The player that made Miami Dolphins Mike McDaniel fall out of his chair

Mike McDaniel wanted a specific running back and on Saturday, he was drafted before the Miami Dolphins could make their pick.

Any fantasy football fan will tell you there is nothing worse than having a player at the top of your board and then seeing him come off that board a pick or two before you have the chance to draft him. Imagine that same feeling on an NFL level. That is what apparently happened to Mike McDaniel over the weekend.

This is one of those selections that could work out in Miami’s favor down the road but one player specifically made Mike McDaniel fall out of his chair when he was drafted.

The rumor began to circulate on Friday night when the Dolphins were finally closing in on making their first draft pick. That would become Channing Tindall out of Georgia but it appears that McDaniel may have been eyeing someone else.

Chris Grier and McDaniel spoke with the media after the draft and they were asked why the Dolphins didn’t take a running back or if there was someone they wanted. Grier responded and a little laughter followed.

Chris Grier

“Yeah, there was one guy that we kind of targeted a little bit and Mike (McDaniel) fell out of his chair when he got picked by somebody.”

Mike McDaniel:

“I mean I was composed. (laughter) I was a professional. I was convinced that I was internalizing it all.”

(The 49ers got a back, right? Was he from Arizona State?) – “The 49ers drafted a running back? I don’t know. We were focused on our four picks.”

Chris Grier:

“Yeah, we were just focused on our guys. (laughter).”

On Saturday, word began to circulate that the player in question was Arizona State running back Rachaad White who was taken by the Buccaneers at pick 27 in round three, 91 overall. The Dolphins didn’t pick until 102 so it would make some sense to think that he could fall another ten picks.

In the conversation above, provided courtesy of the Miami Dolphins media department, it would seem that it was instead, a player that may have been chosen by the 49ers. If that was the case, the player would have been LSU running back, Tyrion Davis-Price who was taken two picks after the 49ers made theirs.

As it worked out, the Dolphins ended up drafting Channing Tindall who has been universally applauded as a potential steal in the third round. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for all three players but it is also funny to see the humor that the Dolphins have in their offices, a big change from years past.