Revisiting the Disaster that was the Dolphins 2007 Draft

The Miami Dolphins have not been a team known for their drafting prowess over the past few decades. Even in 2020, when they had 3 first-round picks and the opportunity to set themselves up for success, they still managed to bungle the situation. Their first pick, Tua Tagovailoa, at five overall, was solid despite the injury concerns, but Austin Jackson at 18 was less than ideal as it took until very recently for him to live up to his potential. Then, Noah Igbinoghene, at 30, was a complete miss. 

In light of the upcoming NFL draft, I would like to revisit the 2007 draft as a prime example of the Dolphins’ incompetence. The 2006 Miami Dolphins were coming off of a 6-10 record after deciding to trade for Daunte Culpepper over signing Drew Brees. Head Coach Nick Saban would leave the team for Alabama, where he would become one of the greatest, if not the greatest, college football coach and the greatest enemy to Dolphins fans. So it was up to first-year head coach Cam Cameron and general manager Randy Mueller to turn things around with the 9th overall pick. 

Digging up mock drafts from that time, many of them had the Dolphins selecting Penn State’s Levi Brown to sure up their offensive line. Brown played for 7 seasons after being selected by the Arizona Cardinals at pick number 5 and never really lived up to the potential that he showed coming out of college. He never made a Pro Bowl, nor did he receive any first or second-team all-pro nods. If the Dolphins were looking to improve their offensive lin,e the optimal move with hindsight would have been drafting Joe Staley out of Central Michigan. Staley was instead drafted by the 49ers at pick 28 after trading up with New England. He would be a 3X second-team all-pro and a 6X pro bowler. 

I won’t pretend to know more than the experts, especially during that time, but as a 14-year-old, I had my heart set on the Dolphins drafting quarterback Brady Quinn out of Notre Dame. Quinn was touted as the second-best passing prospect in the draft after JaMarcus Russell, who ended up going number 1 to the Raiders and becoming the biggest draft bust of all time. Many mock drafts from the time had Quinn going 3rd overall to the Cleveland Browns. Ultimately, he was drafted by the Browns, but at pick number 22, after a prolonged slide down the draft board. 

During Quinn’s slide, the ESPN cameras made sure to capture each and every moment of disappointment on his face. However, while he was upset, I was elated; things were lining up perfectly for the Dolphins to get their quarterback of the future. So imagine how shocked and appalled I was when the 9th overall pick was announced, and it was Ted Ginn Jr., a wide receiver out of Ohio State University. It made no sense to me at the time, and honestly, while writing this blog post, it still perplexes me. 

Ginn, for his part, has a solid NFL career, playing for 14 seasons and making two Super Bowls. He was primarily a return specialist as he was gifted with game-breaking speed. Unfortunately, when you draft a wide receiver in the top ten, you expect him to become a dynamic part of the offense. In three seasons in Miami, Ginn put up 128 receptions for 1,664 yards and five touchdowns. It would be a stat line that would be somewhat impressive if it took place all in one season. 

The only silver lining to this draft day debacle was that Brady Quinn went on to also be a draft bust with a career completion percentage of 53.8%, 3,043 career passing yards with 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Ironically, he would one day become a Dolphin as he was a part of the team during the 2014 offseason. He’d be released before the season began and he never played again. I often wonder if Quinn would have fared better in Miami. The Browns are known as a team that can’t develop quarterbacks. Perhaps if the Dolphins drafted him, Quinn would have developed into the passer many thought he had the potential to be coming out of Notre Dame. At the very least, it would have been a better pick than a wide receiver who struggled to get on the field and when he did, struggled to catch the ball. If the Dolphins had their future quarterback, maybe that would have taken the sting out of passing up on Matt Ryan in 2008, but that is a story for another blog post. 

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