During his press conference on Wednesday, Chris Grier mentioned that multiple teams had reached out about trading away their late first-round draft picks with the Dolphins. After forfeiting their own first-round pick and trading away another first midseason for outside linebacker Bradley Chubb, this would provide Miami an opportunity to get back into day one of the draft. But what kind of compensation would Miami need to give up, and what kind of player would they move up for?

Predicting what a realistic offer would tend to be tricky. Later selections in the first round do not command the same extreme prices as those in the top 10, but they are still far from cheap, and Miami does not have many picks nor particularly valuable ones, to begin with, for trade. And with just four 2022 picks at the moment, the Dolphins likely are not interested in giving up even more picks to get into round one. However, they could offer future draft picks as part of a package. A future first-round selection plus either their first or second-round choices this year should be more than enough depending on where in the first Miami would have the chance to move into.

If Miami does climb into the first, they will have the chance at getting a truly premium prospect onto their roster. They could use this spot to fill a weak point, like drafting a top-five-ranked offensive tackle, or they could take the best player available. Every year, a few top talents slide far past where they were projected to go, and this year will be no different. This year’s class has a surplus of star prospects at cornerback and defensive line. Adding the best defender available certainly would not be a far-fetched idea considering the struggle Miami had with depth on defense last season. Texas running back Bijan Robinson is another possible player that could slide far, especially due to the recent trend against drafting running backs too highly. Whichever direction the front office goes, one can expect them to go for a player who can play a key role right out of the gate as a rookie. 

There is no guarantee that Miami will make a move up this year. The asking price could be too high, or the Dolphins may not see the value in the players who fall into the back half of the first. But if Chris Grier is openly talking about the idea of a trade, it signals that he is interested, at least in principle. Perhaps Dolphins fans will be in for an exciting surprise this Thursday night.Â