The Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots may not have one of the most storied rivalries in history — but they have a rivalry that is alive and thriving, nonetheless.
Both battle for the AFC East division title each year, but recently, it has been the Patriots who most often prevail. The Pats have won eight of the last 10 division titles and three of the last 10 Super Bowls. The Dolphins haven't won a Super Bowl since 1973 and haven't appeared in one since 1984, while the Pats were champs in 2001, 2003 and 2004 and appeared in 2007.
Now, it seems the Patriots have beat the Dolphins once again — this time in the draft.
The Dolphins attempted to move into the third round of the NFL draft on Friday to select Ryan Mallett, but were thwarted by the Patriots, according to The Miami Herald.
"We were willing to take him, we just couldn't get our hands on him," a source with knowledge of the front office's thinking told the Herald. "We tried, but we couldn't do it. He's going to be a good quarterback."
The 6-foot-6 former Arkansas quarterback — who played his freshman season at Tom Brady's alma mater, University of Michigan — ended up going to the Patriots as the 74th-overall pick where he'll learn from NFL MVP Brady and coach Bill Belichick.
Mallett fans may not get to see him playing that much, though, as Brady is a lock to remain the Patriots QB for some time, having recently signed a four-year extension that runs through 2014.
NFL Network analyst Kurt Warner texted Brady after the Pats drafted Mallett to get the superstar's reaction.
"He wanted me to know for sure that he was planning on playing 10 more years," Warner said Friday of Brady's reaction to Mallett being drafted by New England, according to NFL.com.
Had Miami succeeded in getting Mallett in the draft, Mallett may have played much sooner with Chad Henne's precarious status as Dolphins starter, but a source did tell the Herald that the Dolphins lacked a clear-enough vision about how Mallett would fit into their offense.
The Dolphins spent time before the draft looking for a successful NFL quarterback with the same "personality and approach" as Mallett, but they couldn't come up with a prototype.
Now, the Patriots have Mallett, and the Dolphins have no Mallett prototype. The Dolphins ultimately didn't even use any draft picks to find anyone to be competition for Henne — let alone replace him — leaving signing a free agent or making a trade as their only contingency plans.
