This is one time of year when hoarding is to be commended, at least for the Miami Dolphins.
New general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan is a fan of stockpiling picks. The more ammo he has, the more likely he is to hit the target. He’s entering this NFL Draft with 11 picks, including seven in the top 100, but he has made it clear if any GM is interested in trading up, he’s open for business.
However, there’s a new complication this year that makes his plan more challenging.
In a move that didn’t get a ton of attention in December, the league decided teams will now have eight minutes to submit their first-round picks instead of 10. That may not sound like a major change until you consider what that entails for the two clubs trying to swing a deal while on the clock.
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First, of course, the GMs have to agree on terms. Then both clubs have to call the head table at the draft and provide the same parameters. Only after the NFL approves the trade can the new team use the pick on a player. Meanwhile, the NFL informs all teams and the league’s broadcast partners of the deal, followed by spreading the word to media and fans.
But: Trades do not reset the clock.
Naturally, any team initiating a trade is going to know who they’re targeting, but they still have to turn in their pick to the NFL within those eight minutes. Otherwise, the next team up is on the clock, and the team that just made the trade picks next.
Steelers GM Omar Khan said executives have discussed possible trades because of the time crunch when they’re on the clock.
“Naturally, we’ve been having more conversations to set parameters of what the value is if you move up to this spot or trade back,” Khan said, according to Front Office Sports. “There’s more conversation, but until we get there, I’m not sure how that’s going to go.”
The time change was suggested by commissioner Roger Goodell, who wasn’t a fan of first rounds dragging on for four hours. So imagine his reaction to what happened in 2007, when Round 1 took more than six hours. At that point, the league sliced the time between picks from 15 minutes to 10.
Sullivan admitted he’s no fan of chit-chat leading up to the draft, preferring conversations with “substance” to them.
“Hey, you want to go up? You want to go down?” Sullivan said. “Sure. Let’s talk on draft day.”
Dolphins unlikely to move up in draft but you never know
Chances are any such discussions will revolve around Miami moving back, but Sullivan can’t rule out a move up.
“If you walk in there Day 2 and all of a sudden there’s some players that you covet at the top, and you’re like, ‘Hey, maybe it makes sense to go burn a pick to get (player X),’ ” Sullivan said. “If something unlikely happened and a player that you didn’t expect to be there, those are conversations we’ll have. I’m not saying that I won’t do anything. Everything is on the table.”
Everything, that is, except pleasantries. No time for that, especially in the high-stakes first round. That’s where Sullivan could get the most value by trading down from his top two overall picks (11th and 30th).
Meanwhile, any GM looking for sympathy isn’t going to get it from Steelers coach Mike McCarthy.
“I only get 40 seconds to call a play,” he said. “We’ll be fine.”
In 2026, eight minutes is a luxury afforded only in the first round. Teams get seven minutes in Round 2, five minutes in Rounds 3-6 and four minutes in the lightning round (seven).
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: If Miami Dolphins want to trade down in NFL Draft, GM has to act fast
Reporting by Hal Habib, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
