Just imagine, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell walking to the podium on April 26 at about 3:10 p.m., and he says, "With the first pick of the draft the Dolphins ..." Tick. Tick. Tick. ... Silence.

"The Dolphins pass and the Rams are now on the clock," Goodell continues.

OK, it's highly unlikely that the Dolphins will pass on the overall first draft pick, but what if?

In fact, it's never been done before, intentionally that is. The Vikings inadvertently dropped from No. 7 to No. 9 in the 2003 draft when a trade discussion with the Ravens caused their time to elapse.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello confirmed that it is a legal maneuver, and that any team can pass on their pick without any penalty. He also said that team could then jump in front of any team that has a later pick.

Why would the Dolphins ever contemplate such an outlandish maneuver? Simple. They're a 1-15 team with more holes to fill than a Manhattan street.

"We need linebackers, we need secondary players, we need receivers, we need linemen. We need a bunch of things right now," coach Tony Sparano said recently.

Also, the Dolphins have the top pick of a draft with no clear-cut difference-maker who would be worth a potential $60 million contract, including a signing bonus around $35 million. The consensus top six players of the draft who have been invited to the proceedings at Radio City Music Hall in New York are: Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan, Michigan tackle Jake Long, Virginia defensive end Chris Long, LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, Arkansas running back Darren McFadden and Ohio State linebacker Vernon Gholston.

All have upsides and downsides.

"I wouldn't think it would be an intelligent move, no," said former Packers General Manager Ron Wolf, a friend of Dolphins vice president of football operations Bill Parcells. "I don't know why anybody would do that.

"It puts a negative spin on your organization. You're trying to be positive. Miami has the first pick. They've got a whole new regime there. ... The object is to get a good player so that you can compete and be representative in a very short period or someone else will be sitting in your chair."

If the Dolphins purposely slid to No. 4, they could save approximately $12 million in guaranteed cash, based on what the Raiders gave quarterback JaMarcus Russell at No. 1 last year vs. what the fourth pick — defensive end Gaines Adams — received.

"Goodell would shove his foot up the butts of (GM) Jeff Ireland and Bill Parcells (if that happened)," said an agent who wished to remain anonymous. "It's absolutely atrocious. It makes a mockery of the draft process and of the collective-bargaining agreement. ... I think it's beyond realistic, and I'd advise against any team doing it. If it was my client they took at No. 5, I would want first overall pick money or my kid's not reporting to training camp."

The team with the top pick is permitted to sign a player before the draft, and the Dolphins have already begun negotiations with the agents of Jake Long and Gholston. So they do appear to be honing in on their selection.

If the Dolphins did shock the NFL establishment by taking a pass, the league would mandate that teams forfeit the pick if they didn't use it.

"It would be detrimental to the league and force them to change the rule," said retired NFL executive Tom Braatz. "The first pick has always been so valuable that everybody tries to trade up. This is the first year nobody wants it."

Such a move could push the NFL and NFLPA to amend a rookie scale that creates instant millionaires out of untested players while teams cut established veterans so they could get under the salary cap.

Parcells has had the top pick twice before. In 1993, he was coaching the Patriots and selected quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who guided New England to a Super Bowl berth four years later. In 1997 with the Jets, Parcells traded down twice from No. 1 to 6 to 8 and took linebacker James Farrior, who didn't blossom until he was with the Steelers. The Rams ended up with future Hall of Fame tackle Orlando Pace at No. 1.

"There's no value in doing that," said agent Leigh Steinberg, who has represented eight No. 1 picks. "The Chargers in 2004 made a tremendous trade, getting rid of a player they didn't want in (No. 1) Eli Manning for (No. 4) Philip Rivers, and he got a bundle for it. There still could be somebody who covets Bill's place ..."

Because of the signing bonus, finding a suitable trade partner for the pick or passing on it would be as realistic as watching defensive end Jason Taylor dance on television in a pink tutu.

Oops.

"It's not going to happen," agent David Cantor said. "The Dolphins owe it to their fans to have a decisive, rock-solid 100 percent consensus on a player to become the face of this franchise, and that's what they're going to do."