(Tony Simmons) The 2010 NFL Draft is now 25 days away, and as we get closer to the draft the smoke is getting REAL heavy in regards to who teams are interested in, LEGITIMATELY interested in.

It is hard to try to get through all the false signals, and when it comes to Miami, they are as good as any orginization in the league in hiding there true intentions leading up to the draft, which is really what you want.  If there is a certain player you are targeting in the draft and another team is interested in him also, the less a team knows, the better so that team can’t jump you and take a kid.

Let’s go ahead and take a look at the likely candidates for the #12 pick of the Dolphins in the 2010 NFL Draft, in no particular order.

Derrick Morgan, DE/OLB, Georgia Tech, 6′3, 272 lbs, 4.72 40 - Thoughts on whether Morgan can make the conversion to a 3-4 OLB are mixed, with some analyst thinking he can make the move, while some analyst think he will have troube because of his movement skills.  Mike Mayock seems to be going to the side of Morgan being able to make the move after initially having some reservations.  What we do know about Morgan is he fits the prototype for what this regime likes in their OLB in regards to size, 6′3 or taller.  He is stout against the run, has a non stop motor and had 12.5 sacks this year, and was named  ACC Player of the Year defensively.  He has 19.5 career sacks as he played mostly in his sophmore and junior years.

Brandon Graham, DE/OLB, Michigan, 6′1 3/8, 268 lbs, 4.72 40 - Brandon is a kid that I really became very high on when I started doing my research on the draft.  The kid has been tremendously productive while at Michigan with  29.5 career sacks, 10.5 in his senior year.  He has a non stop motor and is relentless and plays hard.  He had a tremendous Senior Bowl week and game and was named Senior Bowl MVP after a 2 sack game.  The one thing that I think will hurt Brandon is the trifecta sticking to there prototype in regards to the size of there personnel at each position.  It does not sound like much as Brandon is a little more than an inch short from of what the trifecta likes.  They are rigid in there belief, and this could mean Brandon does not get picked at #12.

Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama, 6′3 3/8, 249 lbs, 4.68 40 - Once Miami draft Karlos Dansby, the thought was Miami would not look to take another ILB with there pick at #12, but I think they still could pull the trigger on Rolando.  Channing Crowder is coming off a very subpar season with 52 overall tackles, 44 of them solo, 1 sack and 1 interception.  He also was very vocal in his support of one Joey Porter after Joey started his campaign to be released by Miami by trashing the orginization.  He signed a new contract in 2009, but it is not a huge money contract and McClain is the #1 ILB in the draft.  He’s tough, smart and has a high football IQ.  He also played for one of the most demanding college coaches in the nation in Nick Saban and Saban speaks very highly of the young man, and he comes out of the 3-4 scheme featured by Saban.  The Dolphins could solidify and upgrade the ILB position tremendously if they were to take McClain.

Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas, 6′3, 250 lbs, 4.71 40 - Kindle is a very talented defender and has been linked to Miami in a few mock drafts.  He is coming off a stellar, multiple sack game in the NC game against Alabama.  He has a career 16 sacks, and 10 of those sacks came in his sophmore season as he had 5.5 sacks this past season.  He been inconsistent in his play while at Texas, and he has also had multiple transgression in reagards to DUI’s, and that has to be a concern for a team that had Will Allen and Ronnie Brown involved in DUI transgressions.

Dan Williams, NT, Tennessee, 6′2, 327 lbs, 5.27 40 - Miami has a big need at NT with Jason Ferguson being suspended for the 1st eight games because of testing positive for PED.  Paul Solai has been inconsistet at best while it sounds like Ryan Baker, the undrafted free agent from Purdue could also get a shot to man the position along with Tony McDaniel.  The fact of the matter is when Jason got hurt last year, the Dolphins went from a top 10 defense agains the run to a team giving up over 40 yards more a game against the run.  Williams is stout against the run and does a great job of pursuing plays away from him, and occupies multiple defenders, which is very important.  Some have question whether Williams was a one year wonder, but his numbers from 2007 & 2008 are very similar.

