Day 2 is now in the books, and the Miami Dolphins selected four players last night: pick 43 in the 2nd round and picks 75, 87, and 94 in the 3rd round. They addressed a couple of needs with these picks, so let’s get to know all of these players, as well as my general thoughts on the picks, starting with the Fins’ round 2 selection.
Miami Dolphins Day 2 Round-up
Pick 43: Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech
With how the board fell, I felt like the Dolphins could not go wrong at pick 43, and they opted to pair one Texas Tech linebacker with another. Jacob Rodriguez had a winding road to get to the position he is in now. Coming out of Wichita Falls Rider in Wichita Falls, Texas, Rodriguez was actually a 3-star recruit at quarterback/athlete. He went to the University of Virginia and found himself in a reserve Taysom Hill-esque role. He then transferred to Lubbock as a walk-on for his sophomore season, where he transitioned to defense full-time. Ironically, his only collegiate throw was in his redshirt senior season: he threw an interception. But hey! He more than made up for that defensively.
College Overview/Draft Process
In 2024, Rodriguez was first-team All-Big 12 with 127 total tackles, 10.5 TFLs, 1 INT, and 3 forced fumbles. He decided that those numbers weren’t good enough and improved on all of these for his redshirt senior season. As a Red Raider team captain, Rodriguez recorded 128 total tackles, 11 TFLs, 4 INTs, and 7 FFs (one of which he returned for a touchdown), which led the FBS. He also tacked on two rushing touchdowns in two attempts. Not only did he receive first-team All-Big 12 for a second consecutive season, but he also earned first-team All-American honors and won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (nation’s top defender), Lombardi Award (nation’s top lineman), Bednarik Award (nation’s top defender), and Butkus Award (nation’s top LB). Oh yeah, and he was a finalist for the Walter Camp Award (the nation’s top player) and a semi-finalist for the Heisman Trophy.
Rodriguez started this draft process off well with a very solid Senior Bowl. He didn’t participate in the game, but his work in the drills over the week was very impressive. After that, he went on to have a good NFL combine. He was a tad undersized at 6’1 3/8″ and 231 lbs, but he showed fantastic speed, explosiveness, and agility, posting a 9.61 RAS score (this seems to be the common denominator for the Fins’ picks).
My Thoughts
I love this pick from a value standpoint. Rodriguez is, in my opinion, the 2nd-best true linebacker in this class, and we took him 10 picks into the 2nd round. It’s not every day you can get a defensive player who finished 5th in Heisman voting, especially in the 2nd round. He is an athlete who has also shown instincts at the linebacker position beyond his years. Rodriguez should slot in nicely in the linebacker room from day 1, and while linebacker wasn’t the biggest need here, the 23-year-old Rodriguez will be a foundational piece of this defense, and Dolphins fans hope that he follows in the footsteps of Texas Tech and Miami Dolphins great Zach Thomas.
Pick 75: Caleb Douglas, WR, Texas Tech
Another Red Raider! The Dolphins needed size at receiver, and they got a receiver with a prototype X receiver build here. It was higher than expected for Douglas, but he does check some boxes expected from a sizable wide receiver. The Missouri City, Texas native was a three-star prospect coming out of Fort Bend Hightower High School after winning Texas District 10-5A-I Co-Offensive MVP as a senior, thanks to his 52 receptions and 1065 receiving yards.
College Overview/Draft Process
Douglas initially became a Florida Gator, but after very sparse playing time in his first two seasons, he, like Rodriguez, transferred back to his home state of Texas. In his two seasons in Lubbock, “Payday” Douglas recorded back-to-back seasons of 800+ receiving yards and 6+ receiving touchdowns, earning second-team All-Big 12 last season. Surprise, surprise, Douglas has an RAS score north of 9, thanks to his 6’3 1/2″, 206 lbs frame, 4.39 40-yard dash, and the third biggest wingspan among wide receivers. The traits are clearly there, and Douglas is already the tallest receiver in the Miami Dolphins receiving room, which is bereft of size. However, Douglas did struggle with drops in college, finishing with 6 in his final season, and he showed a pretty poor vertical for his size, so he might not fit the mold of a big-bodied contested-catch specialist, but athletic traits are exciting, regardless.
My Thoughts
As I mentioned in my Day 1 article yesterday, the Dolphins need size at wide receiver, so I’m okay with the process of taking a very traits-based X receiver with solid production in the BIG 12, especially after Malachi Fields was taken right before them by the Giants. I’m a bit skeptical that this was the best prospect that fit that mold at 75, especially with the Fins having two more picks in the third round, but Jon-Eric Sullivan has stated that they are looking for athletes with good production, and Douglas fits that mold. He should at least contribute from day 1 and compete to be a starting outside receiver.
