Football

Examining What Would Make Each Dolphins Draft Pick's Rookie Season a Success

By Jacob Westendorf Sports Illustrated

Updated May 3, 2026 10:13 AM

The Miami Dolphins' first draft class under Jon-Eric Sullivan is in the books. Now, the focus shifts from who the team could draft, to who they actually picked and how they are going to contribute to the team moving forward.

In a perfect world, every rookie would be instant contributors or in the running for the Rookie of the Year award on their respective side of the ball. This is not fantasy land, however, this is reality.

So dealing in reality, from Kadyn Proctor to Max Llewellyn, we have it mapped out as to what would constitute a successful season for each of the rookies in this draft class.

A TARGET FOR EACH DOLPHINS DRAFT PICK

OL Kadyn Proctor

Fast gets slow, but big doesn't get small. If that is in fact true, Miami's first-round draft choice is not going to be getting small anytime soon.

Kadyn Proctor is a mountain of a man at 6-6, 352 pounds. Proctor's selection is a shift in culture as the Dolphins try to move from a finesse team to a team that is more rugged.

Proctor's size certainly can help in that regard. His career is going to start at left guard, where he'll play next to Patrick Paul.

Of course, Proctor won't simply play at guard as he's going to cross-train at multiple positions, as is standard practice in the NFL.

A talented offensive lineman who played left tackle in college moving around is not new practice for the Dolphins, as they followed that blueprint with Laremy Tunsil after they drafted him in the first round.

If Proctor's primary position is left guard, then the second position he'll likely learn is right tackle, which is projected to be his best position in the NFL. Patrick Paul has been solid as a left tackle, and Aaron Brewer is a core player as the pivot man on the offensive line.

Austin Jackson is the right tackle for now, but playing on an expiring contract. Proctor proving to be capable at left guard while developing behind the scenes at tackle to give the Dolphins options in 2027 would be considered a massive success.

CB Chris Johnson

Johnson was the second of Miami's two first-round picks in this draft class, and it came as a bit of a surprise simply because of the position he plays. Yes, the Dolphins need help in the secondary, but conventional wisdom had the Dolphins selecting a pass catcher to help Malik Willis

Instead, Johnson became the second cornerback taken in the first round, and he is likely set to cross train at both outside corner and in the slot.

In 2024, Jeff Hafley's first season in Green Bay, he would try to mix and match with Jaire Alexander when he was healthy to get him in the best position to succeed.

Alexander was Green Bay's top cornerback that year, and Hafley took pride in getting his best player matched up with the opponent's best player.

Johnson currently is playing in a secondary without a clear starter on the boundary, and is likely to get looks early and often there.

There will certainly be some growing pains as defensive back is one of the toughest positions in football to adapt to.

With Johnson, if he can steadily grow throughout the season to be a player that Hafley trusts to match up against the best players against teams in the AFC East, that would be a massive success.

Catching a couple of interceptions and showing off his nose for the end zone would not hurt, either.

LB Jacob Rodriguez

While the first round had some controversy surrounding each of the picks, the Dolphins' selection of Jacob Rodriguez in the second round was one that garnered praise.

Rodriguez was mentored by fellow Texas Tech linebacker Jordyn Brooks, and Miami Dolphins legend Zach Thomas.

Rodriguez is going to get a chance to play in the middle of Miami's defense. Getting acclimated to Jeff Hafley's defense early should give him an opportunity to earn more snaps next to his mentor Jordyn Brooks.

Once he's one the field, replicating part of the season that Tyrel Dodson had in 2025 when he had 72 solo tackles and five sacks to go with one forced fumble would be incredibly impactful.

Rodriguez had a nose for the football in college, which helped him finish fifth in votes for the Heisman trophy. If Rodriguez can make an impact on the field with a few splash plays, while showing potential to build a dynamic tandem next to Brooks, the Dolphins will be in great shape with their second round pick.

WRs Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell, Kevin Coleman Jr.

The receiver position was complicated during this draft class for the Dolphins because they waited until the third round to take one. Most people expected the Dolphins to show more urgency in adding to their receiving corps.

Instead, they took a page out of the playbook of the Green Bay Packers, and are determined to have a deep receiving corps rather than relying on one or two players to take the lion's share of targets.

Whether it's Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell or Kevin Coleman Jr. all three have a similar outlook for what could be a successful season.

In Green Bay, the Packers have brought all of their rookie receivers along slowly. Whether it was Greg Jennings all the way back in 2006 or Matthew Golden last season, rookies take time before making a big impact.

These receivers in Miami could be more akin to those drafted by the Packers in 2022 as they began to transition out of the receiving corps that was led by Davante Adams.

Christian Watson had 41 catches on 66 targets after being taken in the second round. Romeo Doubs had 42 catches on 67 targets.

