Caleb Douglas pretty much doesn’t have a choice.
He’s going to have to make plays for the Miami Dolphins as a rookie wide receiver. Who else is going to do it?
The Dolphins drafted Douglas in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft to help replenish a group that lost Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill this offseason.
They also drafted Chris Bell in the third round and then Kevin Coleman Jr. in the fifth, so this is quite the young group.
The receiver room is led, if you can call it that, by slot guy Malik Washington, who is the one guy in the building who did some producing from the receiver position last season.
Still, it feels like Douglas is the one who has generated the most buzz all summer. With the Dolphins’ season opener coming up on Sunday in Las Vegas against the Raiders, there will be eyes on Douglas to see if he can live up to the hype.
ESPN Makes Caleb Douglas Prediction
The latest reason to be excited about Douglas came from ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler, who wrote this on Thursday:
“Let’s start with Dolphins rookie receiver Caleb Douglas. The transitional nature of Miami’s roster and lack of receiver depth are two big reasons, but Douglas has been highly impressive behind the scenes since being drafted in the third round. They also selected Chris Bell, a first-round talent whose profile suffered because of a torn ACL, in Round 3. Both will be factors for Miami’s offense, which could be better than people think. The Dolphins have the offensive line talent to run the ball with star running back De’Von Achane. The team says it hopes that opens the passing game for its young receivers.”
Fowler was answering a question about which player he believes will “come out of nowhere in Week 1” and then make an impact for the entire season. While he and fellow insider Dan Graziano went back and forth with more names, Douglas was the first guy named in the entire section.
Douglas and Bell are going to start to open the season, too, which ensures them ample opportunity to make plays for quarterback Malik Willis.
“We believe those guys deserve to start, and we’re gonna start them,” Hafley told reporters earlier this week.
What To Know About Caleb Douglas
Douglas certainly looks the part of an NFL wide receiver. He’s an athletic 6-foot-3 receiver originally from the state of Texas.
He began his college career at Florida before transferring to Texas Tech, and the Dolphins made him the 75th pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
He had 60 catches for 877 yards in 2024 and then 54 catches for 846 yards in 2025, totaling 13 touchdowns across his two seasons in the Red Raiders’ passing attack.
At the NFL Combine, Douglas came in with a 6-foot-8 wingspan and ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash. That’s an incredible combination that, if combined with solid fundamentals at technical skills at the wide receiver position, could make Douglas an NFL standout from very early on in his career.
ESPN’s Caleb Douglas Claim Is Great News for Dolphins