What the Miami Dolphins Need to Accomplish in the 2026 Draft

The Miami Dolphins are getting set for their first draft under new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and with Jeff Hafley as their head coach, and as such it's a critical draft for the organization.

It actually might be one of the most consequential drafts in franchise history.

Yes, every single draft is important and if the Dolphins had been better at them, they wouldn't be in this position right now.

Like if they had done better with their three first-round picks in 2020 or their nine picks in the first two rounds in the 2020-21 draft.

Like if they hadn't whiffed on their top pick in both the 2022 and 2023 draft with Channing Tindall and Cam Smith, respectively.

But there's nothing the Dolphins can do about those past drafts ... other than to learn from those mistakes.

The Dolphins have 11 total picks in 2026, including seven of the top 94, and the main objective would be to get 11 starters — 11 high-end starters if we're going to get greedy in the first place.

But that's obviously not realistic.

So what is realistic for the Dolphins to accomplish during this 2026 draft?

KEY OBJECTIVES FOR DOLPHINS DURING THE 2026 DRAFT

Hit a bunch of doubles with no strikeouts

We'll take you back to Sullivan's comment during his pre-draft press conference in regards to prospects with character concerns: "I worked in Green Bay with a guy that used to always say, ‘Be careful about trying to hit the home run and make sure you just hit the double off the wall.’ In other words, I think you take everything into consideration, but what you can't do is swing and miss, so the character is a huge piece of the pie."

From here, that saying needs to apply not only to character questions but to every facet and aspect of a prospect, from injury history to questionable production to unfulfilled potential — and this is where we must point out that Auburn defensive end Keldric Faulk's low sack total in 2025 is not a factor here because he's not going to get drafted as an elite pass rusher but rather as an all-around lineman.

Put simply, the Dolphins can't afford to swing big on a high-risk, high-reward prospect early in the draft and miss. They can't afford to swing and miss on a prospect with a red flag, whether it be Jermod McCoy's knee or Rueben Bain Jr.'s arm length.

This isn't to suggest that McCoy or Bain won't be great NFL players for a long time, it's just that the Dolphins are not in a position to take the chance that it doesn't happen. The Dolphins badly need to replenish their talent pool and they're better off with three B-level players than an A player and two C's or worse because of a gamble.

The deeper we get into the draft, the more the Dolphins should be OK with taking chances, but the priority is to avoid the strikeouts.

In baseball terms, the Dolphins right now because of their roster are like a team entering the ninth inning by three or four runs, which means they need baserunners because just one home run won't do.

Of course, getting four home runs would be ideal, but again we're trying to be realistic here.

Get a good batting average

Using yet another baseball analogy, the Dolphins need to wind up with a good batting average with those seven picks in the first three rounds.

And, no, we're not talking about 7-for-7 or 6-for-7 because, again, not realistic.

Just look around the NFL and hoping for the Dolphins to nail four of those seven picks seems reasonable. And furthermore, the breakdown here should be four full-time starters and two impact players.

If the Dolphins could match what Detroit was able to do in 2023 when they landed Pro Bowl selections Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell, Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch with the top four picks, that would be outstanding, but that just doesn't happen very often.

Again, we'd settle for four full-time starters and two impact players.

The 2021 draft got the Dolphins four full-time starters with Jaylen Waddle, Jaelan Phillips, Jevon Holland and Liam Eichenberg, but we'd argue none of them were impact players, with Waddle coming closest.

Really stick to BPA

This notion of best-player-available approach that GMs throughout the league love to throw out is hogwash.

Teams almost invariably draft for positions of need and if it happens to involve the best player left on the board, even better.

But the Dolphins are in a different spot this year where they should draft their highest-ranked prospect at just about every pick because the talent needs such a large influx of talent.

The only exceptions we'd make are quarterback because a commitment has been made to Malik Willis for at least the next two years and running back because of the presence of De'Von Achane.

Outside of that, everything is fair game.

And this notion that the Dolphins have to come out of this draft with offensive linemen or wide receivers is simply off the mark from here.

First, the Dolphins will have another draft and a real free agency period next offseason to address more needs before they're ready to contend.

Second, just like the Dolphins need offensive linemen and receivers, they also need a cornerback, safety, defensive end, tight end, linebacker, and more than one at some of those positions.

So, again, focus on getting the best prospects available.

Yes, it would be great if the Dolphins could address every need in this draft, but that's again not realistic. And the Dolphins don't need to make sure to provide Willis help on offense to properly evaluate him; to become a contender, yes, but not to evaluate him.

Think about the long term

Because the Dolphins are at least a year away from realistically being able to think about contending, they should approach this draft with a two-year lense and not be focused on what needs to be done for 2026.

No, the Dolphins will not be tanking next season, but they also shouldn't focus all the attention and efforts on winning because that could be detrimental to the long-term health of the franchise — and stop us if you've seen this recently with the Dolphins.

Another important comment Sullivan has made more than once since taking over is his belief in the draft-and-develop philosophy.

Now is the time to implement it.

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