Ranking the Most Important Dolphins, No. 3: Can Proctor to Set the Tone Early?

The Miami Dolphins will head into training camp at the end of July with a totally different roster than the one that ended the 2025 season after an offseason overhaul that saw the departure of several significant veterans and the arrival of newcomers young and old.

The Dolphins have 91 players on their roster with the exemption they have for England-born rookie tight end Seydou Traore, a participant of the International Player Pathway Program.

As life goes in the NFL, not every player on the roster is equal, so we decided to rank all of them in terms of their importance to the Dolphins' success in the 2026 season. The list was determined on the basis of not just ability but also expected role and significance to the overall progress of the organization as it continues the rebuilding project that began with the hiring of Jon-Eric Sullivan as GM and Jeff Hafley as head coach.

This is part of a series that will run in the lead-up to start of training camp.

NUMBER 3: G KADYN PROCTOR

How he joined the Dolphins

The Dolphins selected Proctor in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft. He was taken with the 12th overall selection after Miami traded down one spot with the Dallas Cowboys.

Contract status

Proctora signed the standard four-year rookie contract with a fifth-year option that the Dolphins will have the opportunity to exercise during the 2029 offseason. Johnson's fully guaranteed rookie deal is worth $26.1 million over the next four years and included a $15.5 million signing bonus. Proctor's cap number will remain modest through the life of the contract, starting at $4.7 million in 2026 and increasing incrementally to $8.3 million in 2029.

His 2025 season

Proctor was a consensus All-American in his third year at Alabama. He started 15 games for the Crimson Tide, who won a game in the college playoffs before losing against eventual national champion Indiana. Proctor had five rushing attemps for 16 yards as an eligible player.

His projected role

Proctor spent the entire spring working at left guard after head coach Jeff Hafley said he didn't want to overload the prized rookie by switching him around, and the anticipation is that he'll stay at that spot the whole season while Austin Jackson continues to handle the right tackle position. Logic suggests that Proctor then would move to right tackle starting next year to give the Dolphins a very big and very talented set of tackles with Patrick Paul on the left side. The question remains whether the Dolphins would be tempted to move Proctor to right tackle this season if something were to happen to Jackson, who's a solid starter but one with a well-documented injury history. And this is where we point that while Hafley said the Dolphins were going to start off Proctor at guard, it never has been said he'll stay there his entire rookie season. Regardless of where he lines up, Proctor obviously is a key player for the Dolphins for 2026 and beyond as the first building block added by new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan to construct the kind of team (physical) the Dolphins want to have moving forward. In terms of the big picture, Proctor just might be the most important player on the roster given his position and his status as Sullivan's first pick for the Dolphins, but we put him at number 3 on this countdown because the offensive line and offense still could succeed even if Proctor doesn't dominate from the start — though he will have to at some point.

THE PREVIOUS PLAYERS ON THE COUNTDOWN

90. G James Ester
89. T Kevin Cline
88. QB Mark Gronowski
87. DT Keith Cooper Jr.
86. EDGE Seth Coleman
85. RB Anthony Hankerson
84. WR Donaven McCulley
83. FB D.J. Herman
82. C Jim Bonitas
81. LS Tucker Addington
80. DT Alex Huntley
79. T Marques Cox
78. EDGE Rodney McGraw
77. TE Cole Turner
76. DT Khalil Saunders
75. CB Miles Battle
74. S Major Burns
73. RB Carlos Washington Jr.
72. EDGE Robert Beal Jr.
71. WR A.J. Henning
70. RB Donovan Edwards
69. DB Omar Brown
68. EDGE Cameron Goode
67. WR Jalen Reagor
66. EDGE Max Llewellyn
65. WR Terrace Marshall Jr.
64. CB Ethan Robinson
63. G/T Josh Priebe
62. DT Rene Konga
61. WR Tahj Washington
60. QB Cam Miller
59. CB A.J. Green III
58. EDGE Mason Reiger
57. CB Alex Austin
56. P Bradley Pinion
55. LB Jackson Woodard
54. K Zane Gonzalez
53. S Louis Moore
52. DT Matthew Butler
51. CB Marco Wilson
50. CB Darrell Baker Jr.
49. LB Ronnie Harrison Jr.
48. T Charlie Heck
47. WR Chris Bell
46. CB Storm Duck
45. WR Theo Wease Jr.
44. TE Seydou Traore
43. G DJ Campbell
42. G/C Andrew Meyer
41. K Riley Patterson
40. S Michael Taaffe
39. CB Ethan Bonner
38. TE Ben Sims
37. EDGE David Ojabo
36. S Lonnie Johnson Jr.
35. Zayne Anderson
34. EDGE Josh Uche
33. WR Jalen Tolbert
32. EDGE/LB Trey Moore
31. LB Willie Gay Jr.
30. RB Jaylen Wright
29. WR Kevin Coleman Jr.
28. G Jonah Savaiinaea
27. DT Zeek Biggers
26. LB Kyle Louis
25. RB Ollie Gordon II
24. WR Tutu Atwell
23. G/T Jamaree Salyer
22. WR Malik Washington
21. DT Jordan Phillips
20. WR Caleb Douglas
19. LB Jacob Rodriguez
18. CB Jason Marshall Jr.
17. S Dante Trader Jr.
16. TE Will Kacmarek
15. QB Quinn Ewers
14. LB Tyrel Dodson
13. T Austin Jackson
12. CB JuJu Brents
11. TE Greg Dulcich
10. DT Zach Sieler
9. T Patrick Paul
8. DT Kenneth Grant
7. LB Jordyn Brooks
6. C Aaron Brewer
5. CB Chris Johnson
4. EDGE Chop Robinson

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