Intriguing Day 3 Draft Options for the Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins will enter the final day of the 2024 NFL with four selections in the final four rounds

Wide receiver Johnny Wilson of Florida State / Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports

After making two picks in the first three rounds of the 2024 NFL draft, the Miami Dolphins will enter the third and final day with four selections remaining.

Miami is without a fourth-round selection and its first scheduled pick is number 158 in the fifth round. Then they own a pair of sixth-rounders (#184 and #198) and a seventh (#241).

After adding edge defender Chop Robinson and tackle Patrick Paul in the first and second rounds, here's a look at some of the prospects who could intrigue GM Chris Grier and the Dolphins on this day.

At safety, Washington State’s Jaden Hicks is sliding down the board after NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein called him a Round 2 or 3 prospect. A candidate for a strong safety or playing up in the box near the line of scrimmage, Hicks is part of ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr’s best players available entering Round 4. He was ranked 71st on Kiper’s big board.

Another player left on Kiper’s big board is Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders, who is 75th. A very similar player to the free agency acquisition of Jonnu Smith, Sanders was rumored to be intriguing to the Dolphins back during the Texas Pro Day, but he's still available after entering the draft as the consensus second-ranked tight end and watching three come off the board already.

Wide receiver Troy Franklin from Oregon is another Kiper top 75 prospect still waiting to hear his name called. Kiper ranked him as his 52nd overall player on his board, and at 6-2 with a 4.41 40-yard dash, Franklin could be a steal.

Other receivers who could interest the Dolphins include Central Florida’s Javon Baker and Florida State’s Johnny Wilson. Kiper had a very positive endorsement of Baker, saying in a scouting report, “This is a guy at 6-1 and a half, 208 pounds. He has got body control, he adjusts to the poorly thrown football,” Kiper Jr. wrote. “He has got length, vertical stretch ability. Tracks that deep ball very well."

Zierlein placed Baker as a projected Round 3 player, so there is already a value proposition for any team looking at him in the fourth. Wilson, very tall at 6-7, has been rumored to be a potential tight end convert. NFL.com has Wilson as a fifth- or sixth-round pick.

Several solid interior linemen are also available, and if using Kiper’s big board as a guide, Miami's fifth- or sixth-round picks could be names like Christian Mahogany of Boston College, Javion Cohen from Miami, or small-school product Mason McCormick of South Dakota State.

A sleeper wideout to watch is a smooth route-running, deep threat, Holy Cross’s Jalen Coker. NFL.com projects Coker in a Dolphins sweet spot of a fifth-sixth-round prospect. An NFL scout said Coker “possesses robust ball skills across the board to win downfield.”

Sticking in the fifth and sixth rounds, cornerback Kyree Jackson is another day three name to know. Out of Oregon, Jackson is one of the class’s tallest corners at 6-4 and ranked 128th on Kiper’s board.

At safety, Wake Forest’s Malik Mustapha is another strong safety who can jump through the roof. With a vertical jump of 41.5, Mustapha is a quality day three prospect per renowned analyst Greg Cosell.

Lastly, Decamerion Richardson of Mississippi State is a tackling machine at cornerback and a potential special-teamer. Graded as the SEC’s top tackling cornerback and fourth overall graded defender at his position within the SEC, Richardson is low on the board due to zero collegiate interceptions on his 10 career pass breakups.

While his ball tracking needs work, Richardson has not been as publicized as other ball-hawking corners. However, Richardson is Kiper’s fifth-best remaining in this class at the position, right behind Oregon’s Jackson.