At two positions — wide receiver and edge rusher — the Dolphins have gone from having one of the league’s better groups (on paper) to one of the league’s worst.
With Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips both gone, Miami almost certainly needs to draft an edge rusher with at least one of its seven picks in the first three rounds.
Keep in mind that the Dolphins are shifting from a 3-4 to a 4-3 base, but coach Jeff Hafley has said the Dolphins will still use some 3-4 and give teams multiple looks.
Among outside linebackers and defensive ends, Texas Tech’s David Bailey assuredly will be gone by pick 11. UM’s Rueben Bain might not get past the Bengals at 10, despite some teams having concerns about the length of his arms. (No edge player with arms as short as Bain’s has ever been selected in the first round).
The next group of edge rushers includes UM’s Akheem Mesidor, Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell, Auburn’s Keldric Faulk, Missouri’s Zion Young and Clemson’s TJ Parker.
But none are projected to go as high as 11. Miami could trade down a bit and likely have a choice of several of those five. Faulk or Howell or Parker or Mesidor also could be available with Miami’s pick at No. 30, which was acquired from Denver in the Jaylen Waddle trade. It would be a bit of a surprise if Young is there at 30, but it’s not out of the question. And some draftniks have Parker falling to Miami’s range at 43.
Some feedback on those five players:
▪ Young has added value, according to ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., because he’s effective as a run-stopper, besides his pass rush skills. He had 6.5 sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss last season. The Dolphins brought him in for a pre-draft ‘30’ visit.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah says he’s “a big, powerful rusher with excellent length and competitiveness. He destroys tight ends assigned to block him. He lacks an elite get-off, but he has a knack for finishing once he gets to the top of his rush. He capped off a solid season with a strong showing at the Senior Bowl. Overall, Young isn’t the most dynamic athlete, but he’s a physical presence on the edge and has three-down value.”
▪ Texas A&M Howell, who had 11.5 sacks last season is 6-2 1/2, a bit shorter than the prototype for an edge rusher.
Jeremiah, who ranks the 253-pound Howell 21st among all draft prospects, says he “lacks ideal length, but it didn’t cause him problems in the games I studied. As a pass rusher, he wins in a variety of ways. Against the run, he can roll his hips and utilize leverage to set the edge. I know he lacks prototypical measurements, but a smart team will set that aside and add an energetic force off the edge.”
▪ UM’s Mesidor (12.5 sacks) helped his stock during UM’s playoff run. But Kiper said he’s hearing he could fall to Round 2, even though “Mesidor can get into the backfield quickly and finish.”
Jeremiah ranks him the 20th best player in the draft, noting “he never stops working his hands and refuses to stay blocked. Against the run, he has enough length and a powerful enough base to firmly set the edge against OTs and consistently annihilate TEs.”
▪ Faulk is somewhat polarizing because of the limited production; he had just two sacks and five tackles for loss last season, down from 7 and 11 in 2024 for Auburn.
“Faulk is a tough evaluation,” said Jeremiah said, who ranks him 28th among all draft prospects. “He has great size and is a smooth athlete, but I’d like to see him play with a little more urgency. The upside is tremendous.
“As a pass rusher, he doesn’t have an elite get-off but still finds ways to win with a swooping arm-over or steady pocket push. He doesn’t always have a plan, which impacts his production. Overall, I was hoping he would play with more ferocity.”
▪ Projections for Parker vary widely, from the 20th range to the second round. Considered by some to be a potential top 10 pick before last season, Parker saw his tackles for loss drop from 19.5 in 2024 to 9.5 last season, and his sacks plunge from 11 to 5.
“He is a rugged pass rusher with a powerful shake/bull move coming off the edge,” said Jeremiah, who rates him No. 32 among prospects. “He doesn’t have an elite burst when rushing outside, but his quickness plays better when he rushes inside. Against the run, he can generate knock-back power at the point of attack.”
Other possibilities
A look at some of the defensive linemen and outside linebackers who could be in play for the Dolphins with their one pick in the second round (43rd overall) or their four picks in the third round (75, 87, 90, 94):
▪ Oklahoma edge player R Mason Thomas: He had 6.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss and would seemingly be in play at 43 if he’s on the board. He visited team headquarters but doesn’t count as a 30 visit because he attended high school at Cardinal Gibbons.
