Initial Impressions of the Dolphins' 2026 Draft

The Miami Dolphins wrapped up their 2026 draft when they selected Iowa edge defender Max Llewellyn with the 238th overall selection.

That was their 13th pick in this draft, the highest total for the franchise since 1997 when they had 14 in Jimmy Johnson's second year as Dolphins head coach and overseer of the draft.

Exactly how well the Dolphins fared won't be known for at least two years, probably three, though it certainly won't stop folks from all over the country from offering their verdict and/or their grades.

We'll leave that task to others, but do have some initial thoughts, from the start with Kadyn Proctor all the way to Llewellyn.

DOLPHINS 2026 DRAFT

Before we start, here's the recap of the Dolphins draft class:

Round 1, 12th overall — T Kadyn Proctor, Alabama
Round 1, 27th overall — CB Chris Johnson, San Diego State
Round 2, 43rd overall — LB Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech
Round 3, 75th overall — WR Caleb Douglas, Texas Tech
Round 3, 87th overall — TE Will Kacmarek, Ohio State
Round 3, 94th overall — WR Chris Bell, Louisville
Round 4, 130th overall — EDGE Trey Moore, Texas
Round 4, 138th overall — LB Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh
Round 5, 158th overall — S Michael Taaffe, Texas
Round 5, 177th overall — WR Kevin Coleman Jr., Missouri
Round 5, 180th overall — TE Seydou Traore, Mississippi State
Round 6, 200th overall — G D.J. Campbell, Texas
Round 7, 238th overall — EDGE Max Llewellyn, Iowa

A couple of quick notes here;

-- This was the first time since 2013 the Dolphins selected three players from the same school. That year, the Dolphins took three from Florida: LB Jelani Jenkins, RB Mike Gillislee and K Caleb Sturgis.

-- This was the first time since 1975 the Dolphins selected three wide receivers.

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS

-- We'll start with the idea of filling needs, which we discussed beforehand shouldn't have been a major focus because, as GM Jon-Eric Sullivan pointed out during one of his in-draft media sessions, the Dolphins weren't going to be able to fill all of them in one draft.

-- That said, the Dolphins addressed most of the glaring positions of need, including wide receiver, tight end, cornerback and linebacker.

-- The two spots that were addressed, but later than ideal, were safety and edge defender. Again, there's only so much the Dolphins could do.

-- The Dolphins needed to be in a mode of just finding talent in this draft, but we can't help but feel that taking three wide receivers might have been overdoing it. Realistically, can we really expect the three draft picks at the position to make the 53-man roster?

-- The Dolphins indicated before the draft they wanted to get more physical, and they followed through on that with the selections of Proctor, Bell and most definitely Kacmarek.

-- Sullivan said after being hired he wanted to draft a quarterback every year or close to it, but they really didn't need to do it after signing Malik Willis and with young players Quinn Ewers and Cam Miller on the roster, so it was no surprise the position went unaddressed.

-- At first glance, this looks like a solid draft class for the Dolphins, and the fact they had such a large number will only help their chances. The bottom line is, based on history, there inevitably will be hits and misses, with the earlier picks obviously having better odds of succeeding.

-- From this end, if the Dolphins landed, say, four or five solid starters from this draft, it will have been a success and having two or more of them reaching Pro Bowl level would make it even better.

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