The Miami Dolphins signed linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill on Wednesday. Most recently with the Philadelphia Eagles, Grugier-Hill was a sixth-round pick by the Patriots in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Continuing the theme of acquiring athletic marvels, Grugier-Hill's testing metrics were through the roof back at his 2016 Eastern Illinois Pro Day. At 6-2, 215 pounds, he clocked a 4.45 40-yard dash and jumped 38.5 inches on the vertical. Those metrics earned Grugier-Hill high praise from NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein:
"Explosive, quick-twitch athlete. Has superior chase speed and burst to the ball carrier. Possesses above average stop/start quickness. Combines quick feet and loose hips for plus agility. Range to ball carriers will be well above average. Instant reaction time once he diagnoses the play. Finds the ball after the snap and stays locked in. Wrap up tackler who likes to body up as a finisher. Aggressive enough to stay at linebacker as a pro. Has burst to become dangerous blitzer."
Grugier-Hill has added weight since college – he's now in the 230-pound range. Developing into a rotational defender, on top of his special teams exploits, Grugier-Hill logged 651 defensive snaps the last two years combined – a considerable jump from the 86 snaps he played his first two years.
Miami's new linebacker has 98 career tackles – 11 for loss – an interception, a sack, two passes defensed, two forced fumbles and one recovery. He has six pressures on 41 career pass rush reps, and has never allowed a touchdown on 357 coverage snaps. His passer rating against checks in at an impressive 83.6.
Special teams are where Grugier-Hill made his biggest impact. Voted a 2019 captain for his contributions, he has 1,092 career special teams snaps – an average of 273 reps since entering the league. He's made 26 career special teams tackles.
No system craves versatility like Brian Flores' Dolphins defense – a trait Grugier-Hill certainly offers. His former defensive coordinator in Philadelphia, Jim Schwartz, had some glowing praise of the linebacker prior to the 2019 season.
"He's taken a big step to being a full-time linebacker," Schwartz said. "And when I say full-time, I don't mean being on the field all the time but I mean he can play inside, can play outside, can take on a guard, can step up and fill a run play, all those kinds of things. His understanding of the defense is really good too. And that's one of things about having continuity – even though it's his fourth year, it's only his third training camp, just the accumulation of reps helps him."
