2013 NFL Draft: Jeff Ireland Fleeces the Oakland Raiders For 3rd Overall Selection
By tonygraham
@TonyPhintalk
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Remind me not to shoot pool or play cards with Miami Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland. He wasted no time in the 2013 NFL Draft. In what seems to be an attempt to move up and select one of the two highly touted tackles, the Dolphins GM pulled off the heist of the evening. Ireland orchestrated a trade with the Oakland Raiders that had the two teams swap their 1st round selections, with the Dolphins adding their 42nd pick overall. In return, the Dolphins received the 3rd overall selection and used it to take Oregon OLB/DE Dion Jordan.
The Raiders must have really wanted out of that slot because they could have demanded a lot more for the 3rd overall selection. The St. Louis Rams paid more for the 8th pick to move up and take West Virginia WR Tavon Austin, than the Dolphins paid for the 3rd. The Rams gave up the 16th, 46th, 78th and 222nd in the trade with the Buffalo Bills.
The official draft value chart has the 3rd overall pick worth 2,200 points. With the 12th (1,200 points) and 42nd (480 points) selections, the Dolphins only gave up 1,680 points in return. You don’t have to match value to the exact point in these kinds of trades, but you should have to come closer than a 520 point difference. Reports had Davone Bess on the trading block for the Dolphins and it hasn’t been confirmed that he was not part of the deal. However, even if he was, he is still not worth 520 points. Would you give up the 38th pick in the draft for Bess ?
Even though Ireland used the pick to select Jordan, my gut tells me the original plan was to use the pick on Texas A&M’s Luke Joeckel. If that was the case, that plan was thwarted by the Jacksonville Jaguars who selected Joeckel with the 2nd overall pick. That was unfortunate for the Dolphins as they have depth and experience issues at left tackle.
The Raiders used the 12th pick received from the Dolphins to select cornerback DJ Hayden. This was an excellent deal for the Dolphins. It appears to address a huge need for additional pass rush opposite DE Cameron Wake.
Tony Graham is an NFL writer for www.RantSports.com.
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