Dolphins Rookie Stock Report After Week 5

It was another tough week for the Miami Dolphins’ rookie group. The Dolphins fell to 1-4, despite leading the Carolina Panthers 17-0 to start the game. 

Miami’s rookie group has been given a lot of responsibility this season, and it hasn’t quite gone well. Everyone has flashed some potential, but five weeks into the season have yielded an unflattering sample size overall. 

Anyway, here’s our look at how each rookie performed in Week 5. 

Kenneth Grant 

Week 4: Stock Down 

Week 5: Stock Down 

It’s been a rough few weeks for Kenneth Grant, and that continued on Sunday against the Panthers. It’s really the same old story for him at this point. He struggles with pad level in the running game and doesn’t provide a ton of juice rushing the passer. 

He did get his first half-sack of the season on Sunday, but it was more of a hustle play that featured bad pocket management from Panthers QB Bryce Young. 

It’s still early in this season, but Grant is slowly going from an underperforming player to an outright liability up front — not exactly the type of development you want from a first-round pick. 

Jonah Savaiianaea

Week 4: Stock Down 

Week 5: Stock Down 

Speaking of outright liabilities, Jonah Savaiinaea has already crossed that threshold in pass protection. He just can’t hold up in 1-on-1 pass-rush situations at all, and he’s not just losing, he’s losing quickly. 

That puts a lot of pressure on Tua Tagovailoa to get the ball out quickly and limits the type of passing concepts the Dolphins can call. 

There have been some signs of life in the running game, but he’s been wildly inconsistent in that category, too. He was to blame for a few of the Dolphins’ limited run game calls getting blown up on Sunday. 

Jordan Phillips 

Week 4: No Movement

Week 5: No Movement 

It feels like a hollow compliment, but Jordan Phillips has been Miami’s best interior run defender this season. That’s not to say he’s been a dominant force or anything, but he at least holds his ground consistently. 

The next step is getting him to disengage a little bit quicker. He had a few near misses against the Jets and at least one more against the Panthers. 

Phillips’ snap count has dropped in the past two weeks, as Miami tried to figure out different combinations up front. They’re not working, and Phillips is the only interior player who has shown any ability to stack blocks. 

Because of his limited snaps and near misses, I can’t say his stock is going up, but he’s low on my list of concerns at the moment. 

Dante Trader Jr. 

Week 4: No Movement 

Week 5: No Movement 

Trader Jr. only played 12 defensive snaps in this game, and none of them came in the second half, so it’s hard to move him one way or the other. 

He made a nice tackle on Rico Dowdle in the open field, something that alluded most of his teammates on Sunday. Trader was also in coverage on the fourth-down conversion that Young threw to Tet McMillan on Carolina’s first scoring drive. 

Trader actually did a nice job taking away the initial route, but lost McMillan on the scramble drill. That’s a challenging play, though, so it’s not worth pushing his stock down for. 

Ollie Gordon II 

Week 4: No Movement

Week 5: Slight Stock Down 

Ollie Gordon II had three carries for -2 yards on Sunday, marking the second week he was a non-factor after his small breakout against the Buffalo Bills. 

Gordon’s three carries are really a microcosm of the Dolphins’ running game struggles as a whole. He had one where the Panthers blitzed, and Gordon got blown up less than a second after getting the handoff. 

His first run was a decently blocked power, counter concept for a few yards. However, the Dolphins abandoned the power running game, so he never got another chance. Patrick Paul and Julian Hill poorly blocked his third run, but Gordon also missed a cut-back lane. 

That’s why we’re giving him a slight stock down this week, despite still believing in his ability to help Miami overall.