The Miami Dolphins won't find a slam-dunk franchise quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft with their first-round pick at 11th overall, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't invest in the position.
Quinn Ewers is a fine young passer already on the roster. The 2025 seventh-round pick showed enough promise to merit starting consideration for this coming season. However, Ewers isn't above getting some competition added to the QB room, especially with Tua Tagovailoa's impending departure.
It's becoming more doubtful by the day that Miami will be able to afford free-agent QB Malik Willis. New GM Jon-Eric Sullivan will have to settle for an older veteran backup in all likelihood.
But Sullivan and Fins head coach Jeff Hafley hail from Green Bay. They've said publicly that they plan to mirror the Packers' plans of (ideally) drafting a QB every year. There's one sleeper candidate who stands out above the rest in this year's class. His name is Taylen Green.
Arkansas QB Taylen Green should be squarely on the Miami Dolphins' 2026 NFL Draft radar
Taylen Green brought his legitimate 6'6", 229-pound frame with him to the Senior Bowl and made quite the impression in Mobile. One of the clear highlights was a viral practice deep ball to Notre Dame wide receiver Malachi Fields that encapsulates what Green is as a prospect:
Play of the day, courtesy of Notre Dame WR Malachi Fields.
— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) January 29, 2026
Good bet he is the top WR drafted from this year's Senior Bowl. pic.twitter.com/c4VoAU7e6w
Lots of keyboard warriors in the comments dissed Green for the inaccuracy of his throw due to unnecessarily complicated mechanics. Some of it's fair play. Some of it is, well, laughably misguided.
My point is, most humans on the planet could only dream of flicking their wrist, having their footwork be a mess, and still deliver a catchable ball from so far away with such ease.
Passing isn't really what makes Green such a tantalizing QB project. His blend of size and dual-threat playmaking with his legs is the big selling point.
The highlight-reel TD below was against Arkansas Pine Bluff in the 2024 season opener, but once you, reader, let that footage wash over you, peep some of the other long runs from Green's 2025 game log:
TAYLEN GREEN MADE EVERYBODY MISS 😳🔥@RazorbackFB #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/umA3EAhfgD
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) August 30, 2024
- 64 yards vs. Arkansas State
- 54 yards vs. Notre Dame
- 49 yards vs. Texas A&M
- 55 yards @ LSU
...So it's not like competition level really mattered. Green was often the best athlete on the field in any given game. He was playing for an outmatched SEC team, and really only had fellow NFL Draft prospect Mike Washington Jr. next to him in the backfield to lean on. Not a bunch of world beaters in the trenches to block for him. No surefire pro-caliber weapons on the perimeter, either.
Check out some of the numbers here from Senior Bowl executive director Drew Faibanich.
Top 5 Speeds of the Week from @ZebraTechnology @seniorbowl
— Drew Fabianich (@DfabeSB) February 3, 2026
1. Mike Washington Arkansas RB - 21.12
2. Barion Brown LSU WR - 20.87
3. Taylen Green Arkansas QB - 20.48
4. Jaydn Ott Oklahoma RB - 20.36
5, Ted Hurst Georgia State WR - 20.33@seniorbowl @OU_Football @LSUfootball…
A quarterback who hits approximately 20.5 mph on the GPS? At 6'6", 229 pounds? With a straight-up bazooka of an arm attached to his person? That'll do!
Even though Arkansas won only two games in 2025, it's not like Green was some scrub. In fact, he was excellent in the key area of intermediate passing (10-19 yards). Per PFF, Green's 121.9 NFL-converted passer rating on 90 such attempts was better than Fernando Mendoza's.
The Razorbacks lost six one-possession games with Green in the lineup. Half of those came against the likes of Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Texas A&M.
Arkansas didn't have the personnel to really capitalize on Green's ability to throw the ball deep. And of course, he needs some refinement in his mechanics to improve his short-range passing precision. But having that innate accuracy on intermediate throws suggests Green has some serious untapped potential.
If the Sullivan-Hafley tandem's Packers background is any indication, they'll lean a lot into an outside zone running game, heavy play-action usage, moving the launch point for the QB, and making life a bit easier with pure progression reads.
That sounds like just what Green needs to develop. No pressure on him to play right away. You could give him a package of "Wildcat" plays, but he could basically mirror the sit-and-learn approach that paid off so well for Malik Willis in Green Bay.
Willis was similarly raw and skilled to Green coming out of Liberty, only not anywhere near Green's size. I'm talking in terms of arm strength, pure upside, and athleticism.
The Packers had the perfect environment for Willis to grow. It's going to culminate in a legit starting opportunity and a big payday in 2026. Perhaps Sullivan and Hafley can facilitate a similar situation for Green in Miami.