Why Frequent Dolphins Mock Draft Pick Just Became Riskier

One major reason the previous Miami Dolphins’ regime failed was injuries. Some were bad luck, but the front office and coaching staff also continued to take shots on players with long injury histories.

That’s why fans tend to get antsy around one popular mock draft pick for the team’s 11th selection in the upcoming 2026 NFL draft: Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy.

McCoy missed the entire 2025 college football season with a torn ACL. Making things slightly more concerning, McCoy opted out of drills at the 2026 NFL combine this week. It's not unusual for high-end prospects to skip combine on-field work to instead do them at their Pro Day, but it's not ideal for somebody who came into the draft process with injury concerns.

Yet, his 2024 tape is so good that national draft analysts keep slotting him to the Dolphins in Round 1.

So, that begs the question: Should the Dolphins even consider McCoy?

McCoy’s Injury Is a Bit Different

Before we get into McCoy’s tape, it’s important to note that McCoy’s injury situation is a little different than usual. The Tennessee cornerback tore his ACL in January of 2025 during the team’s College Football Playoff game against Ohio State.

That means he’s already had a full year of recovery. Most of the time, when prospects are hurt before the draft, they got hurt during the CFB season. That tends to put them in a position to miss a chunk of the upcoming NFL regular season.

McCoy should be healed already and more than ready to go by the time rookie minicamp starts.

He’ll likely need some time to shake some rust off — there is a huge difference between college and NFL speed, and he hasn’t seen college speed in a while. But this is probably not a situation where Miami has to worry about McCoy not being ready for Week 1.

Lastly, it’s important to note that McCoy isn’t an “injury-prone” player — at least, not more than any other NFL player. McCoy didn’t have any significant injuries in his two prior seasons.

This isn’t a player who was battling injuries in college for four seasons. He just happened to suffer a major injury super late in his final season.

Admittedly, some of this is projecting. McCoy “should” be healed by now, but we technically won’t know that until the NFL Combine. McCoy not participating in drills isn't ideal, but it matters a lot less than what his actual physical have to say about his recovery.

It's still a little early to panic because we don't know what that physical will show about McCoy's knee, and he could still test at his pro day.

Why McCoy Makes Sense for the Dolphins

Here’s the thing with McCoy: His 2024 tape is blue-chip level good. If he had a repeat of that performance in 2025, he would be getting mocked to the New York Jets at No. 2 overall by some analysts.

Yes, he was that good for Tennessee in 2024. McCoy is an excellent man coverage player with unreal quickness, speed, and change-of-direction ability. He can mirror and match at all three levels of the field without issue.

That also gives his defense a lot of flexibility. He can lock down a whole side of the field, while the other side can throw a bunch of bodies at whatever playmaker they think is the biggest problem.

McCoy is an excellent turnover producer, too. He had four interceptions and six passes defended in 2024, and his interceptions are some of the best plays you’ll see on tape in this class.

It’s also worth noting that McCoy started his career at Oregon State in 2023. He played 12 games for the Beavers in 2023 and was incredibly good. His athletic ability immediately translated into two interceptions and six pass deflections.

Regardless of Oregon State’s competition, entering college football as a true freshman and playing that well is impressive.

Even McCoy’s high-school background is promising. He was a state champion long jumper, an all-state baseball player, and he played receiver along with cornerback.

McCoy has done it all, so if you add all of this to the fact that Miami’s cornerback room has no reliable starter on the roster, it’s not hard to see why McCoy is mocked to Miami a lot.

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