IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT’SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS MONDAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!! (Still, barely). And you fine Tennessee fans know exactly what that means. It’s time to climb into those orange and white cars, pull down the harnesses, and go spinning through the Tennessee Vols-related thoughts twisting and turning inside the recesses of my brain.
1) I’m kind of torn on the situation that Jaylen Wright finds himself in with the Miami Dolphins, who selected him with the 120th overall pick of the NFL Draft on Saturday. Wright fits Mike McDaniel’s offense to a T. He has good receiving skills, good pass blocking ability, and as particularly sound outside the tackles. Miami runs an outside zone scheme on the ground. It is a very strong fit. However, he now becomes the third member of a VERY good backfield. Raheem Mostert and De’Von Achane were the best backfield tandem in the league last year. It’s hard to see them ceding THAT much work. However, Wright is likely a long-term replacement option for Mostert, whose contract runs through the 2025 season. We’ll see if Wright can work in training camp and the preseason to carve out a decent role in Miami’s offense.
2) Joe Milton actually got drafted before the seventh round, which surprised me a tad. I thought some team might take an end-of-the-draft flier on him, but the New England Patriots claimed him in the sixth round. I don’t think, at his point, that you can teach accuracy. That story is written on Milton; he is who he is, and it’s someone who can’t make enough routine throws. I’m glad he’ll have an opportunity, but for those out there saying he could be someone to watch (and there are some out there), just go ahead and stop right there. It’s a nice story to see him get drafted, but he will have to change positions to last in the league.
3) Kamal Hadden perhaps got the best call of all from the back-to-back Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. He could have a shot to stick on that roster. Talk about landing in a good situation. Hopefully he can continue the strong level of play he was putting forth before suffering a season-ending injury against Alabama last year.
4) Tennessee saw some comings and goings on the basketball court in the last few days, and the comings have been largely in the manner I desperately want: size. Give me alllllllll the bigs, and now Tennessee has two more in Charlotte forward Igor Milicic and Ohio State center Felix Okpara. Okpara is a rim protector more than a scorer, but Tennessee needs exactly that with Jonas Aidoo off to Arkansas. Milicic is a 6’10” big man who can splash the three. He made 56 of them last year at a solid 37.6%. Add in Hofstra guard/forward Darlinstone Dubar, and the Vols have added some length, some scorers, and a potential impact defender in the last couple of weeks. Not a bad start to the offseason.
Go Vols!