This Season Is All About Building a Solid Foundation

This Season Is All About Building a Solid Foundation

The Miami Dolphins are not going to win the Super Bowl in 2026. I know it’s quite the hot take, but a team that is often slated by experts to be one of the worst in the league isn’t going to have an inexplicable, team-of-destiny type run to the Lombardi Trophy.

Accomplishing the ultimate goal in year one under the new regime isn’t the point; the point is building a strong foundation for the future, which will hopefully lead to a championship or at least a playoff win. 

When meeting with the media earlier today, head coach Jeff Hafley emphasized Miami was building a foundation but still had a lot of work to do. 

“I think we’re building the foundation as far as our culture goes and what it wants to be, but we’ve got work to do.” He said. 

As much as I enjoyed the good moments of the Mike McDaniel era, I have to admit the foundation was cracked. While the highs were some of the best the team has ever had, including a game in which the Dolphins scored 70 points, the lows were just as bad, if not worse; I’m looking directly at you, the Monday night matchup against the Titans in 2023. 

It seemed that when the lights were brightest and the games mattered most, the Dolphins failed to show up. That inability to meet the moment wasn’t just on the field but started during the week, when players were late to team meetings. If you don’t prepare for success, you prepare to fail. Former quarterback Tua Tagovailoa lamented that some players arrived late to meetings after a loss to the Chargers in October of last year. 

“I think it starts with the leadership in helping articulate that for the guys and then what we’re expecting out of the guys,” he said. “We’re expecting this — are we getting that? Are we not getting that? We have guys showing up to players-only meetings late, guys not showing up to players-only meetings. There’s a lot that goes into that. Do we have to make this mandatory? Do we not have to make this mandatory? 

To me, that’s what Hafley means when he says he is building a culture. He’s making sure the team is composed of players who take their jobs seriously. While Miami may not be very good in 2026, this season will be instrumental in setting the stage for the future, when there is a bit more talent and the lights once again get brighter.

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