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler said he lacks ideal size at 6-2 and 249 pounds, but “his first-step burst and violent play style” are assets.
Jeremiah slots him No. 39 on his big board, adding that he’s “an instinctive and physical edge defender. He lacks ideal height/length for the position, but he is a difference-maker. He plays with maniacal energy and effort. He was asked to drop into coverage at times and looked stiff in his change of direction. Overall, Thomas doesn’t fit the prototype, but I believe he’ll be a valuable NFL starter right away.”
▪ UCF’s Malachi Lawrence: He had seven sacks last season, but Kiper said he’s a pass rush specialist and not an every-down player. Kiper said Lawrence “can fly off the edge, with really solid closing speed” But Miami needs to find starting edge players, not just rush specialists.
▪ Penn State defensive end Dani Deni-Sutton: He has 8.5 sacks each of the last two seasons, and a combined 25 tackles for loss over those two seasons.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said he’s a “base defensive end with toughness. He’s effective against the run, but he has limited pass-rushing upside” and has “average upside.”
▪ Ohio State defensive end Caden Curry: He blossomed last season, with 11 sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss.
Zierlein said “the tape doesn’t quite match the production, but with only one season as a starter,” Zierlein said. “His rush lacks explosiveness…. Curry is athletic dropping into space and fits the mold of a stand-up edge with special-teams value.”
▪ Alabama defensive end LT Overton: Zierlein said he’s “a slow-twitch end with impressive power and a consistently rugged demeanor.” But he has only seven sacks and 12 tackles for loss in four college seasons (two at Texas A&M, two at Alabama).
▪ LSU outside linebacker Harold Perkins Jr.: Perkins had 35.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks and eight forced fumbles in four years of college. Zierlein said he had “solid 2025 production but less in-game impact than he showed in 2022 and 2023 before his ACL tear in 2024.. Perkins is at his best when deployed in a scheme that allows him to play free and attack the line as often as possible.”
▪ Tennessee outside linebacker Joshua Josephs: He had just 9.5 sacks and 22 tackles for loss in 48 games for the Volunteers.
He’s a “long, upright edge defender with an NBA-caliber wingspan and room to continue filling out his frame,” Zierlein said. “However, he needs to get bigger and stronger to better support the run against NFL blocking. Josephs could deliver much more consistent production than he’s provided so far.”
▪ Michigan outside linebacker Jaishawn Barham and Derrick Moore: Zierlein compares Barham to the Dolphins’ Chop Robinson, noting: “Barham logged most of his snaps at off-ball linebacker, but his 2025 tape showed explosiveness that will attract teams. He projects as an impactful future starter once his technique catches up.” Barham had four sacks and 10 tackles for loss last season.
Zierlein says Moore, who had 10 sacks for Michigan last season, is “an edge pro. He projects as a starter capable of racking up pressures.”
▪ Auburn edge player Keyron Crawford: He had five sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss last season, his second at Auburn.
Zierlein said he’s “a stand-up rush linebacker prospect with plus athletic traits, but he’ll need more seasoning to reach his potential… Crawford has special teams and situational rush value now, but his best football is still to come.”
▪ Texas Tech’s outside linebacker Romello Height: He had 10 sacks and 11.5 tackles in his one year in Lubbock, after playing earlier in his career at Auburn, Southern Cal and Georgia Tech, where the production was more limited.
Zierlein’s take: “An edge defender with a lean, angular frame, Height will need a heavy dose of weight-room work to compete at the pro level. Height needs to improve his skill level and refine his approach if he’s going to make an impact as a designated pass rusher, but he has the talent to cause some chaos in the pocket.”
Among others who could be in the mix on Day 2: Defensive end Ethan Burke (Texas) and Jack Pyburn (LSU) and outside linebackers Gabe Jacas (Illinois), Madame Tucker (Western Michigan), George Gumbs Jr. (UF) and Cian Slone (NC State).
Here’s our look at draft-eligible cornerbacks.
This story was originally published April 13, 2026 at 9:49 AM.
Barry Jackson
Miami Herald
Barry Jackson has written for the Miami Herald since 1986 and has written the Florida Sports Buzz column since 2002.
