Merling sinks, swims to Fins

As injury concerns float around, the Clemson standout falls to second round

By PAUL STRELOW - pstrelow@thestate.com

CLEMSON — Three times in a minute, former Clemson defensive end Phillip Merling had to ask that a question be repeated because of the noise.

The living room in his grandparents’ home in St. Matthews sounded like a crowded restaurant on Saturday evening.

For all the glasses clanging and the background conversations, the toasts likely stretched on an hour after Merling was drafted by the Miami Dolphins with the first pick of the second round, No. 32 overall.

He lasted about 10 picks longer than expected, but he saw no slight in being taken with what usually is the last selection of the first round. There are 32 NFL teams, but New England forfeited the No. 31 pick as a result of the Spygate scandal.

As Merling told friends, what is not to like about moving to South Beach?

“I was getting nervous waiting for my name to get called,” Merling said. “But it doesn’t really matter where I’m at, it matters where I end up.

“I feel good about everything. I’m just glad it’s over.”

The past week proved stressful for Merling, who held a late campus workout Thursday in an attempt to allay concerns that his sports hernia surgery would prevent him from participating in training camp.

Teams stated that Merling’s health would not be an issue, but it was hard to tell whether they believed it.

The two teams viewed as most interested in Merling — Jacksonville and Washington — both traded out of the middle of the first round, where Merling was still available.

Merling spent more than an hour as the draft’s best available prospect according to analysts for ESPN and the NFL Network.

“I know the injury is what it was,” Merling said. “But that’s all right. I know I’m going to be ready.”

Merling admitted Miami’s interest “was out of the blue,” as he had not spoken with the Dolphins since the NFL Combine, although a team representative attended Thursday’s workout.

The 6-foot-4, 288-pounder played strong side end for Clemson, but pro personnel suggested he could play any number of defensive line positions because of his combination of versatility and athleticism.

Supporting that theory, the Dolphins plan to use Merling as an end in their 3-4 scheme, a position that requires him to play further inside than he used to.

“We weren’t targeting him, but he ended up being good value for us,” general manager Jeff Ireland said.

“He brings us a quality pass-rusher.”

Ireland said Merling still has a ways to go to be at full strength but was not sure the injury affected his draft stock.

Merling is expected to compete with incumbent starters Vonnie Holliday and Matt Roth and free-agent signee Randy Starks for playing time.

“I mirrored my game after a combination of different people because I didn’t want to be stuck in one box,” Merling said.

“I wanted to be like a Jason Taylor, a Julius Peppers, a Richard Seymour — just somebody who is well-rounded, somebody that could get to the quarterback, somebody who would drop into coverage.”

Last year’s No. 32 pick, Indianapolis receiver Anthony Gonzalez, received about $5.4 million in guaranteed money in his rookie contract.

The draft resumes with rounds 3-7 today at 10 a.m., and two Clemson offensive linemen — tackle Barry Richardson and guard Chris McDuffie — figure to be possible late-round picks.