Watson in particular came on really strong in the second half of the 2022 season, scoring all seven of his touchdowns after the calendar turned to November.

All three of Douglas, Bell, and Coleman are going to get their opportunities, though with Bell it will depend on when he can get back to full health after his November ACL injury.

If the Dolphins can have two players emerge to have seasons similar to the ones outlined by Watson and Doubs in 2022, that would be a big boost for Miami's pass catchers. Both of those players developed into core pieces of Green Bay's offense.

TE Will Kacmarek

After adding to their receiving corps early in the third round with Caleb Douglas, the Dolphins turned their attention to the tight end room.

Kacmarek is not going to remind anyone of Mike Gesicki streaking down the middle of the field, as he's more someone willing to do the dirty work.

Frankly, with the soft label that became prevalent under Mike McDaniel, finding a blocking tight end is a good start toward changing some of the culture. That's likely a goal that Sullivan and Hafley had, which is part of the draw to someone like Kacmarek.

Sure hands and dominant run blocking is what this Dolphins team needs as a team that is likely to rely on its ground game led by De'Von Achane behind a massive offensive line.

Kacmarek adding to that group and becoming a de-facto sixth offensive lineman would be a successful first season for him.

EDGE Trey Moore

Jon-Eric Sullivan might have been taking a page out of Green Bay's playbook from the 2025 season when they drafted Trey Moore's former teammate Barryn Sorrell in the fourth round.

One year later, Moore was taken in the fourth round by the Dolphins.

When Hafley was in Green Bay, he liked to rotate his pass rushers in an effort to keep them fresh for the end of the game.

Sorrell was somebody who was part of that rotation for Green Bay last year, and finished the season strong with a sack and fumble recovery in the final game of the regular season.

Can Moore replicate a season like that with a tad more production? It's possible. The opportunity will certainly be there for him as the Dolphins look to replace Bradley Chubb.

Moore finishing the season with more than 1.5 sacks, while also developing into someone the Dolphins can envision as a rotational pass rusher for 2027 and beyond is what would make his rookie season the most impactful.

LB Kyle Louis

Asking Louis to be like Green Bay's Javon Bullard in his rookie season is a lot to ask, but that's the vision the Dolphins have for him after he was drafted in the fourth round.

Louis ' success in his first season is showing that he's not out of place at safety or at nickel corner, where the Dolphins anticipate playing him.

The more he grows, the more Jeff Hafley can disguise things to opposing offenses. The more Hafley can disguise things, the better his defense can be.

With Louis being picked in the fourth round, he'll also likely have to develop into a core special teamer.

S Michael Taaffe

Versatility is the name of the game on the third day of the draft. Taaffe has plenty of versatility to play multiple areas on the field, including free safety, the slot, and in the box, while being an immediate impact player on special teams who even blocked a punt at Texas.

With Taaffe being selected in the fifth round, that prowess he showed on special teams is going to come in handy. Teams need their Day 3 picks to turn into contributors on special teams. Taaffe proving he can do that while proving to not be out of place on defense would be a win for the Dolphins.

TE Seydou Traore

Traore is different from Kacmarek in terms of what style of player they are. They could, in theory, complement each other well in the future.

Traore is also an interesting, and potentially savvy move by Sullivan. He can start his NFL career on the practice squad as an International Pathway player, which provides a bonus roster spot throughout the offseason and on the practice squad, assuming he doesn't get signed to another team's 53.

Traore developing for a year on the practice squad for a year while developing behind the scenes to become a potential contributor as an F tight end to complement Kacmarek as a Y tight end could give the Dolphins something to be excited about if they want to play 12 personnel with two tight ends on the field in the future.

G DJ Campbell

Competition at the back of the offensive line room is always something that a team is hunting for on the third day of the draft.

Jon-Eric Sullivan comes from Green Bay, which has excelled in finding starting offensive linemen on Day 3.

Zach Tom, Josh Sitton, TJ Lang and David Bakhtiari are all examples of players who became serviceable at minimum up front while Sullivan was in Green Bay.

Campbell may not prove to be as good as those players, but can he find a career path similar to Jon Runyan Jr., a guy the Packers took in the sixth round who became a solid starter for them before securing a lucrative contract with the New York Giants in free agency?

That's for down the road.

For now, Campbell has to prove he belongs and can play both sides on the interior, as versatility is a must for backup offensive linemen.

If he can prove to be capable of moving around on the offensive line, his rookie season is a success.

EDGE Max Llewellyn

As a seventh-round pick, making the roster out of training camp is a success for someone like Llewellyn. The path to that likely comes on special teams.

Anything he gives the Dolphins on defense is likely a bonus. If he makes the team and becomes a contributor on special teams, the Dolphins will have used their assets well by finding a contributor in any phase as a seventh-round pick.

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This story was originally published May 3, 2026 at 10:00 AM.