"The expectations were that Jeff Ireland and Tony Sparano, the two remaining members from the Bill Parcells-era Miami Dolphins, would reek of desperation.

After all, owner Steve Ross got caught shopping for a new coach. And he is respectfully requesting a winning season, and a flashy offense in 2011 or else – contract extensions and all.

But every move Ireland and Sparano made during this weekend's NFL draft was thought out, sophisticated, calculated. Each selection had one eye fixed on the future despite the cold stares of the present win-now situation this regime faces.

Desperate people do desperate things. Just ask Dave Wannstedt, who made numerous ill-advised draft decisions – remember the Ricky Williams trade - trying to push his team to the next level.

Ireland and Sparano stuck to their draft board, and pick-after-pick selected the best players that filled the team's needs, which were primarily on offense.

The one time the Dolphins traded picks away to acquire a player – Kansas State tailback Daniel Thomas – the Dolphins dominated the Redskins, gaining 21.58 percent in the value of their swap of draft picks.

"Takes a lot of patience, and a lot of will power because there are players going that you have up there high on the board. A couple of times coach and I talk about going up, but [decide] to be patient," Ireland said when asked about the challenges of sticking to the team's approach. "Takes a lot of discipline. For some reason our board met our needs."

The Dolphins found the pulling interior lineman – Florida's Mike Pouncey, the first-round pick - the offense desperately missed in 2009, when the running game disappeared.

A big, physical tailback like Thomas was added in the second round, and so was Charles Clay in the sixth, adding a player versatile enough to play tight end and fullback."