Disrespect Toward the Dolphins Roster?

The Miami Dolphins roster saw a lot of turnover this offseason. 

The team traded players like Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith, acquired Minkah Fitzpatrick, lost Terron Armstead to retirement, and Calais Campbell to free agency. That’s just a brief recap of the top-level performers, as the Dolphins made a ton of changes to their depth chart. 

Many national outlets and pundits haven’t been kind to the Dolphins regarding those changes, so when ESPN released a ranking of every team by position, it wasn’t surprising to see the Dolphins finish toward the bottom in multiple categories. 

Let’s dive into these rankings and see which ones we agree with and where ESPN might be sleeping on the Dolphins a bit. 

Rankings Overview 

Before we put our own spin on the rankings, here’s where the Dolphins landed: 

QB: 14th 

RB: 8th 

WR: 6th 

TE: 24th 

OL: 30th 

IDL: 16th 

EDGE: 10th 

LB: 8th 

CB: 32nd

SAF: 22nd

Overall: 24th 

Where We Agree - Strengths 

It’s not overly surprising to see the Dolphins crack the top 10 at running back, wide receiver, and EDGE rusher. That’s where the majority of the team’s biggest playmakers line up. 

Receiver has a dynamic duo of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, which could be higher, but it’s tough to push the group into the top five when the team’s WR3 is a battle between Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Malik Washington. 

Running back is an interesting one because the Dolphins’ running game wasn’t a strength last season. It seems like ESPN is a big believer in De’Von Achane being more efficient this season, or they’re banking on a breakout from Jaylen Wright. 

Wright has had an inconsistent camp so far, but reports out of camp indicate Achane looks good when running behind the starters. 

Lastly, the Dolphins’ edge group makes the cut because of the three-headed monster that is Chop Robinson, Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb. The only real question for this group is whether it can stay healthy — Chubb and Phillips’ injury histories are well documented. 

Perhaps the biggest surprise on this entire list is seeing the Dolphins’ linebackers finish eighth overall. We’ve been beating the drum for how good Jordyn Brooks has been for a while, so it’s nice to see him get some recognition. 

It’s also likely that this ranking takes into consideration the depth upgrades Miami made this offseason. Tyrel Dodson, Willie Gay Jr. and K.J. Britt have combined for 97 career starts. 

Where We Agree - Weaknesses 

While the Dolphins have some good top-end talent, there are a few position groups that are lagging behind. 

Cornerback is the obvious one, and ESPN didn’t hold back, ranking it as the worst group in the sport. While we could split hairs on whether the Dolphins could be ahead of teams like the Raiders (31st) or the Saints (30th), that’s still a bottom-of-the-league group. 

There’s a good chance the Dolphins’ top four cornerbacks are Storm Duck, Kendall Sheffield, Jack Jones and Mike Hilton. 

Duck has four career starts as a 2024 UDFA and was shaky at best last year. Sheffield hasn’t played meaningful football since 2020. Jones is on his third team in four years and is very feast or famine. Hilton is really the only proven commodity, and he’s on the wrong side of 30. 

It’s hard to disagree with this ranking. 

The other hole on the roster we see eye to eye on is at tight end, where the Dolphins are set to rely on a group headlined by Darren Waller, Julian Hill and Pharoah Brown. 

Hill and Brown don’t add much in the passing game, but Miami does need them in the running game. Hill has plenty of natural strength, but he struggles with details and consistency. Brown has some good reps through his career, but he hasn’t really stood out in camp thus far. 

The big question is, of course, Waller. He’ll be the primary pass catcher in this room, but he’s coming out of retirement and hasn’t practiced at all this summer. Waller has plenty of natural talent, but there are so many red flags to consider.