Offense 

The first thing that really stands out to me on this offense and really the roster as a whole is just how top heavy they are. Obviously with the contacts they have on their team you’re bound to be more top heavy when it comes to talent than not but man there are some spots on this team that are truly one injury away from being not just fine but poor when it comes to who they’ll be putting on the field. Where that stands out even more than any other position group on this offense is the OL room. Don’t get me wrong I love the additions of Jonah Savaiinaea (Arizona) and James Daniels this offseason. Even though there will be some question marks there for both of them (Savaiinaea simply just being an unknown as rookie and Daniels coming off an achilles injury last year) I do believe they’ll be pluses to the group they had last year but man after that it gets rough from a depth perspective and not mention there’s some “unknowns” as starters as well. Your current starting group (Patrick Paul, James Daniels, Aaron Brewer, Jonah Savaiinaea, Austin Jackson) really only has one maybe two for sure solid pieces in Brewer and depending on how you feel about Austin Jackson, him as well. I lean towards Savaiinaea being a really good G with T flexibility for them so in my opinion you have him and Brewer that will be solid for you and the rest are either fine (Austin Jackson) in my opinion or unknowns due to being young or coming off injury (Paul and Daniels). I think there’s a world where this team has a solid group on the field next year but if there’s one injury or one of these starters isn’t a solid starter for them they could be in a tough position. As depth they currently have Larry Borom, Liam Eichenberg, Jackson Carman, and Kion Smith with some UDFAs in there as well. Eichenberg and Borom in my opinion are serviceable but with the questions you have with your starting group two possibly “serviceable” guys just isn’t going to cut it in this league. 

To continue the theme of being thin at position you have to point to QB as well. While I like Tua and think he’s absolutely a starter in this league you’d be kidding yourself to guarantee he plays all 17 games next year and considering you have Zach Wilson and Quinn Ewers (Texas) as your backups currently you’re basically putting all of your chips in the middle of table on Tua staying healthy. Neither of these guys are players I look at and think they could step in and keep you competitive for a handful of weeks in case of injury, let alone win you games. You add in the fact you have a most likely below average OL group in front of Tua and it just worries me that they may throw this season away because they didn’t make it a priority to get someone that can back him up.

Now on a more positive note with this offense the weaponry is some of the best in the NFL. From WR and HB there’s not only top end talent like Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and De’Von Achane there’s also depth with guys like Malik Washington, Tahj Washington, Erik Ezukama, Jaylen Wright, and even Ollie Gordon II who may have had a down year in college but he’s still a talented promising young athlete with some real speed to add on too an already exceptionally speedy offense.

Defense 

This defense really does have a chance to have a really special front 7 that in my opinion could single handily win them games and well honestly, may have to. Having veterans along the front seven like Zach Sieler, Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb, Tyrel Dodson, and Jordan Brooks paired with young up incoming guys like Chop Robinson, Mohamed Kamara, Jordan Phillips (Maryland), Zeek Biggers (Georgia Tech), and especially Kenneth Grant (Michigan) you have all the tools to have a pass rush that will kill offenses and keep OCs up at night. If you can get these young guys up to speed and playing how I think they’re capable of and more than anything keeping these veterans on the field and off of IR it’ll be exactly that but there’s in all honestly a greater likelihood that doesn’t happen. While these rookies are exceptionally talented they’re also unrefined and raw in a lot of ways and guys like Phillips and Chubb haven’t been the pinnacle of health in recent years (Phillips 12 games in past 2 seasons, Chubb has only played 1 full season in the last 4 years, including missing all of last season) so there’s a real possibility we don’t see either of them play for the full year.

This secondary is looking more and more questionable, especially with the looming trade of Jalen Ramsey. If they go into the season, and it looks like they will, without Ramsey on the roster they’ll have a starting secondary with some combination of Kadar Kohou, Storm Duck, Cam Smith, Artie Burns, Jason Marshall Jr (Florida), Ifeatu Melifonwu, Ashtyn Davis, and Dante Trader Jr (Maryland). The only guys I really trust to be plus starter for them is Kohou in the slot and possibly Davis at S. There’s some guys like Smith, Trader Jr, Marshall Jr, and possibly Duck that have some real upside as starters it’s just a complete unknown right now for me and really has to be more of a wait and see situation. I just don’t love the likelihood of this secondary as whole being much more than a slightly below average group that counts on their front seven to win more times than not.

Overview 

• In all honestly I just don’t love this roster when you factor in how reliant they are on everyone staying healthy. Not only does that almost never happen in this league they have guys that they’re depending on being healthy that have a proven track record of being the complete opposite of that. In an absolutely perfect world I think this team is a wild card team that has a very explosive offense and elite pass rush that can take over games on the right day but in all reality I think this team ends up towards a top 10 to even 5 pick by the end of the year. I love HC Mike McDaniel as play caller and I think he is capable of being a solid HC in this league but I also think that plays out somewhere else at this point because the people they took chances on and how they’ve built this roster has really backfired on them and now they’re seeing the damages of that. This roster can be good through rose colored glasses but I just don’t see them being healthy enough or being able to be consistent enough to have a successful season. This is in my opinion heading towards them blowing it up and starting a true rebuild at the end of this year.

June 30, 2025 – Update 

After making the move that they HAD to make Jalen Ramsey is now gone and Minkah Fitzpatrick is back in Miami. While I thought Pittsburgh got the better end of the trade this was something that needed to be done so they could continue to reset this locker room and get a better culture in the building. This obviously leaves huge questions at CB but that was going to be an issue whether or not Ramsey was on the field. Minkah adds a great presence to this locker room and is certainly a fun and versatile piece that this Dolphins team needs on the back end. It ultimately comes down to how much Minkah can get back to the version of himself two years ago but considering this was a move everyone saw coming and because of that the Dolphins lost all leverage getting Minkah was a win for the Dolphins. Does this change the outlook for them? In my opinion no but if this regime can get this locker room right there’s still talent here and in a division full of unknowns, outside of the Bills, they could be in a better position now more than ever to be competitive in the AFC.