Miami Dolphins Draft Countdown: Making the Case for Nelson Agholor

NFL draft dreams do not always become a reality.

So let's say, for the sake of argument, that Louisville wide receiver DeVante Parker is not available when the Miami Dolphins go on the clock at No. 14 in the first round. It would be a bummer; Parker has become a fan favorite among mock draft picks to the Dolphins, and he has everything the Dolphins need at wide receiver. 

Just because Parker isn't available doesn't mean the Dolphins should reach for the next best thing at No. 14. There are six other rounds of the draft, all of which will present opportunities to add someone to the receiving corps. One name to watch in the second round will be Southern California's Nelson Agholor.

Agholor has been pegged by both NFL.com and CBSSports.com as one of the 10 best wide receivers in this year's class, and the scouting profiles on both websites indicate he has exactly the skill set the Dolphins prefer in their receivers.

Need

The Dolphins gutted their receiving corps this offseason by parting ways with Mike Wallace, Brian Hartline and Brandon Gibson. With Jarvis Landry and Kenny Stills in the fold, they will be in good hands, but one more threat would round out the offense with enough talent to spread the field.

Agholor isn't exactly what the Dolphins need because he doesn't possess the frame that will create matchup problems in the red zone. Right now, the Dolphins only have one wide receiver that stands more than 6'0" tall (Stills) to go along with tight end Jordan Cameron, who stands 6'5". 

The Dolphins offense has not been one to highlight particular receivers in particular areas, though, and instead asks its receivers to be nothing if not consistent. At all parts of the field, the Dolphins coaches want to know what they're getting from a receiver.

That's exactly what Agholor brings to the table. He's not going to strike fear into a defense in any particular spot, but he'll force defenses to respect him regardless. His shimmy to get open from defensive backs over the middle could act as a substitute for his lack of size; he may not have the catch radius of some bigger receivers, but he'll give his quarterback bigger windows with his quickness. 

Fit

That's exactly where Agholor will excel. CBS Sports' Dane Brugler and Rob Rang describe him as possessing "a lean, athletic frame, good lateral agility to elude and sudden acceleration." He ran an impressive 4.42-second 40-yard dash at the 2015 scouting combine, with a 1.59-second 10-yard split—indicative of his explosiveness off the line of scrimmage.

He also ran a 6.83-second three-cone drill at his pro day, which underscores the quickness that will help him elude defenders in man coverage and create extra yards after the catch when he's in the open field. He already has experience running a complex route tree from his days at USC, which runs a pro-style offense. 

However, he may never be able to take the top off a defense with long speed to force safeties to play deep on his side of the field. He caught more and more passes each year at USC (from 18 as a freshman to 56 in 2013 to 104 in 2014), but his average per catch dipped each year (18.9 in 2012, 16.4 in 2013, 12.6 in 2014). Also, given his rather spindly frame, he may not ever excel at getting off jams at the line of scrimmage. 

But with all that being said, he fits in the Dolphins offense because of his ability to line up either inside or outside, create separation with his routes regardless of where he lines up and create yards after the catch when he's in the open field. 

Value

The Dolphins are picking 14th overall in the first round and 47th overall in the second round. Some mock drafters (including Rob Rang of CBS Sports) have predicted that Agholor will be off the board by the time the Dolphins go on the clock in the second round.

However, if he's still available, there's no reason the Dolphins shouldn't pull the trigger to round out their receiving corps with a third option that can help spread out defenses and potentially expose a team's third or fourth cornerback in coverage. 

Unless otherwise noted, all NFL draft notes and scouting combine information provided by NFL.com and CBSSports.com.