\u201cI\u2019ve been having this ranking on the front of my home screen since this pre-draft started,\u201d Bell said, referring to a \u201ccollege ranking of all the receivers\u201d that included him \u201ckind of at the bottom of the list.\u201d<\/p>\n
Added Bell: \u201cIt\u2019s going to be in my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bell wouldn\u2019t be the first player to use his draft position as fuel. There were 16 receivers taken before the Detroit Lions\u2019 Amon-Ra St. Brown during the 2021 NFL Draft \u2014 and the four-time Pro Bowler remembers every one of them<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI actually still think about it,\u201d the wideout said on \u201cNFL Total Access\u201d with Mike Yam in 2023. \u201cI actually have my goals written down in my notebook. What I want to achieve every year. So, what I want to achieve this year going into the season, my personal goals, and then right below that I have the 16 receivers written down, where they went to college right below that. And so, I read that whole list three times before I go to practice every day. It\u2019s something I\u2019ll never forget.\u201d<\/p>\n In Bell\u2019s case, there were 17 receivers taken ahead of him \u2014 all with varying degrees of skill level. One such receiver happens to be Texas Tech\u2019s Caleb Douglas, whom the Dolphins took 75th overall, 19 spots ahead of Bell. Jon-Eric Sullivan hopes the pair can form a competitive bond that pushes each to be great.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s also a mutual respect and a bond that happens with young players as they go through the rigors of the NFL, especially within their first year, and they do it together,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cIt\u2019s a brotherhood. You hear players all the time talk about family, brotherhood. I would foresee that developing between those two. They\u2019re both good kids, and they\u2019re both competitors, but I think they\u2019ll have a mutual respect for each other and appreciation for each other.\u201d<\/p>\n At 6-foot-2-inch, 222 pounds, Bell has a strong build and excels after the catch thanks to his rare acceleration for a player of his size, which has even drawn comparisons<\/a> to three-time Pro Bowler A.J. Brown.<\/p>\n Bell started three of his four years at Louisville, however, it was until the 2024 season that he began to break out when he finished with 43 catches for 737 yards and four touchdowns. As a senior, Bell had 72 catches for 917 yards receiving and six touchdowns through 11 games prior to suffering the injury against SMU. His per game average of 83.4 receiving yards ranked second in the ACC.<\/p>\n \u201cMost would tell you if he wouldn\u2019t have got injured, he\u2019s probably not sitting there anywhere close to where we got him,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cThe talent is very high. The upside is very high. And it\u2019s a long-term investment, looking down the road, we\u2019ve got a really good one.\u201d<\/p>\n Dolphins fans who also support the Hurricanes might remember him from his nine-catch, 136-yard and two touchdown performance in the Cardinal\u2019s 24-21 upset of UM. That matchup, however, was actually the final of three consecutive games<\/a> in which the star wideout recorded at least nine catches, 100 yards through the air and a touchdown.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were No. 2 in college football around the time,\u201d Bell said of what led to his dominant performance against the Canes. \u201cI feel like that\u2019s just something that I like to go up against. We were ranked low, and I just wanted to prove to everybody that I am who I say I am. I just wanted to shock the world and that\u2019s what we did as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s still unclear when Bell will be ready for the season. Video of him running on a treadmill began to circulate prior to the draft alongside reports that he was \u201cahead of schedule\u201d in his rehab<\/a>. Whenever he does come back, however, the Dolphins could certainly have one of their wide receivers of the future.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to write that on my mirror and every day I wake up, I\u2019m going to see it,\u201d Bell said of the receivers taken before him. \u201cI\u2019m going to tell myself, \u2018This is how many guys they took before you. This is how long it took you to get drafted.\u2019 I\u2019m going to show everybody, and I\u2019m going to prove to everybody, like I said, I am who I say I am.\u201d<\/p>\n This story was originally published April 27, 2026 at 12:53 PM.<\/p>\n
![\"Profile](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/PROFILE.jpg\")