Although Miami Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland reportedly is finished with his free-agent shopping spree, his roster still has a glaring need at offensive tackle.
2013 NFL Draft: Position rankings
With the draft right around the corner, NFL.com ranks the top prospects available at every position on offense and defense. **More ...**
Drew Rosenhaus, the agent for free agent Eric Winston, is "hearing from everyone" that the Dolphins will take an offensive tackle in the first round.
The problem is that the trio of Texas A&M's Luke Joeckel, Central Michigan's Eric Fisher and Oklahoma's Lane Johnson likely will be off the board by the time the Dolphins pick at No. 12 overall.
The solution is to trade up, as Ireland is armed with extra second- and third-round picks from last year's Vontae Davis and Brandon Marshall trades. The Palm Beach Post "keeps hearing" the Dolphins are high on Johnson, and suggests pairing the 12th pick with the 54th or 77th overall to move up.
Whenever NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah is asked about the Dolphins' draft plans, he starts humming The Jeffersons' "Movin' on Up" theme song.
While Joeckel and Fisher generally are regarded as the top prospects, Jeremiah believes Johnson has the most upside of any offensive lineman in this entire draft class.
Adam Caplan of Sirius XM NFL radio can't recall a more dominant performance from a left tackle in Senior Bowl practices than Johnson's this year.
Johnson's NFL Scouting Combine was even more impressive, posting the best numbers ever for an offensive tackle.
"His 40-yard dash time was better than Anquan Boldin," NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said. "His vertical at 34 inches was the same as A.J. Green. Think about this."
Drafting Johnson potentially would solve the left tackle position for the next decade while allowing Jonathan Martin to stay on the right side. A trade up will be costly, however, as the Dolphins likely would have to position themselves ahead of the tackle-needy Detroit Lions at No. 5 overall to ensure Johnson.
Follow Chris Wesseling on Twitter @ChrisWesseling.