Everson Griffen, DE/OLB, Southern Cal, 6′3 3/8, 272 lbs, 4.66 40 - Very talented, freakishly athletic kid that is inconsistent and his motor runs hot and cold.  The light seems to have came on for this talented kid this past year, but teams will certainly look to see if he will be a guy that can keep the motor running high all the time.  He had 18.0 sacks in his 3 year career with SC and has played both DE and the elephant position for SC, which is an OLB.  He has the size and movement skills to make the move to a 3-4 OLB, but at #12 he could be a reach.  If Miami were to be fortunate enought to have a chance to trade down, he definitely comes into the picture.

Earl Thomas, FS, Texas, 5′10 1/4, 208 lbs, 4.49 40 - Considered the 2nd most talented FS in this draft behind Eric Berry except on Mike Mayock list, who has Thomas as the top FS.  Thomas has 10 career interceptions, 8 this past year.  He is a 2 year starter, as Thomas is a RS sophmore.  Very instinctive player with good ball skills, anticipates well and has terrific range.  A willing tackler and is physical and will deliver the big hit.  The knock is that he does not have idea height and can be to aggressive.  But with Miami releasing Gibril Wilson, FS is now a position were Miami will look to bring a player in and Thomas is in play.

Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State, 6′2, 220 lbs, 4.5 40 - Chad Henne has made it known that he would like a #1 WR, and we know that Miami will not pursue Brandon Marshall or Terrell Owens.  Miami has a nice group of #2 & 3 wide receivers, but not that guy that you have to account for everywhere on the field, a threat all over the field, including the red zone.  Bryant is considered the most talented wide receiver to come out since Calvin Johnson in 2007.  Big, athletic, terrific with the ball after the catch, Bryant is a big YAC guy.  Big play wide receiver.  In just 28 games Bryant had 147 catches for 2,425 yards at a 16.5 yard average with 29 career touchdowns.  He also had 19 punt returns for 320 yards, which is a 16.8 average with 2 touchdown returns.  The concerns with Dez are off the field, as he was suspended for the remaining 9 games in 2009 for lying to the NCAA in regards to having dinner with Deion Sanders.  A lot is swirling out there about Bryant, but the kid has never had any issues with the law and we know this is also the time of the year when information, true or false comes out in hopes that a kid will drop.  Bryant has to be a serious consideration for Miami if he drops to them at #12, and he very well could.

CJ Spiller, RB/RS, Clemson, 5′10 5/8, 196 lbs, 4.37 40 - Explosive playmaker who can score from anywhere on the field as a running back, and in the return game as a punt and kickoff return guy.  Versatile as a running back, Spiller is very good in the passing game as he had 123 catches for 1,420 yards and 11 touchdowns and is a solid blocker in the passing game.  He rushed for 3,547 career yards and 32 touchdowns, and in my opinion, is a stronger inside runner than Reggie Bush, a guy Spiller get’s compared to a lot.  74 kickoff returns for a 27.7 yard average with an NCAA record 7 returns for touchdowns.  53 punt returns for a 10.7 yard average and 1 touchdown. He has 51 career touchdowns, with 20 of those touchdowns being over 50 yards. Spiller would give Miami an explosive, consistent threat on the offensive side of the ball as he would be ideal to use on 3rd downs and in the Wildcat package or as a change of pace back.  Running back may not be an IMMEDIATE need, but there will be a need a year later as both Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown will be free agents.

A few names I did not mention were Eric Berry, the super FS prospect from Tennessee and Mike Iupati, the talented OG from Idaho.  I don’t believe Berry will come close to making it to Miami at #12 and I don’t see Miami looking to trade up, but for some reason if he does, he would be the pick, probably without hesitation.  Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reported earlier this week that Iupati was in Miami for a workout and speculated that he could be a consideration at #12.  OL is one of the strongest positions for Miami, and while they probably will look to bring in another offensive lineman, I don’t seriously believe it will be at #12.

The draft can’t get here soon enough.