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Dolphins’ Robert Hunt feeling ‘extremely blessed’ entering second season

Before dipping into which position Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Robert Hunt will play next season or pondering whether he can make the proverbial second-year jump, let’s first appreciate how far he’s come.

From living in a desolate town in East Texas and his family trailer uprooted by a hurricane, to being displaced again when his next home was engulfed in flames.

From having no offers to play college football to committing on the spot with his first from Louisiana-Lafayette. And after four years of gaining experience, becoming a second-round pick in the NFL draft last year.

Hunt will enter his second year in the NFL grateful for how far he’s come in life and how promising the future appears.

And in the grand scheme of things, that’s really more important than which position he plays or how he’ll perform — although he and the Dolphins expect significant improvement after a solid rookie season.

“Man, I’m extremely blessed. I wouldn’t take this for granted,” said Hunt, who is from Burkeville, Texas, roughly 155 miles northeast of Houston.

“Me passing along to people in my city, it’s just a blessing. It’s an honor to be here. Whatever I can do is to maintain and keep playing … I love the game of course. I’m doing this for the game. But it’s definitely a blessing to come from where I’ve come from and … to be doing what I have to do and compete for a job or compete for a spot.

“Just to be here in this facility and everything in the NFL is a huge blessing.”

Hunt played in all 16 games as a rookie last season, including 11 starts at right tackle, but could play another position this season.

As Hunt puts it, he and all the Dolphins offensive linemen are training to play all five positions.

But Hunt’s potential could thrive inside at the guard position, where his massive 6-foot-5, 323-pound frame can keep defenders upright, and his nimble feet can create a hole for any running back to follow.

“This is going to be my first year playing guard since my sophomore year of college — if I do play it,” Hunt said. “We are all moving around. But it’s football, at the end of the day and I think whatever I am needed to do, I think my body will allow me to do it.”

Hunt was one of three offensive linemen drafted last year, along with first-round left tackle Austin Jackson and fourth-round guard Solomon Kindley.

Still, the Dolphins continued to overhaul the unit this offseason, drafting second-round pick Liam Eichenberg, who is transitioning from left tackle to right tackle.

The Dolphins also added veteran center Matt Skura to anchor the unit, right tackle D.J. Fluker brings experience and depth, undrafted rookie guard Robert Jones joins the mix, while guard/center Michael Deiter entering his third season and veteran guard/tackle Jesse Davis returns for his fifth season in Miami.

Despite the competition, Hunt has an opportunity to be an NFL starter again in 2021.

And he’s thankful for the divine intervention that guided him along the way.

“I’m extremely blessed. At the end of the day, I think it was going to happen regardless,” Hunt said.

“We never know what’s going to happen in our life. It happened for a reason. God always puts it in our life for a reason. So, it was meant to happen since birth. I didn’t know about it, none of us knew about it, but it happened … and I’m extremely blessed like I said.”