A look at Dolphins’ guard options in first three rounds and feedback on all of them
By signing just one clear-cut starting guard in free agency, the Dolphins have left themselves needing another one, unless they turn back to beleaguered Liam Eichenberg, who was re-signed.
At least a dozen guards — or tackles who can play guard — are projected for the first three rounds of April’s NFL Draft, when Miami is slated to pick 13th, 48th and 98th.
Some feedback on first-three-round options in the interior line:
▪ Missouri’s Armand Membou: It would be very surprising if he slips to 13th. His stock has risen, and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. predicts he will be gone before the Dolphins pick 13th. He played primarily right tackle in college (25 starts over the past two seasons) and allowed just one sack last season.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said NFL teams should keep him at tackle because of the upside there, adding he’s a “young, talented prospect whose lack of NFL-tackle size will test teams’ willingness to make exceptions to their standards… Membou’s potential impact at a premium position should keep him at tackle, but he has outstanding potential regardless.”
“He made a massive leap as a junior, giving up only one sack and shutting down many of the SEC’s best pass rushers,” ESPN’s Jordan Reid said, mocking him 10th overall.
▪ LSU’s Will Campbell Jr.: He has gone from Kiper’s choice for the Dolphins in February to a potential top-five pick, one not expected to drop to 13. He was a tackle in college, but he has short arms (by NFL offensive line standards), and several evaluators believe he could transition to guard.
Kiper and Reid project him to Miami at 13. “He’s a polished technician with plenty of physicality,” Reid said. “While he’d be a good tackle, he has the potential to be an A-level interior starter.”
He started 38 games at left tackle during the past three seasons, and Zierlein said he “has elements of high risk, high reward in his game.”
He allowed two sacks and 18 pressures in 558 pass blocking snaps last season.
▪ Alabama’s Tyler Booker: Kiper calls him the best pure guard in the draft, a road-grader in the run game. Most mocks have him going anywhere from 15 to the early second round.
ESPN’s Reid slots Booker 18th and calls him “one of the cleanest evaluations of the 2025 class. He’s a steady pass protector, and his physical demeanor makes his run blocking overwhelming at the point of attack. He’s a guard-only prospect, so some teams have Booker as a mid-to-late Round 1 pick due to lack of positional versatility and his gap-scheme-only fit. But I have a hard time seeing him last beyond the top 20.”
Booker, who started 25 games at left guard during the past three seasons, has “elite physical traits,” Zierlein said, projecting him to be “a good starter for a downhill, power-based attack.”
He’s not the best scheme fit for Miami, but his ability to move defenders in the run game cannot be overlooked for a team that needs that. And beyond his elite run blocking, he permitted no sacks and just 10 pressures in 395 pass blocking snaps last season.
▪ Texas’ Kelvin Banks Jr.: Some believe he will be there at 13; others say he won’t. Like Campbell and Membou, he’s a tackle who could play guard. And he will warrant serious consideration if available 13.
Reid mocks him 25th, adding that Banks “is a physical run blocker who plows open run lanes with ease and is heavily reliant on his traits in pass protection to maintain his positioning when mirroring rushers.”
He started 27 games at left tackle during the past three seasons, and Zierlein said Banks “will come into the league as an early starter, but his run blocking is more pro-ready than his pass protection. He needs to improve his anchor and hand placement, but he should become a longtime NFL starter at either tackle or guard.”
He yielded just one sack and 10 pressures in 538 pass-blocking snaps last season.
▪ North Dakota State center/guard Gray Zabel: He’s widely projected as a mid-to-late first round pick, with some projecting him early in the second. He would make sense for Miami if the Dolphins traded down a bit in the first round.
Reid called Zabel “a rock-solid blocker who has the ability to play all five spots. He projects best at center, but he would likely start his career at right guard.”
Zierlein said: “Zabel has an NFL frame with room for additional mass and possesses a good starting point in terms of his play strength.” But like with LSU’s Campbell, short arms are the concern with Zabel.
▪ Ohio State guard/tackle Donovan Jackson:
Last year, Jackson started five games at left guard for the national champs, then nine at left tackle when he replaced injured starter Josh Simmons, who’s also expected to be drafted in the first two rounds.
Reid projects him 39th, adding that his “draft stock skyrocketed since shifting from guard to tackle in the middle of last season.”
NFL.com’s Zierlein said Jackson “has the measurables, power and movement for any scheme as a starting guard.”
He permitted two sacks and 19 pressures in 422 pass-blocking chances in 2024.
▪ Arizona guard/tackle Jonah Savaiinaea:
ESPN’s Field Yates mocks him to Miami at 48th, noting “Savaiinaea played both tackle spots and guard in college, and he showed an excellent combination of size [6-4, 324 pounds] and quick feet.”
He started 15 games at right guard during his first two seasons but started only at tackle last season (five at left, six at right). He yielded four sacks and 15 pressures in 478 pass-blocking snaps last season.
Zierlein said “Savaiinaea’s size works to his advantage and he could become a serviceable starting guard in time.”
▪ Texas’ Cameron Williams: He started 15 games at right tackle and could stick there, though some scouts say he could play guard. He wasn’t good enough in pass protection last season, permitting five sacks and 26 pressures in 561 pass blocking chances.
“Williams’ blend of desirable physical traits but subpar bend and foot quickness make him a tougher pro projection,” Zierleis said. “Experience should bring out his upside, but his ceiling could be an average starting right tackle.”
NFL.com’s Chad Reuter has him going 59th.
▪ Purdue’s Marcus Mbow: He started 20 games at right guard in 2022 and 2023 and 12 at right tackle last season. The negative: He permitted too many pressures last season (25), along with three sacks, in 325 pass-blocking snaps.
NFL.com’s Reuter has him going with the first pick of the third round.
His athleticism would allow him to be a potentially good fit in Miami’s zone blocking scheme.
Zierlein said “what Mbow lacks in desired size and mass, he makes up for with athleticism, hustle and elite instincts. He is likely to head back home to guard. Mbow’s smarts and athleticism should help upgrade an offensive line-needy team that utilizes a move-blocking scheme.”
▪ Georgia’s Tate Ratledge: Dolphins GM Chris Grier generally loves Georgia players, and Ratledge could be an option at 98 if he lasts that long. Reuter projects him 80th.
He started 36 games at right guard during the past three seasons, and Zierlein said he has “a relatively safe floor” and says “Ratledge’s mentality and toughness should help him become a solid starter fairly quickly.”
He permitted one sack and seven pressures in 311 pass-blocking chances last season.
▪ Georgia’s Dylan Fairchild: Like his teammate Ratledge, he projects for the third or fourth rounds. He started 24 games at left guard during the past two seasons and was second-team All American last season.
Fairchild allowed only one sack and nine pressures in 536 pass-blocking snaps.
Zierlein said he “will offer more with his pass protection than his run blocking.... Fairchild could go in the middle rounds and eventually become a starter.”
Potential fourth-round options including a few of the aforementioned, also include West Virginia’s Wyatt Milum, LSU’s Emery Jones Jr., Iowa’s Connor Colby, Oregon State’s Joshua Gray and UM’s Jalen Rivers.
Reuter has Rivers going 119th; he’s expected to play guard instead of tackle in the NFL after playing both at Miami.
▪ The Dolphins select 116th and 135th in the fourth round, after selecting 98th with their compensatory pick in the third round.
This story was originally published April 18, 2025 at 9:12 AM.
