C-
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins bled value on every deal, hence the C-.
by [email protected] ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 24 picks
· 4 steals
· 15 reaches
If confidence were a draft strategy, the Dolphins would have aced it. Nadame Tucker at pick 95 is 80 spots clear of where he belonged.
The Prysock pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch. They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back.
Not a disaster, not a triumph, just a middling class.
Pick-by-Pick
They paid up for Elijah Sarratt at the Round 2 slot when waiting would have done the job. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A wild overpay on Skyler Bell in the 63rd overall pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Value said wait; Caden Curry in Round 3, Pick 11 says they were not listening. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Circle this one: Eli Stowers at the 78th pick is a fall that decides a draft. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Jalon Kilgore at pick No. 87 is a conviction pick that outran the value. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Kaleb Proctor at slot 90 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A real head-scratcher, Nadame Tucker in No. 95 is miles ahead of his ranking. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
No drama and no debate, Michael Trigg went about where he belonged in the 111th overall pick. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Jaeden Roberts at slot 130 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A need, and now a little less of one.
J'Mari Taylor in pick 131 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Charles Demmings in Round 5, Pick 11 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
A big swing on Cole Payton at pick No. 152, well ahead of any board in the building. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Good price on Louis Moore in the 170th pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Taking Isaiah World in the Round 5 slot is close to grand larceny; an offensive lineman that good had no business lasting this long. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They paid sticker price for Josh Cameron in Round 6, Pick 10, and that is fine. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They reached into another round for Nick Barrett, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Ephesians Prysock at the 218th overall pick is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
They talked themselves into Kalil Alexander at the Round 7 slot, and the board did not agree. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They robbed the room for Eric McAlister here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jack Kelly well ahead of where he belonged. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Adam Randall in pick 246, miles early. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They reached a country mile for Deven Eastern at pick No. 247, and the board is aghast. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Josh Moten in pick No. 250 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Jalon Daniels at No. 257 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.