Coming off a sorely disappointing season, the Miami Dolphins find themselves having to start over again with a new coaching staff and entirely new schemes on both sides of the ball. 

They appear to be in good hands with first-year head coach Adam Gase, at least from an offensive standpoint. 

Though, there is a whole heck of a lot of work to do here if the Dolphins want to compete with the New England Patriots and New York Jets in the AFC East. 

In continuing with this 32 article series, here's a look at the top needs for the Miami Dolphins as well as a seven-round mock draft we ran through the FanSpeak mock draft simulator. We manually picked for Miami while the picks for all other 31 teams were selected by the simulator. 

1. Running Back

We have no idea whether free-agent running back Lamar Miller will return to Miami. We also don't know whether he's a real fit in Adam Gase's offense, which has required plus-level blocking ability out of the backfield — something Miller wasn't asked to do under the previous regime in Miami. 

What we do know is that Ryan Tannehill is going to need a strong running game to improve off what was an uneven performance this past season. Picking eighth overall, the Dolphins could very well land the draft's top running back Ezekiel Elliott. They could also decide to take a chance on Derrick Henry falling to the second round. 

2. Middle Linebacker

Is Kelvin Sheppard the answer at inside linebacker for the Dolphins? If not, does the team have a back-up plan on the free-agent market? These are the two questions the team will have to answer heading up to the draft. After all, the likes of both Jaylon Smith and Darron Lee will be availabile with the eighth pick. If Miami decides to go value over immediate need, this could be its target early in the draft. 

3. Guard

Assuming the Dolphins don't add a top-end guard in free agency, this is a position the team will have to target come draft time. Not a single player in a group that includes Dallas Thomas, Billy Turner or Jamil Douglas can be considered above-average players.

With a solid left tackle in Branden Albert and a Pro Bowler at center in the form of Mike Pouncey, the Dolphins have two good pieces along the offensive line. Add a top-end guard, and the line in front of Tannehill will take that next step. 

4. Cornerback

Brent Grimes took a major step back this past season and can no longer be considered a top-end cover guy. Outside of that, the Dolphins have almost nothing here in terms of starter-caliber talent. Jamar Taylor is too inconsistent in coverage. Meanwhile, neither Bobby McCain nor Tony Lippett can be counted on to be starter-caliber corners. In reality, Miami might be best off finding two rotational corners. One could potentially be had in the top-10 should Jalen Ramsey or Vernon Hargreaves fall to eight.