bulk and it turned into a disaster …bring him into the NFL as a LB who can blitz and then work with him to see if he can naturally transition into DE …don’t force it …have to pray Gase won’t make the same mistake as Philbin” I agree that it could be a big screw up, BUT I don’t see it happening with this staff. They haven’t done anything close to that yet. In fact they have several case where they have coached up players and got better play out of them. So, the possibility is there for disaster, but given the past of this particular regime, I’m confident.
“Foster, Cunningham, and Lamp” I don’t like Foster. Not from a talent standpoint, but from a team concept standpoint. Miami now has a concept, and for good or ill they are sticking to it. Maybe in spots this will not work out, but given the entirety of the team build this will bring more wholesale good even if there is spot failure. Foster fell for a reason. Miami didn’t want to role the dice. I get it. Cunningham, and more so lamp, I agree, but time… and only time will tell. The rationale I see is they don’t value G like DE or LB, and Cunningham is real light in the pants and not their prototype. Tannenbaum is a parcels guy and prototype is hardwired.
“I don’t see a single starter in the remaining picks with the possible exception of Asiata at G …and there only because our current “starters” are among the very worst in the NFL” This was my concern. I thought they needed 2-3 starters. First, I think Asiata can start a RG the quickest of all the players and McCmillan next. I think we will see strong contribution from Harris and McMillian and one of the two DT’s. So maybe we don’t have “starters” but it appears the staff is expecting a good number of snaps to be sucked up by the draft picks. Also, we need to see how these players respond to coaching. This could be a good thing or a bad one.
“really frustrated by the taking of another WR in the 7th …dear god, we are loaded there like nowhere else …almost any other pick on offense or defense might have landed competition for at least a backup role …but WR? …we have 3 pro bowl caliber WRs now, one possible in development …and now we have a real receiving threat at TE and two RBs who are as well …why waste even a 7th on another WR?”
Likely no one left on the board or they want an extra as insurance for Parker or Landry… but yeah, no more WR.
“…once more we go to training camp with all hope riding on Gase and his staff to produce another year where the whole is better than the parts’
This can be a desperate feeling, especially as a Fin Fan, but do you think Arians, Belli, Carol led teams and their fans feel the same? Miami is banking on Gase being in this class. So far, I have more in my belly saying yes than no. But you nailed it… and unless he is in their class, it won’t work out. We are shooting for greatness and not middle of the road. This team building style is the hardest, but offers the greatest chance for the brass ring. So this is big win, big loss move, all in on Gase by the FO. I’m down until proven otherwise… with finger and toes crossed of course, brother.