Dolphins first round trade with Cowboys almost didn’t happen
ESPN draft documentary details how Dolphins and Cowboys trade came down to the wire.
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 24: Jon-Eric Sullivan of the Miami Dolphins speaks during a press conference at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine on February 24, 2026 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images) | Getty Images The Miami Dolphins and the Dallas Cowboys made a trade in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft that saw Dallas give up two fifth round selections in order to move up one spot so they could select Ohio State safety Caleb Downs at pick #11. Miami would take Alabama offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor one pick later.
Sounds simple enough, right? Well, if you watched ESPN’s draft documentary The Pick Is In , you saw that the execution of the trade was far more dramatic than we first realized. Cowboys’ co-owner and director of player personnel, Stephen Jones, and new Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan didn’t agree to the compensation Miami would receive until there was 10 seconds left on Miami’s allotted time to pick.
Jones quickly called the league to inform them of the Downs selection so they wouldn’t be passed in draft order. Of course, Sullivan has already stated that Proctor was the team’s pick no matter who was on the board, so it’s unlikely that he would have changed his mind in order to spite the team he just traded with, but ESPN’s documentary did an exceptional job at capturing the excitement being in a draft day war room entails nonetheless. The #Cowboys had less than ten seconds left when they officially traded up and submitted the pick for Caleb Downs.
Went down to the wire — a great inside look. (via ESPNs The Pick is In) pic. twitter.