Dolphins 2025 Training Camp Preview: Quarterbacks

The Miami Dolphins were a major disappointment in 2024. The team missed the playoffs for the first time under head coach Mike McDaniel and took a step back in almost every way. 

However, a new season brings new hope. The Dolphins had a different offseason than in the past, as they mostly stayed away from adding big names and instead focused on adding to positions they had neglected in the past (guard, defensive tackle, linebacker). 

We won’t know whether Miami’s strategy will work until the season begins, but we do know the next step in that process is on July 22nd when veterans report for training camp. 

This is the first part of our written position-by-position training camp preview for the Dolphins’ 2025 season. Each story will list every player in a specific position group, their stats from last season, and their outlook for 2025. 

To nobody’s surprise, we’re starting with the quarterbacks. 

Outlooks for Dolphins Quarterbacks 

Tua Tagovailoa 

2024 Stats: 11 games, 72.9 completion%, 2,867 passing yards, 19 touchdowns, 7 INTs 

Outlook: Tagovailoa is one of the most hotley debated quarterbacks in the sport, but there’s no denying that the Dolphins are much better with Tua on the field. 

Unfortunately, he has struggled to stay on the field in all but one of his professional seasons. We can debate just how good Tua is all day long, but his outlook starts and ends with his availability. If Tua misses a good chunk of the 2025 season, whether or not his ceiling is limited as a passer won’t matter. 

If he does stay healthy, Tua is an interesting spot. He’s already proven he can operate the Dolphins’ offense at an impressive rate. Still, he’s failed to get the team over the hump in big spots, especially against good teams. 

Not all of those losses are on Tua, as he’s played well in a few big games before. But he’s hardly been consistent. 

Tua and the offense as a whole need to find another gear this season — something different to throw at defenses. To do that, he’ll have to stay on the field. 

Zach Wilson

2024 Stats (Broncos): DNP 

Outlook: We’ve written extensively about how the Dolphins are taking a major gamble on Zach Wilson as the team’s QB2. 

Wilson’s tenure with the Jets after they selected him second overall was a disaster, and he didn’t play during the regular season with the Broncos in 2024. Reports out of Denver indicated Wilson improved under Sean Payton, but those are second-hand accounts. 

Wilson is a complete enigma. He’s one of the more naturally talented passers the Dolphins have had in the building during McDaniel’s coaching era, and the Dolphins’ offense simplifying things for him could go a long way to improving some of his biggest flaws. 

If Tua goes down again, and Wilson can’t keep the team afloat, there will be a ton of criticism levied at McDaniel. 

Wilson was described as a specific target for the Dolphins this offseason, and the team decided not to pursue more proven veteran options, basically handing Wilson the QB2 job. Ideally, Wilson never takes the field in 2025, but history tells us that’s unlikely. 

Quinn Ewers 

2024 College Stats (Texas): 14 games, 65.8 completion%, 3,472 passing yards, 31 touchdowns, 12 INTs

Outlook: Ewers is another player we’ve written about a fair bit. Although we didn’t love his tape coming out of Texas, he’s slated to be the Dolphins’ QB3, which puts him two injuries away from seeing the field.

The Dolphins didn’t carry three quarterbacks at the start of last season, but given Ewers’ fit in the scheme and that he was reportedly a target of McDaniel going back to last season, there’s a good chance he makes the 53-man roster. 

Ewers developing into a solid backup quarterback would be a nice win for the Dolphins. It would prevent them from having to shell out $6 to $8 million every offseason to find someone behind Tagovailoa. 

Ewers isn’t a 100% lock to make the final roster, but we think he will. 

Brett Gabbert

2024 College Stats (Miami OH): 14 games, 57.3 completion%, 2,921 passing yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 INTs 

Outlook: Gabbert doesn’t have much of a chance to crack the Dolphins’ opening day roster. He was likely added to help facilitate drills and snaps for the backend of the depth chart during the preseason. 

He spent six seasons at Miami of Ohio and is the brother of long-time quarterback Blaine Gabbert.