{"id":847807,"date":"2026-04-01T19:58:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T19:58:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/847807\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T19:58:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T19:58:31","slug":"preferred-targets-in-the-2026-nfl-draft-jermod-mccoys-candidacy-and-staying-out-of-the-rat-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/847807\/","title":{"rendered":"Preferred targets in the 2026 NFL Draft, Jermod McCoy’s candidacy, and staying out of the rat race"},"content":{"rendered":"

A fresh round of questions from the Miami Dolphins fanbase. <\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAngelina Alcantar\/News Sentinel \/ USA TODAY NETWORK<\/p>\n

The Miami Dolphins\u2019 month of April is probably the biggest month of the year. No fooling and no April Fools on that one. With the Dolphins entering the first year of a new regime and 11 picks scheduled for the 2026 NFL Draft<\/a>? That\u2019s a heavy lift. The Miami Dolphins need as many hits as they can get. <\/p>\n

Important times mean lots of uncertainty. As such, I asked you for all of your Miami Dolphins questions as we enter April. And with those questions, I bring you our latest Miami Dolphins<\/a> mailbag edition. <\/p>\n

Miami Dolphins mailbag: Preferred targets in the 2026 NFL Draft, Jermod McCoy\u2019s candidacy, and staying out of the rat race<\/p>\n

Can you rank your top 5 preferred draft targets at No. 11?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Sam Teets (@Sam_Teets33) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Hey Sam! There\u2019s a number of layers to this question but I\u2019ll offer up my five favorite targets that I think have a somewhat mildly realistic chance of being there at No. 11 overall: <\/p>\n

EDGE Rueben Bain Jr., Miami<\/p>\n

SAF Caleb Downs, Ohio State<\/p>\n

OG Olaivavega Ioane, Penn State<\/p>\n

OT Francis Mauigoa, Miami <\/p>\n

CB Mansoor Delane, LSU<\/p>\n

Bain is a local product who plays on the edge and is a blue chip prospect in this year\u2019s class. He\u2019s an intense culture guy and a perfect fit for a new general manager that hails from a place that has typically coveted heavy EDGEs. Jeff Hafley spoke this week about trying to call his defense and play \u201cthe game within the game\u201d through his safeties and I think Downs passes that sniff test with flying colors. <\/p>\n

Behind that? A pair of physical offensive linemen who can plug in and help change the narrative about the Dolphins\u2019 line of scrimmage play and then a gifted, versatile corner. <\/p>\n

Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy\u2019s candidacy? <\/p>\n

Do you think Jermod McCoy\u2019s pro day changes, not only where he sits on your top 50, but Sully\u2019s too? Is he in play at 11 or is it still too much of a risk?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jamie Greening (@jgreening88) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

I like McCoy. He\u2019s one of 15 first-round grades I gave out this year. But for a Dolphins team that\u2019s fresh off of a regime that was too flippant about player durability, I do generally think the risks associated after McCoy missed all of 2025 would be too unsettling for me if I were Sullivan. He\u2019s probably be a \u201cwell shoot, if he makes it to pick 30!\u201d option for me. I like this cornerback group and I do think Miami\u2019s bought themselves some wiggle room with all the young competitors in that room to not force a CB pick at No. 11. <\/p>\n

The 2027 Rat Race against the Jets?<\/p>\n

How do the Dolphins position themselves to gain draft capital next year? The Jets have THREE 2027 firsts, which is probably enough to move up and get whoever they want. Should we just be hoping they get it wrong, or are there levers we can pull to participate in an arms race\u2026?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Matt Hellmann (@mdknights_23) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

I made this analogy a few weeks back on the Locked On Dolphins Squad Show: the Dolphins gotta run their own race. It\u2019s like the Bluey episode about the \u2018Baby Race\u2019; you gotta learn to walk at your own pace. Miami\u2019s brass seems to think they\u2019re in a great place to skip the line at quarterback with the Malik Willis signing, which means they won\u2019t need to worry about a \u2018you know what contest\u2019 with the Jets for the top pick. <\/p>\n

If Sullivan and Hafley are right about Willis, expect to hear me drumming up a trade down with some early draft capital in 2027 (barring an elite player being in your lap). <\/p>\n

Can Miami extend EVERYONE this offseason?<\/p>\n

achene,brooks,brewer why cant they extend all ?<\/p>\n

\u2014 steven (@StevenjujJu) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

