{"id":870719,"date":"2026-04-20T17:16:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T17:16:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/870719\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T17:16:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T17:16:01","slug":"2026-nfl-draft-miami-dolphins-predictions-for-first-round-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/870719\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 NFL draft: Miami Dolphins’ predictions for first-round picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

The three-day NFL draft begins Thursday night, and the Miami Dolphins have 11 picks to improve their roster including two in the first round (Nos. 11 and 30)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s who the South Florida Sun Sentinel predicts the Dolphins will select in Thursday\u2019s first round:<\/p>\n

Dave Hyde, Columnist<\/p>\n

Miami offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa (No. 11); Miami edge rusher Akheem Mesidor (No. 30)<\/p>\n

The Dolphins might have their pick of offensive tackles in Mauigoa, Utah\u2019s Spencer Fano and Alabama\u2019s Kadyn Proctor. Each is mentioned as possibly playing guard in the NFL. Fano is even mentioned possibly at center. Mauigoa gets the local edge in that his play at the University of Miami was seen up close for the past few years. He checks all the boxes for physicality, versatility and character. He solidifies this line and, at the very least this season, plays guard and offers insurance considering right tackle Austin Jackson\u2019s health questions.<\/p>\n

This comes with an asterisk. If Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is still available, the Dolphins should trade down to a QB-needy team<\/a> like the New York Jets or Arizona Cardinals and pick up a high second- and third-round pick. If not, the Dolphins can have an all-Hurricane first round with Mesidor joining Mauigoa and filling the big hole for an edge rusher.<\/p>\n

Chris Perkins, Dolphins columnist<\/p>\n

LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane; Auburn edge rusher Keldric Faulk<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll admit it, I have no idea what to expect from Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan, a first-time GM, because he has no draft history. Consequently, I\u2019ve been all over the place on these picks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And while I\u2019m convinced they\u2019ll stay at No. 11, there\u2019s a good chance that they trade the No. 30 selection.<\/p>\n

David Furones, Dolphins writer<\/p>\n

Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain; Washington wide receiver Denzel Boston\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In no mock draft I\u2019ve published do I have Bain available here, but maybe the short-arm questions lead to just enough of a drop to fall out of the top 10 and right into the Dolphins\u2019 lap. Bain would immediately give the Dolphins an elite, powerful edge defender<\/a> who mauls blockers in front of him and fits the 4-3 base defense coach Jeff Hafley wants to play as a traditional defensive end. He was coached in college by Dolphins great Jason Taylor and has a throwback Hurricane attitude who will spark a locker room culture early on for this regime as Bain will be motivated to have a successful professional career in his hometown.<\/p>\n

Why not use the top pick acquired in the Jaylen Waddle trade to find a Waddle replacement at receiver? Boston is a different type of wideout, standing tall at 6 feet 4 with elite ball skills but some concerns over his straight-line speed. He would offer new quarterback Malik Willis a big pass-catching target to throw the ball up to in single coverage and spark a pivot from the small-but-speedy wide receiver typical of the Mike McDaniel era.<\/p>\n

Keven Lerner, Assistant Sports Editor<\/p>\n

LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane; trade pick No. 30<\/p>\n

Delane would be both the BPA (best player available) and he\u2019d fill a need.<\/p>\n

As for the No. 30 pick, GM Jon-Eric Sullivan values draft picks<\/a> and he acquires more through this trade.<\/p>\n

Dolphins Deep Dive: Best draft candidates at pick No. 11 | VIDEO<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Steve Svekis, Assistant Sports Editor<\/p>\n

Georgia offensive tackle Monroe Freeling; Auburn edge rusher Keldric Faulk<\/p>\n

I wouldn\u2019t be shocked if the Dolphins traded down from each of their first-round spots, but, putting that aside, and assuming UM stud Francis Mauigoa is off the board, it is hard to ignore the imposing Bulldogs tackle. To me, the Dolphins\u2019 highest priority in 2026 is finding out if new quarterback Malik Willis can play at a level that obviates the need for making a huge investiture in the position in the 2027 draft, and having an athletic, massive (6 feet 7) bookend to Patrick Paul could be a big step in that direction.<\/p>\n

At 30, ideally Miami could trade back to a team motivated to pick a QB in the first round (with that affordable fifth-year option that is appended to players picked in the first 32). If staying put, Faulk would help get back some pass rush lost with Bradley Chubb\u2019s departure. Why not keep piling up on offense to help Willis here? The Packers made tons of hay snapping up pass targets after the first round in the past handful of drafts (Dontayvion Wicks picked 159th in 2023, Romeo Doubs 132nd in 2022 and Christian Watson 34th in 2022, along with rising star tight end Tucker Kraft at No. 78 in 2023). This draft similarly has a bunch of receivers who should be there at the Dolphins\u2019 third pick, at 43, so the thought is they may plug the defense here.<\/p>\n

Dolphins Deep Dive: What should Miami do in first round of NFL draft? | VIDEO<\/a><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The three-day NFL draft begins Thursday night, and the Miami Dolphins have 11 picks to improve their roster…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":870720,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2049],"tags":[4955,217,7,216,251,2087,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-870719","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-dolphins","8":"tag-2026-nfl-draft","9":"tag-dolphins","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-miami","12":"tag-miami-dolphins","13":"tag-miamidolphins","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116438168606418401","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870719","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=870719"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870719\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/870720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=870719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=870719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=870719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}