The Dolphins are looking at reincorporating a fullback – something that wasn’t a part of their offense under Adam Gase – and according to team sources, recently brought to their offices one of the draft’s top fullbacks and a Big 12 tight end with the ability to play fullback.

Wisconsin running back/fullback Alec Ingold, who visited in recent days, had 103 carries for 343 yards in four seasons (a 3.3 per carry average) and 17 touchdowns on the ground and also caught 14 passes for 185 yards (a 13.2 average) and four touchdowns. He’s also a skilled blocker.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein assessed him this way: “High school wrestling champ bringing balance and resolute nature with him onto the field at Wisconsin. Ingold’s feel for angles and radar to block space could be appealing to outside zone-heavy teams, but there is a low employment rate at his position, which could make finding a roster spot difficult.”







Ingold, 6-2 and 242 pounds, is a terrific athlete; he was named AP Player of the Year and Gatorade Player of the Year after starring as a dual-threat quarterback at Green Bay’s Bay Port High School, rushing or throwing for 44 touchdowns as a senior.

Click to resize

As a freshman at Wisconsin, he moved from linebacker to running back early in the season and showed a knack for the position. His father, Pat, was a two-time All-American wrestler at Northern Michigan, and Alec was a three-time all-conference wrestler in high school.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins also have brought in West Virginia’s Trevon Wesco, a 6-3, 267-pound tight end who played some fullback at the Senior Bowl. Some NFL people believe he would be effective at that position. That versatility makes him attractive, because he can play tight end, fullback or H-back.

Zierlein said he “has the play strength and toughness of an NFL tight end, but he’s still very raw in the passing game, which could take some time to shore up. He has a terrific demeanor as a run-blocker and the footwork to become much more consistent in sustaining blocks once he gets his hand placement corrected. Teams might view him as an early developmental prospect on the practice squad with a chance to compete for a move to the tight end spot in the future.”







Wesco had just one reception each of his first two seasons at West Virginia (2016 and 2017) but had 26 catches for 366 yards last season with one touchdown. Big 12 coaches named him first-team all-conference last season.

Ingold and Wesco are both considered late-round picks or priority free agents. Both will count against the Dolphins’ 30 permitted pre-draft visits, which are never publicly announced by the team.

The Dolphins have told people they want toughness on offense, and adding a fullback to use at times is consistent with that objective.

KIPER WEIGHS IN

Mel Kiper did a three-round mock draft for every team on ESPN.com, and here were his picks for Miami:

Round 1 (13): Rashan Gary, DE, Michigan



Round 2 (48): Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, S, Florida



Round 3 (78): Jarrett Stidham, QB, Auburn







Kiper’s comment: “If the Giants are undergoing a rebuild, what should we call what the Dolphins are doing this offseason? They have stripped their roster of talent -- and salary -- under a new regime, parting ways with starters Ryan Tannehill, Robert Quinn, Cameron Wake, Ja’Wuan James and Danny Amendola, among others. They have holes all over the roster, which makes this a tough pick.







“This is about where Gary’s floor is in the draft -- he could go as high as No. 4. And he’d be the Dolphins’ most talented pass-rusher as soon as he hits the field. Their top returning sacker is linebacker Jerome Baker, who had only three last season. Gary has enormous potential; the issue is getting that potential out of him every play.







“Gardner-Johnson is a versatile safety who could play down in the box or cover the deep middle of the field. Stidham is a project; he had a down 2018 season in a run-oriented offense. But he has an intriguing tool set that will likely see him picked on Day 2. The team that takes him probably doesn’t want him to see the field as a rookie, but with Ryan Fitzpatrick as the No. 1 in Miami, this might be the spot where he’s most likely to play early.”

McSHAY WEIGHS IN

Meanwhile, here’s what ESPN’s Todd McShay said about the Dolphins this week:







“I have gotten no vibe that Miami is interested in packaging picks this year to move up. We’ll have to wait and see. But from everything I’m sensing and the information I’m getting, they’re probably just going to stay home. If there’s a guy there they didn’t expect to fall, maybe Dwayne Haskins is there and they say `We can’t pass on him,’ but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if they did not go quarterback in the first round and I would be little surprised at this point if they wound up packaging picks to move up.







“I think they’re more focused on getting their house in order before they bring a quarterback in. They want to have – I remember Seattle did this, two years of offensive line, two years of defensive line, let’s get this team ready so when we find our quarterback then we’re off and running. With Russell Wilson, that’s what happened.”







“My guess is that they go offensive line, defensive line early. If we get to Saturday and Miami had not drafted a quarterback, that would not shock me at all.”

Here’s my piece from Wednesday about three linebackers that the Dolphins brought to their headquarters this week for “30” visits.