Senior Bowl standout emerges as an obvious answer to scratch multiple itches for the Dolphins without compromising their biggest goal

A Senior Bowl standout could be a match made in heaven for the 2026 Miami Dolphins.

Kyle Crabbs — NFL National Writer
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Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Davison Igbinosun (1) celebrates an interception wiht defensive end Eddrick Houston (96) during the first half of the Big Ten Conference championship game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 6, 2025. © Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

MOBILE, AL — There are no shortage of needs for the 2026 Miami Dolphins roster.

Miami has acknowledged, through new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley, that the goal is to build a team from the inside-out. They want to control the trenches and the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball first and foremost. It’s the kind of rhetoric Dolphins fans have been pleading to hear. And now it’s here. But Miami does have needs on the perimeter as well — and one emergent prospect at the 2026 Senior Bowl could be the scratch to that itch without compromising Miami’s stated goals up front.

Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun could be a perfect fit for Jeff Hafley’s Dolphins defense

Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Davison Igbinosun (1) celebrates an interception with defensive end Eddrick Houston (96) during the first half of the Big Ten Conference championship game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 6, 2025.© Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Miami owns a pick at No. 11 overall that probably won’t go to a Senior Bowl participant. And, ideally, that investment could come up front, where Miami has plenty of work to do to own the line of scrimmage in the way they desire. But beyond that Miami has four picks on Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft — and it may be time for us to start frequently associating Ohio State cornerback Davison Igbinosun with the team as an option.

Stick with me. I know the scar tissue that comes with a cornerback in the draft with a last name that starts with “Igbo—” for Dolphins fans. This is not, however, Noah Igbinoghene. Igbinosun is a long, physical corner with more than 2,800 career snaps in college across one season at Ole Miss and the last three at Ohio State. He cleaned up his play in 2025, cutting his penalties from 16 to five, while also posting a career-best passer rating allowed of 42.6 in 2025.

The Ohio State cornerback has no connection with Hafley, who was the Buckeyes co-defensive coordinator in 2019, but he does play a brand of physical football on the edge that Hafley has pointed to in the past as enjoying. Cornerbacks who can disrupt the timing of routes can help the pass rush close to the quarterback — it’s a concept Miami fans have experienced all-too-often in recent years against their own offense. But now Miami could be hunting players to bring this concept to life on defense.

Igbinosun, who measured in at the 2026 Panini Senior Bowl at 6-foot-2, 192 pounds, and 32.88″ arms, is showing that disruptiveness thus far this week. Igbinosun has showed length at the catch point in both team periods and one-on-one sessions.

Could he be a viable option with Miami’s second-round draft choice at No. 43 overall? It would be a similar draft range to CB JuJu Brents, the Dolphins waiver claim from this past season who flashed in two starts before a season-ending injury. Brents was also a long, physical Senior Bowl standout when he came through the draft process in 2023.

The obvious appeal about a fit for Miami and Igbinosun could be boiled down to this:

  • He’s not expected to command a first-round pick, keeping Miami free to invest in the line of scrimmage with their first selection
  • He plays a position of obvious need that Miami has little to no long-term answers at
  • He plays a position that is close to home for Hafley, a long-time defensive backs coach
  • He plays with the kind of disruptiveness in the contact window that Hafley has talked about in the past
  • He is a four-year starter in college and has a meaningful body of work of staying healthy
  • He plays the game with the competitive edge that Hafley and Sullivan have stated they’re looking for

That’s a lot of itches scratched at once. So as Igbinosun continues to compete throughout the course of this pre-draft process, keep an eye out. If he continues to answer the bell, he should only continue to become a more popular projection to Miami. That is, of course, unless he tests and interviews his way into the first-round of the 2026 NFL Draft.

There’s a lot of ball game left. Let’s see where he goes from here.

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