What’s TE Mike Gesicki’s outlook with the Miami Dolphins? We asked an expert who knows best
Mike Gesicki is the newest member of the Miami Dolphins — so we decided to turn toward a Dolphins expert to see what might lie ahead for the second-round pick early on his NFL career.
Will he start from Day 1? And why did Miami pick him No. 42 overall, over the likes of some other elite tight ends?
We asked Miami Herald beat writer Adam Beasley for his thoughts:
Q: Let’s start off with a simple, but big, question: The Dolphins have yet to re-sign Anthony Fasano and just signed veteran Gavin Escobar. So is it safe to say Gesicki will start on Day 1 this season?
A: It’d be a shocker if he doesn’t because, like you mentioned, they don’t have a ton else there. They bring back MarQueis Gray, who did a lot more two years ago than he did last year. And they keep talking up AJ Derby. But, no, the Dolphins usually expect their second-round picks to come and contribute right away. And Mike Gesicki will be no different.
Q: What kind of role do you see for him in this offense?
A: Well, it depends on how quickly he learns to block. I mean, both he and Chris Grier, the general manager, mentioned that as a weakness. So, if he can’t block, he won’t be a three-down player. But it’s up to him how much he plays.
Certainly, Adam Gase has not had a tight end of his skill-set in his youth in his three years here, so they’re going to find a way to use him. But if they can’t count on him to pass-protect or run-block, he’s going to be a spot player.
Q: I think that’s kind of the concern. In 2012, the Dolphins took a freakishly athletic tight end in Michael Egnew — but he couldn’t block and they wouldn’t play him until it improved. It never did. Is there a chance that happens with Gesicki?
A: Sure. I mean, it’s a different coaching staff from six years ago. But, yeah, I don’t think it’s unique to Michael Egnew. Not every tight end who’s an athletic basketball player type — I know Gesicki played volleyball too — is Jimmy Graham. A lot of them don’t pan out because they can’t make the transition.
Now, the Dolphins have a lot of faith that he can. It’s not like this guy is a third-day pick. He’s the 42nd pick of the draft. So they see something, obviously, in him that translates into the NFL. And certainly, look, his measurables are off the charts. He came on the last two years and really just has one deficiency.
I will say this: The Dolphins passed on Dallas Goedert, the South Dakota State tight end who came on a visit as well. And they picked Gesicki over Goedert. Now that could be something we harp on for years to come, if one outplays the other. It’ll either look like a really good decision by the Dolphins or a really bad one.
Q: You mentioned Goedert, and that brings me to my last question. You know this Dolphins’ front office, so what was it about Gesicki that made Miami pull the trigger at No. 42, taking him over the likes of Goedert?
A: Athleticism and certainly he did very well with his visit down here. They’ve tracked him for months now and kind of had a final interview with them down in Davie a few weeks back. And that was the clincher. He felt very comfortable here, and they felt very comfortable with him.
You know, second-round picks are about a 50 percent hit rate. The Dolphins have been below that average; maybe Mike Gesicki’s the one to turn that around.
This story was originally published April 27, 2018 at 9:23 PM with the headline "What’s TE Mike Gesicki’s outlook with the Miami Dolphins? We asked an expert who knows best."