The Miami Dolphins will be one of the more active members of the early chapters of this year’s 2026 NFL Draft.

Miami is currently scheduled to pick twice on Thursday night — once at No. 11 overall and then again at No. 30 overall thanks to the Jaylen Waddle trade. Then, early on Friday, Miami is scheduled to make another selection at No. 43 overall. It’s a powerful collection of picks for a team that needs to hit on them. But the picks are spread out enough that runs at positions will ultimately help make Miami’s decisions for them. Less than a month away from the start of the draft, here are three storylines that will help define Miami’s early picks.

Three 2026 NFL Draft storylines that will help define the Miami Dolphins’ early haul

How early does the offensive line run happen?

What happens if the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns, and someone else all choose to go offensive line early in the top-10? That would presumably take Miami’s Francis Mauigoa and several other gifted blockers off the board. It would amplify the pressure on Miami to go after an offensive lineman early — at least by pick No. 43 overall. It’s a dangerous game to draft for need and I’m not saying that Miami should. But it should stay in the back of their mind that in the event of “ties”, going to a more important position group or potentially gauging scarcity of a position’s available “starters” from the jump could have a powerful pull. If we get three OL in the top-10, it could nudge Miami to act by pick no. 30 to avoid being left out to dry…or else say “forget it” altogether and committed to mid-round bets with less assurances.

On the other hand, if we only get one offensive lineman early, it could set the stage for the Dolphins to beef up early while the getting is good.

Does Caleb Downs or Rueben Bain Jr. actually slide out of the top-10 picks?

I have to imagine the conversation will be pretty short for the Dolphins if either Caleb Downs or Rueben Bain Jr. makes it to the Dolphins’ pick slot at No. 11 overall. Bain, in particular, is a local product and a culture-setting who plays a premiere position. And it’s a position of need for Miami, too.

You can apply all of the above to Caleb Downs besides the “primary position” part. And that, conveniently enough, seems to have at least one guy who will be calling the draft believing that Downs is likely to go outside the top-10 picks. Seriously — what players would need to be on the board for you to preempt taking either? Mauigoa as a long-term tackle and short-term starter inside? LB Sonny Styles? Either way, the list is short.

How serious are the Dolphins about building this thing from the inside-out?

The team’s stated philosophy is to build this thing from the inside-out. Is that still true if a guard like Penn State’s Olaivavega Ioane and LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane are the two best players available? What if the team’s top wide receiver is there while Miami desperately needs top targets for quarterback Malik Willis?

It’s one thing to talk the talk. It’s another to walk the walk. I anticipate this group will keep walking — as everything they’ve talked about thus far has been followed through with. Maybe it won’t come at pick No. 11, but I do suspect that we’ll leave this draft feeling better about the available talent on the line of scrimmage. That likely means investments (multiple) in the top-100.