The Miami Dolphins‘ signing of rookie draft picks this year will be a pretty straightforward exercise.
The collective bargaining agreement establishes a salary pool for the rookie draft picks each year — the higher a player is drafted, the bigger percentage of the pie that player gets. But there is one subplot to be mindful of the Dolphins with getting their rookies signed after next month’s NFL Draft. And it has nothing to do with the salary cap restrictions of Miami’s 2026 offseason, either.
Dolphins’ second-round pick could be apart of new round of rookie contract drama this year
Nov 30, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins guard Jonah Savaiinaea (72) takes the field prior to a game against the New Orleans Saints at Hard Rock Stadium. Rich Storry-Imagn Images
(Rich Storry-Imagn Images)
The reasoning was tied to a dispute with early second-round draft picks last year and the percentage of their contracts that was fully guaranteed. The Houston Texans opened up a massive can of worms when they fully guaranteed the contract of their highest-drafted player, WR Jayden Higgins. Higgins was drafted 34th overall and became the first second-round player ever to receive a fully-guaranteed deal.
The domino effect fell all the way to the 40th overall, where QB Tyler Shough got his rookie deal fully guaranteed by the New Orleans Saints.
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The Dolphins’ second-round pick this year is scheduled for 43rd overall, just on the outside fringe of where second-round picks last year saw the cutoff for fully-guaranteed contracts. If the agents around the league decide to press the issue once again in 2026 to further create security for their clients, it puts Miami’s draft choice firmly in the crosshairs of the contested area.
Last year’s 43rd overall pick was defensive tackle Alfred Collins of the San Francisco 49ers. Collins got 80.8% of his contract fully-guaranteed by the 49ers last summer. So Miami must be vigilant. With this pick, they’d surely like to get him into the building as quick and possible and put any negotiations in the rear-view mirror. This roster will accommodate a second-round pick with playing time.
None of this will be a deal-breaker. But if the Dolphins stay put here, it is worth monitoring to see if they play ‘the game’ within the game or if they help further push the trend of guaranteeing more of the second-round rookie contracts across the league after the movement started last summer.
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This story was originally published by A to Z Sports on Mar 30, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.