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Dolphins Tight End Draft History: The Hits, Misses and Trends

The Miami Dolphins have selected 40 tight ends in their history, but none in the first round

Alain Poupart

Hunter Long
Hunter Long / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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As we head into the homestretch to the 2024 NFL draft, it's a good time to revisit the Miami Dolphins draft history at every position.

In this draft series, we break down each position with number of picks since the start of the "common draft" in 1967, first-round selections, hits and misses, and any trends that might apply.

We continue with the tight end position:

DOLPHINS TIGHT END DRAFT HISTORY

Number of picks: 42

Number of first-round picks: 0

The last five picks: Elijah Higgins, 2023, Round 6; Hunter Long, 2021, Round 3; Durham Smythe, 2018, Round 4; Mike Gesicki, 2018, Round 2; Thomas Duartte, 2016, Round 7

Hits: Jim Mandich (Round 2, 1970), Bruce Hardy (Round 9, 1978), Ferrell Edmunds (Round 3, 1988), Randy McMichael (Round 4, 2002), Charles Clay (Round 6, 2011), Dion Sims (Round 4, 2013)

Misses: Loaird McCreary (Round 2, 1976), Michael Egnew (Round 3, 2012), Hunter Long

Trends: Well, the thing that clearly stands out is indicated by the 0 next to "number of first-round picks.” The Dolphins remain one of five teams that have never taken a tight end in Round 1, along with Minnesota, Washington, Tennessee and Carolina. It's also interesting to note that Gesicki was the first tight end the Dolphins took in the second round since 1976.

HOW THE DOLPHINS HAVE DONE DRAFTING TIGHT ENDS

After Gesicki’s time in Miami fizzled before he left for New England via free agency, the Dolphins still have never had a dominant tight end in the mode of a Travis Kelce or George Kittle.

The only player at the position drafted by the Dolphins to make the Pro Bowl was Ferrell Edmunds. Interestingly, the Dolphins neglected the tight end position during Dan Marino's Hall of Fame career, with Edmunds the only player drafted before the fourth round.

After Edmunds, the Dolphins also got good mileage out of Randy McMichael as a fourth-round pick and later Charles Clay as a sixth-round selection.

But the Dolphins have yet to have that major hit with a tight end in the draft.

Published
Alain Poupart
ALAIN POUPART

Alain Poupart is the publisher/editor of All Dolphins and co-host of the All Dolphins Podcast. Alain has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 for various publications and media outlets, including Dolphin Digest, The Associated Press, the Dolphins team website, and the Fan Nation Network (part of Sports Illustrated). In addition to being a credentialed member of the Miami Dolphins press corps, Alain has covered three Super Bowls (for NFL.com, Football News and the Montreal Gazette), the annual NFL draft, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Scouting Combine. During his almost 40 years in journalism, which began at the now-defunct Miami News, Alain has covered practically every sport at one time or another, from tennis to golf, baseball, basketball and everything in between. The career also included time as a copy editor, including work on several books such as "Still Perfect," an inside look at the Miami Dolphins' 1972 perfect season. A native of Montreal, Canada, whose first language is French, Alain grew up a huge hockey fan but soon developed a love for all sports, including NFL football. He has lived in South Florida since the 1980s.

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