2018 NFL Draft Grades: Dolphins get B+ for selecting versatile Minkah Fitzpatrick at No. 11
The Dolphins add a talented player to their secondary with the 11th overall pick
With the No. 11 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Dolphins selected Minkah Fitzpatrick, defensive back out of Alabama.
Draft tracker: Get grades for every pick
Grade: B+
Pete Prisco: They get a Malcolm Jenkins type of player. He can do so many things well, but where does he play?
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Scouting report
Chris Trapasso: Swiss Army knife at the second and third level of the defense. Tall, long, and athletic. Effective blitzer. Solid ball skills and ability to run with wideouts. Best as safety or in off-man coverage.
Fantasy impact
Jamey Eisenberg: The Dolphins will decide the Fantasy value for Fitzpatrick, so we're sort of in a holding pattern until training camp. If he plays corner, which is a possibility, then his value will be limited. If he plays safety opposite Reshad Jones then he could be very valuable. Best bet, we see the Dolphins use him like Tyrann Matthieu when he was with the Cardinals. We don't recommend drafting Fitzpatrick in most re-draft IDP leagues, and he's a late-round pick in rookie-only drafts for dynasty leagues. But that could change in training camp.
NCAA recap
Charlie Potter, BamaOnLine: A five-star prospect out of Old Bridge, N.J., Fitzpatrick was inserted into Alabama's lineup as a true freshman and quickly became a fan favorite on the Crimson Tide's defense. The versatile defensive back started out at Star in Alabama's nickel defense, which is its most-used formation, but also filled in at cornerback and safety, especially when Eddie Jackson's college career ended with a broken leg. Winning a national championship as a true freshman and playing for another in 2016, Fitzpatrick intercepted eight passes in his first two seasons and returned half of them for touchdowns, displaying his playmaking ability from the start.
That ability only blossomed entering his junior year, as the do-it-all defensive back played three different positions -- safety, Star and Money -- as the face of Nick Saban's 2017 defense. He didn't put up the same interception numbers this past season, but Fitzpatrick was all over the field (8.0 tackles for loss, 8.0 pass breakups) and fought through injuries to eventually win the Jim Thorpe and Chuck Bednarik Awards, be named a unanimous All-American and win his second national title in three years. He leaves Tuscaloosa as arguably the best defensive back of the Saban era – an era that has seen 14 defensive backs taken in the NFL Draft.















