{"id":857991,"date":"2026-04-07T02:38:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T02:38:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/857991\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T02:38:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T02:38:18","slug":"latest-usa-today-mock-draft-has-dolphins-selecting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/857991\/","title":{"rendered":"Latest USA Today Mock Draft has Dolphins Selecting"},"content":{"rendered":"

USA Today put out their latest Round 1 Mock Draft<\/a>, and with 2 picks in Round one they have Miami selecting.<\/p>\n

Round 1, Pick #11: Makai Lemon<\/a>, WR, USC<\/p>\n

\u201cWR Jaylen Waddle<\/a>\u2018s departure\u00a0leaves a massive hole in the Fins\u2019 passing game. Lemon would have been worthy of consideration here on merit after catching 79 passes for 1,156 yards and 11 TDs during his final college season. A slot machine extraordinaire, he\u2019d immediately provide\u00a0new Miami QB Malik Willis<\/a> with a high-volume target \u2013 and, given the widespread comparisons Lemon draws to fellow former Trojan Amon-Ra St. Brown<\/a>, might also be the kind of culture influencer a rebuilding organization badly needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

NFL.com Draft Profile<\/a><\/p>\n

Overview<\/p>\n

High-skill, high-volume slot receiver with average size but extraordinary ball skills. Lemon has room for refinement, but not much. He\u2019s intelligent, confident and polished with the ability to make plays on all three levels. Tempo-driven route-runner who misdirects man coverage and separates out of turns but is fairly average after the catch. Quicker than fast, featuring early acceleration to open seam throws but flashes late burst when needed. More play strength is needed for NFL press and he needs to avoid rushing through multi-breaking routes. He\u2019s an exceptional ball-tracker with excellent catch timing and few focus drops. He wins more combat catches than he loses. Lemon is a plug-and-play, quarterback-friendly talent with first-round value and Pro Bowl upside.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStrengths<\/p>\n

Efficient press release with early acceleration to bypass.
\nManipulates defenders out of position with route acumen.
\nSnaps off out-breaking routes at crisp angles.
\nDisplays above-average burst from turns to gain separation.
\nBall-tracking adjustments and catch timing are elite.
\nRidiculous grip strength once the football hits his hands.
\nElevates his toughness and focus when catch is contested.
\nGood patience with late catch adjustment to save his catch space.
\nAlready dropping two feet inbounds near the sideline.
\nWilling run blocker who gives legitimate effort.<\/p>\n

Weaknesses<\/p>\n

Could use a hair more patience to prevent rushing the route.
\nAppears quicker than fast when working vertical routes.
\nCan be a little slow disengaging once captured underneath.
\nCompetitive but relatively ordinary after the catch.
\nNeeds runway to break off comebacks out of the drive phase.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRound 1, Pick #30: Avieon Terrell<\/a>, CB, Clemson<\/p>\n

\u201cMiami has very few positions with answers, and corner is among the most unsettled. But a second-team All-SEC performer like Hood could be a nice start for a team that will be regularly combatting MVP-caliber passers like Josh Allen<\/a> and Drake Maye<\/a> within the AFC East.\u201d<\/p>\n

NFL.com Draft Profile<\/a><\/p>\n

Overview<\/p>\n

Avieon shares the same bloodlines and coverage temperament as his brother, A.J., a first-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 2020. Avieon Terrell is an athletic, fluid mover with clean transitions and enough speed to stay in phase on most vertical routes. He\u2019s most effective in press-man coverage, where he mirrors releases with timing and discipline, staying crowded to the route. He concedes 50\/50s to bigger targets at times, but is a constant catch irritant with good technique on all three levels. He can play wide or inside and is willing in run support, but he lacks ideal size. Terrell projects as an early starter thanks to his polish, ball skills and coverage versatility.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStrengths<\/p>\n

Blend of athleticism and size to play inside or outside.
\nStays low and balanced when matching the release.
\nGuards against losing desired cover leverage at all times.
\nSmooth hip flip with quick acceleration into top speed.
\nCompetitive energy makes route running laborious for the receiver.
\nCrowds receiver\u2019s chest and finds the football downfield.
\nCloses quickly into the passing lane to harass the catch point.
\nPulls and rips at the football, forcing eight fumbles during his career.
\nGood effort and urgency playing off perimeter blocks.
\nTriggers downhill with control to do his part in run support.<\/p>\n

Weaknesses<\/p>\n

Slender build gives ground to bigger wideouts on 50\/50 balls.
\nLoses feel for bendy routes from trail positioning.
\nMore reactive than proactive in anticipating receiver\u2019s break point.
\nAverage eye balance and route awareness from short zones.
\nWill take some losses tackling bigger backs in run support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"USA Today put out their latest Round 1 Mock Draft, and with 2 picks in Round one they…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":857992,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2049],"tags":[217,7,216,251,2087,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-857991","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-dolphins","8":"tag-dolphins","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-miami","11":"tag-miami-dolphins","12":"tag-miamidolphins","13":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116361108540732671","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=857991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857991\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/857992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=857991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=857991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=857991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}