They can! And I suspect they will! I just don\u2019t think those things are all going to happen before the draft. Or, for that matter, before June 1st. The Dolphins sound like Devon Achane is priority No. 1 \u2014 he probably should be. The Dolphins paid out nearly $5 million of compensation for 2026 already, they\u2019re committed to him being here, and Miami has to be looking over their shoulder at Atlanta (Bijan Robinson) and Detroit (Jahmyr Gibbs) in the race to hit the first deal of the offseason at running back. I would suspect the latter two will push Saquon Barkley\u2019s annual average record for the position, so Miami beating those teams to the punch with an Achane deal would be a win. <\/p>\n

But Miami is tight on cap space. So if they DO get Achane done, they\u2019ll likely need to convert salary in Jordyn Brooks\u2019 contract to make things fit before the Bradley Chubb savings ($20 million in cap space) come rolling in on June 2nd. After that point, Miami can open things up to extend the other two. There\u2019s also less of a rush on Aaron Brewer, in my opinion, because Tyler Linderbaum already chewed up the top spot for highest paid center in football by 50% ($27 million annual average). The damage is done on that negotiation front already. <\/p>\n

Option A or Option B in the 2026 NFL Draft? <\/p>\n

Draft A or B for first 3 picks:<\/p>\n

A = Ioane, Hood, Lawrence
B = Bain, Omar Cooper, Haulcy<\/p>\n

\u2014 Dave Camfield (@DaveCamfield) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Okay, Dave. I love a good multiple choice question. Here\u2019s the rankings I have on all six of these players on my newly released big board<\/a>: <\/p>\n

A. OG Vega Ioane (6th overall), CB Colton Hood (28th overall), EDGE Malachi Lawrence (52nd overall)
B. EDGE Rueben Bain Jr. (2nd overall), WR Omar Cooper Jr. (19th overall), SAF AJ Haulcy (44th overall)<\/p>\n

Option B has a higher ranked player in every spot, but I\u2019d be left quite concerned about the offensive line outlook with that avenue, too. <\/p>\n

Back to the negotiating table with Malik in 2027? <\/p>\n

If Malik is a guy does he play on his deal next year or do you think he wants some of the money we have opening up?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jon (@Jellyjon_91) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

I would like to think that there\u2019s an understanding that this three-year contract will be reassessed after 2027 either way. Good, bad, or indifferent. Especially as the quarterback of the franchise, Willis coming back to the negotiating well after one year next spring would be a tough look given he has guarantees for 2027 already in my opinion. <\/p>\n

Could you justify it? Surely. But I don\u2019t know if I\u2019d like Miami\u2019s new management entertaining players on pay raises with multiple years left on their current deals \u2014\u00a0as that\u2019s part of what got the last group in trouble (Tyreek Hill, Jalen Ramsey). <\/p>\n

TE Jaylin Conyers\u2019 chances to make the team? <\/p>\n

What do you think about Jaylin Conyers chances are to make this team. It seems like a rough spot for a UDFA that took a redshirt year walking into a new regime .<\/p>\n

\u2014 Ja3 (@KoolkidsTabl3) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

I liked Conyers coming out of Texas Tech. I\u2019m holding out some hope that he\u2019s a potential flex fit for Bobby Slowik given his proximity to the Shanahan schemes. But I did feel like he could have been a Mike McDaniel pet project \u2014\u00a0given the insistence the team had in trying to make Tanner Conner a thing for years. <\/p>\n

The bad news for Conyers is he\u2019s got no sweat equity with this management group. The good news is his fate is in his hands to make a strong impression. <\/p>\n

A scouting challenge for Sully? <\/p>\n

Sully stated that interior o-line is his hardest spot to evaluate in the PFT interview, with that, would taking Ioane, the best interior o-line player at 11 make sense? He could knock out his hardest area to project with the best. Then he could use his scouting to fill other area<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jeremiah Koester (@DrJK2019) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

I have thought long and hard about this and I don\u2019t think it should make the decision for you. But I do think it makes it that much easier to appreciate what Ioane brings to the table if interior OL scouting is a layered labor of love for anyone. Ioane is my personal favorite lineman in the class and there\u2019s a strong chance he\u2019s the player I\u2019m advocating the team draft. <\/p>\n

But for that decision to come from anything other than how you have him graded (I think he\u2019s elite!) in a vacuum would be, in my opinion, bad process.<\/p>\n

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Miami Dolphins News<\/p>\n