B
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins won the night they stopped McNeil-Warren from sliding. Grade: B.
by Fins1981 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 20 picks
· 7 steals
· 2 reaches
When a board-topper like Emmanuel McNeil-Warren slides to the 90th overall pick, you do not overthink it, and the Dolphins did not.
They are betting Foster proves the room right and everyone else wrong. The Dolphins indulged a want in Wheatley while a need in edge rusher stayed open.
A whole weekend of picks and edge rusher is somehow still a want.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 25 they get a true top target at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
In the 30th overall pick they get a go-to option on the outside. The biggest hole, addressed.
They did well to land Emmanuel Pregnon in No. 43, just ahead of his grade. A need, and now a little less of one.
A top-tier tight end at a bargain, Eli Stowers in pick 75, plain and simple. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Taking Jake Slaughter in the Round 3 slot is close to grand larceny; an offensive lineman that good had no business lasting this long. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board fumbled Emmanuel McNeil-Warren all the way to the 90th pick, and they scooped it up. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Devin Moore in pick No. 91. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Good price on Sam Roush in Round 3, Pick 28, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A surprising call. With edge rusher still to address, they spent the 94th overall pick on Zakee Wheatley, a safety they were not short of.
Markel Bell at the 107th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It fills a real need, too.
Mike Washington Jr. in pick 112 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A market-rate tight end, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Eli Raridon. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A tidy bit of business in slot 152, where Dametrious Crownover graded well above the range. The roster fit checks out.
Nice patience on Zxavian Harris, who had no business lasting to Round 5, Pick 22. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Drew Allar in the Round 5 slot is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
By-the-book stuff, Jimmy Rolder at pick No. 211 squarely in line with his ranking. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
No edge and no loss on Lander Barton in the 220th pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A real head-scratcher, Bryce Foster in pick No. 227 is miles ahead of his ranking. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Logan Taylor in No. 238 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They took Nolan Rucci at par in slot 248, which is nothing to complain about. A need, and now a little less of one.