Pro Days and the Sixth Spot in the 2021 Draft

Two Miami Dolphins potential draft targets put on a show at their Pro Day

The Pro Day circuit continued Wednesday with prospects working out at LSU and the University of Florida, among other places, and what took place only served as confirmation for what pretty much everybody already knew.

Kyle Pitts and Ja'Marr Chase are great prospects.

They're pretty much locks to be top 10 picks, and either or both even could wind up getting selected among the top five.

And that might have been the good news/bad news for the Miami Dolphins on this day.

The Dolphins sit at number 6 after their dual trades with San Francisco and Philadelphia moved them from 3 to 12 to 6, and they might have their sights set on either Pitts or Chase at that spot.

On Wednesday, they literally had eyes on both of them, with Brian Flores in Gainesville for Pitts' Pro Day and GM Chris Grier in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to check out Chase.

And continuing a trend we've seen all spring, Pitts and Chase both nailed their drills with massively impressive 40-yard dashes.

Beyond that were their measurements, where Pitts produced the longest wing span of any tight end prospect in at least the past 20 years and Chase came in over 6 feet, erasing any concerns about his height.

As we should caution regarding any prospect, it's not like anyone should suggest that Pitts or Chase "improved" their draft stock on this day, it's just that they checked off more boxes.

No, the film told us that Pitts and Chase are elite. Pitts is by far the best tight end prospect in the draft and Chase is the best wide receiver prospect when you combine his 2019 production at LSU with the physical traits he possesses.

So how could what happened Wednesday impact the Dolphins?

Well, it's all got to do with the Atlanta Falcons. That's the team that holds the key to what options the Dolphins will have at number 6.

Every expectation at this time is that Jacksonville will take Trevor Lawrence at 1, the Jets will take Zach Wilson at 2, and the 49ers will take a quarterback to be named later at 3, whether it be Justin Fields, Trey Lance or Mac Jones.

The Falcons also could be in the market for a quarterback if they decide the time is now to land Matt Ryan's successor. Or the Falcons could shop the fourth overall pick to a team (Carolina?) looking for a quarterback and not comfortable it will be able to get it at its current draft slot.

Either of those two scenarios would be great news for the Dolphins, who pretty clearly don't want a quarterback based on their willingness to move down from third overall, because it would assure them of being able to have either Chase or Pitts at number 6 regardless of what the Cincinnati Bengals do at number 5.

It's also possible the Dolphins could end up being able to choose EITHER Chase or Pitts, and that's obviously if the Bengals decide to take an offensive lineman, whether it be Penei Sewell or Rashawn Slater.

We broke down all the potential options at 6 a few days ago, and the pecking order from this vantage point was Pitts first, then Chase.

And that hasn't changed, except that maybe Chase has solidified his standing as the second-best option.

Of course, everything is going to depend on who's available.

For example, if the Falcons decide that Pitts is too good a prospect to pass up and Cincinnati decides to reunite Burrow and former LSU teammate Chase, then the Dolphins wouldn't be able to get either elite pass catcher and would have another decision to make.

For anybody quick to dismiss the idea of Atlanta not taking a quarterback or trading down to a team that would, just check out what Pitts said after his workout Wednesday.

"Yes sir I did talk to (the Falcons) on Zoom a couple of times and I talked to them out here today," Pitts said. "They're saying they have interest in me. After today, we'll get back on a Zoom and they'll try to learn more about me. I feel like they're pretty interested. It would be a dream come true to be a top 5 or even the first non-quarterback to come off the board. That's something I look forward to in the draft."

Under that scenario — QBs go 1-2-3, then Pitts and Chase — the Dolphins could either take Sewell to further bolster their offensive line, move to one of the two elite Alabama wide receivers (DeVonta Smith or Jaylen Waddle) or try to engage a team like Carolina to move up to 6 to get the fourth quarterback in the draft.

Based on how good Pitts and Chase looked Wednesday, being able to land either one of them would be a nice coup for the Dolphins after picking up a future first-round pick to move down from 3 to 6.

Only problem is maybe Pitts and Chase looked TOO good on this day.