Pick 87: Will Kacmarek, TE, Ohio State
Will Kacmarek was the second Ohio State tight end to be selected on day 2 behind the more receiving-inclined Max Klare. Initially a 2-star defensive line recruit out of Mary Institute & St. Louis Country Day, the St. Louis, Missouri native committed to Ohio after a senior season with 46 tackles, 7 TFLs, and, on the offensive side, 16 receptions, 217 yards, and 2 receiving touchdowns. He was a three-sport athlete, also playing varsity basketball and lacrosse.
College Overview/Draft Process
After his redshirt season at Ohio, Kacmarek transitioned to tight end full-time and had solid production there for a block-first tight end, posting at least 240 receiving yards in back-to-back seasons. He transferred to Ohio State in 2024 and played in 26 games over the next two seasons. Despite only posting 15 receptions, 168 receiving yards, and 2 touchdowns last season for the Buckeyes, Kacmarek was an honorable mention All-Big Ten purely off his blocking. He’s got decent athleticism for his good size at 6’5 5/8″ and 261 lbs and fits in as a “sixth offensive lineman” kind of tight end that the Dolphins don’t really have at the moment. With teams selecting plenty of tight ends on day 2, the Dolphins struck while the iron was hot to select the best blocking tight end in the class.
My Thoughts
The Miami Dolphins staff has sung the praises of returning tight end Greg Dulcich, but he’s not too much of a blocker, so taking a block-first tight end to pair with him in 2-tight-end sets makes sense to me. Kacmarek’s draft projection was all over the place because he’s not a “sexy” tight end prospect, but it’s clear that the Fins value his blocking ability and potentially even see some better receiving upside. He was never asked to be too much of a receiving threat at Ohio State thanks to Max Klare and their dangerous receivers, so the potential could be untapped there. After losing fullback Alec Ingold and tight end Julian Hill this offseason, Kacmarek can slide in that Julian Hill role with more sound blocking or even play more of an H-back as well. It’s not flashy, but Kacmarek should be able to contribute early on.
Pick 94: Chris Bell, WR, Louisville
The Miami Dolphins double up on wide receivers in the third round here with Chris Bell. Bell was more of a consensus Day 2 pick than Caleb Douglas, but he slipped down the board here due to injury concerns. Coming out of Greenville Christian in Yazoo City, Mississippi, Chris Bell committed to Louisville as a 3-star recruit and stuck around there for the next four years.
College Overview/Draft Process
As a Cardinal, Bell rose up the depth chart and boosted his production every year, going from 407 receiving yards as a sophomore to 737 as a junior to 917 and First-Team All-ACC as a senior. Bell utilized his physicality and 6’1 5/8″, 222 lbs frame to generate offense for Louisville. He’s not quick per se, and he can still improve his route running, but he has surprisingly fast top speed for a player at his size. His good size-speed combo lends itself well to run-after-catch opportunities as well. The biggest issue, however, is the torn ACL he suffered late last season, which took him out of the NFL Combine. Banking on a player to come back strongly from a torn ACL is one thing; it’s another thing entirely to draft a player knowing that he most likely won’t play until at least later on into the 2026 regular season.
My Thoughts
I know the injury is concerning, but Bell would have gotten late 1st-round hype if he were healthy, so this is good value near the end of the 3rd round. I really wouldn’t have batted an eye at either receiver pick had the selections been flipped (Bell at 75, Douglas at 94). Regardless, Bell will need time to recover from his torn ACL from this season, but with the Dolphins having plenty of receivers on expiring contracts, Miami should give Bell all the time in the world to get back to full strength. And if he does get back to 100%, Bell could be a major steal here at pick 94.
Dawn of the Final Day
It was good to see the Dolphins address some of their remaining needs here. Pairing a great linebacker prospect in Jacob Rodriguez (who also comes with some Zach Thomas nostalgia) with All-Pro linebacker Jordyn Brooks really locks down the middle linebacker position for the foreseeable future. Taking two swings at a receiver with size upside at the very least could yield some good results if Douglas can improve consistency and Bell can recover well, and taking a block-first tight end to pair with our receiving-first tight end in Greg Dulcich adds 12 personnel flexibility to the offense.
For Day 3, if Jermod McCoy continues to fall, I would like to see the Fins take him in the 4th round. If he’s selected beforehand, there are still some solid defensive back prospects that fell out of Day 2, so I would like to see Miami do something along those lines. A more slot-oriented receiver would also be a great fit on day 3, and there are still a couple of day 2-caliber ones on the board. Besides that, it all just comes down to filling the team up with players that GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley believe are day 1 contributors.
