Tony Lippett to Miami Dolphins: Full Draft-Pick Breakdown

With their final draft pick of 2015, the Miami Dolphins selected the Big Ten receiver of the year, Michigan State's Tony Lippett. 

They listed him as a cornerback when announcing the Round 5 pick, making him one of the most intriguing selections in the draft. 

Lippett played both receiver and cornerback at Michigan State. He was recruited as a cornerback, then started five games at corner in his redshirt freshman season before flipping to wide receiver. 

As a wide receiver, he had 149 catches for 2,247 yards and 15 touchdowns, scoring 11 touchdowns in 2014. 

The idea of selecting Lippett with the intention of making him a cornerback was floated by NFL Network's Charles Davis: 

"

Personally, I would flip Lippett over and make him a corner. I wouldn't even hesitate. I just think with his length, the league is dying to get corners that can go out and match up with the monster receivers that are out there, and I think that that would be a way to distinguish himself a little bit. And personally, I think his upside is better over there than it is being another one of these receivers.

"

Mike Mayock of NFL Network feels the same way:

"

If I was in the NFL, I'd really want to grind him a little bit and see if he could be an NFL-quality corner because the length intrigues me. With all those big-bodied wide receivers, more and more teams are looking for corners that are 6-feet and above. The way the league thinks is there's too many 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-9 corners that are losing jump balls outside the numbers and in the red zone.

"

The length that Davis is referring to is Lippett's 32 3/4" arms, along with his 6'2", 192-pound frame. It's very reminiscent of another fifth-round pick, Seattle's Richard Sherman. This comparison has been thrown out there in the past, and the similarities are quite striking. 

However, while Lippett's success as a receiver came after he was recruited as a cornerback, Sherman's success as a receiver came first, followed by being moved to the defensive backfield. 

If Tony Lippett winds up being half the player that Richard Sherman is, they have a steal—and a starting cornerback. 

Statistics provided by sports-reference.com/cfb.

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