C+
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins got the worse of every deal, and it shows in the C+.
by [email protected] ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 25 picks
· 5 steals
· 12 reaches
Nobody else had Caden Curry anywhere near pick 69. The Dolphins did, by 61 spots, and that gap is the whole story. For now it grades a C+, with the swing picks left to settle the rest.
The Stowers pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch. The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. Quarterback is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
In the end, one you will need a couple of seasons to truly judge.
Pick-by-Pick
No drama and no debate, Max Iheanachor went about where he belonged in pick 46. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Dillon Thieneman in the Round 2 slot. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
They reached into another round for Caden Curry, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A straight-up fair deal on Elijah Sarratt at slot 75, value and slot in agreement. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jake Slaughter at pick No. 83 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The roster fit checks out.
Eli Stowers at the 90th overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Skyler Bell in No. 94. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Value with a capital V on Jalon Kilgore in Round 4, Pick 9, a genuine coup. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Michael Trigg in slot 118 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Value said wait; Nadame Tucker in the 120th overall pick says they were not listening. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A clean, defensible pick in pick 151 with a little surplus value in Charles Demmings. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Louis Moore at the 165th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
A big swing on J'Mari Taylor at the Round 5 slot, well ahead of any board in the building. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Cole Payton. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
The board had cheaper options than Josh Cameron at slot 177, and it noticed. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
No edge and no loss on Taylen Green in the Round 5 slot; it is a wash and a sensible one. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Reggie Virgil at pick 182. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Nick Barrett at pick No. 209 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Keyshaun Elliott at No. 210 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They talked themselves into Jack Kelly at Round 7, Pick 7, and the board did not agree. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Deven Eastern at the 227th pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Adam Randall this early at the 238th overall pick. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Kalil Alexander in Round 7, Pick 27 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They paid up for Josh Moten at the Round 7 slot when waiting would have done the job. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Ahmaad Moses well ahead of where he belonged. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.