Josh Heupel's development will be on full display this week at the NFL draft, as Tennesse will have a very good showing in this year's draft with Colton Hood and Jerod McCoy potentially both going in round one. One of the most important things when it comes to the NFL Draft is where you get selected. Players are often picked by bad teams with no plan, which can derail a career. Special players can fight through this, but not everyone can.
Beyond that, Garrett Podell of CBS posted his "Every team's most ideal pick in Round 1" article, which picked every team's most ideal pick based on need, fit, and other factors. Podell had former Vol cornerback Colton Hood featured, and had Hood going to the Dolphins, saying:
"New Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley's background is as a defensive backs coach, and the Miami Dolphins secondary could use fresh blood after their roster turnover. Colton Hood is an incredibly well-rounded defensive back, and he's young -- he'll be 21 years old for his entire rookie season. Hood was also the only SEC player with an interception return touchdown and a fumble return touchdown last season. He's what the Dolphins need at the moment: playmaking in the secondary."
Colton Hood would be a good fit for Miami
I think Podell is right on the money with his take on Hood. The Miami Dolphins need a serious upgrade in the secondary after finishing 25th in yards allowed per game. Hood could step in right away as an impact player with a lot of upside, and Miami wouldn’t even be reaching since he’s expected to go late first round.
Jeff Hafley is a defensive guy who had some solid teams at Boston College, which isn’t an easy place to win, and he also coached good defenses in Green Bay. His main focus should be building a strong defense, since that’s his specialty. When a head coach can’t get their side of the ball right, it’s usually a problem, so fixing that early is key.
Digging deeper, Hafley does like to run man coverage, which is where Hood excels. This would be a strong overall fit, especially with this year’s weak quarterback class. The focus can be on defense now and addressing the offense next spring, when a deeper quarterback class is expected.
It will be a fun night for Hood if he is selected on Thursday, but as we know, the NFL Draft is always insane, with twists and turns like a roller coaster. The other Vols top prospect, Jermod McCoy, went from a top-ten lock to potentially not even being a first-round pick. Sometimes these franchises just overthink everything based on one caveat.
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