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What Ryan Hayes brings to the Miami Dolphins

Hayes was a force on a great Michigan offensive line.

By Trevor Woods and Daniel Plocher Updated
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Michigan v Maryland Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images

Michigan left tackle Ryan Hayes’ career at Michigan became a notable one. Hayes was part of two offensive lines that received national recognition.

After an off-season for Hayes that featured invites to the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine, he will be looking to hear his name called in the middle rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft.

NFL Combine Results

  • Height: 6-6
  • Weight: 298
  • 40-Yard Dash: 5.18
  • 10-Yard Split: 1.78
  • Vertical Jump: 30”
  • Broad Jump: 8’ 7”
  • 3-Cone Drill: 7.39

Pros

  • Started on an offensive line that won back-to-back Joe Moore Awards
  • Plenty of experience. Appeared in 40 games at Michigan with 29 starts at left tackle.
  • Excels as a run-blocker
  • Great conditioning. Seemed to get stronger as the game went on.
  • There are some cons to his pass protection, but the bottom line is he didn’t allow many sacks and was an excellent all-around collegiate offensive lineman.

Cons

  • Edge-rushers can blow him off the line with a bull-rush
  • Edge-rushers also can use their speed to get around Hayes
  • Average arm length
  • Showed vulnerabilities at the Senior Bowl and got knocked on his back a couple of times. To his credit, he rebounded nicely and sprinkled good reps in as well.
  • Middle of the pack in combine testing.

Do your homework

Check out this video breakdown of Hayes by Dan Plocher.

Plocher’s Point of View

“Ryan Hayes was a four-year letterman who appeared in 40 games and 29 career starts at left tackle in Ann Arbor. Almost all of them came in the last two seasons where Hayes was a part of consecutive Joe Moore Award-winning offensive lines. Most see Hayes as an early-Day 3 selection and I can see him being a backup for a season or two before taking over as a starter after making a transition to guard.”

Conclusion

Hayes put out a lot of film at Michigan, and most of it is very good. However, there’s also film where explosive and athletic pass-rushers get the better of Hayes and indicate a position switch to guard will be incoming. Hayes is a developmental prospect with high upside and could go in the fourth-to-sixth round. If Hayes is able to stick around an NFL roster for a year or two and continue to improve his craft, he could wind up being yet another starting lineman in the pros that used to call Michigan home.

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