Breaking down the Dolphins’ top 5 needs this offseason
General manager Chris Grier and coach Brian Flores pledged to take a few weeks after the Miami Dolphins completed their 10-6 season to analyze the roster and examine the right moves to make this offseason in hopes of upgrading the team.
With roster purges on the way as teams begin to waive players to create salary-cap space, free agency opening up on March 17, and the NFL draft to follow in late April, the Dolphins will have plenty of opportunities to address glaring needs.
Here is a breakdown of the Dolphins’ top five position needs — in order — and an explanation of why bolstering these positions could help them advance to the postseason.
1. Wide receiver
The Dolphins have a solid duo of split end receivers in DeVante Parker and Preston Williams. Both provide big, physical targets. But their injury history hints that Miami likely will spend a good portion of the season without one, if not both.
That is why Miami has to be aggressive about upgrading this unit, adding pieces that complement the RPO style of offense the team is building, which requires receivers who can produce yards after the catch. Lynn Bowden Jr., a rookie Miami traded for in 2020, and Albert Wilson, who opted out of the 2020 season because of COVID-19, are the only receivers on the roster with that skill set. The Dolphins could use a receiver with speed to stretch the field better than Jakeem Grant, Miami’s return specialist, who has been a disappointment as a receiver and slot receiver to replace Isaiah Ford, who is an unrestricted free agent.
2. Running back
Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed had decent seasons carrying Miami’s rushing attack. The former Washington Huskies starters collectively had 903 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 217 carries. But their lackluster yards-per-carry average hints that the Dolphins would benefit from adding a back who can run with more power.
Gaskin and Ahmed, who are each on a rookie deal, fit the scatback, third-down back role, which means they have value in this offense. But for the Dolphins to turn up the volume on their RPO and play-action-based offense, the run game must become more reliable. Miami needs to average better than 105.5 yards per game (ranked 22nd) to keep defenses off-balance. Matt Breida and D’Andre Washington are both unrestricted free agents, so don’t be surprised if the Dolphins add two tailbacks if Breida and Washington aren’t re-signed.
3. Inside linebacker
Miami’s hybrid 3-4 defense requires four starting-caliber linebackers, with all of them filling specific roles. Kyle Van Noy, Andrew Van Ginkel and Shaq Lawson serve as the edge players in Brian Flores’ defense, typically setting the edge and pass rushing. The inside players — Jerome Baker, Elandon Roberts and Kamu Grugier-Hill — are used as coverage specialists and gap fillers on running plays.
The fact that Roberts suffered a season-ending knee injury in late December and is slated to be an unrestricted free agent hints that Miami needs to find a starting inside linebacker who can sniff out running plays and shed blocks. Adding a young talent to is critical because the Dolphins must also be prepared for Baker’s possible departure as their leading tackler the past two seasons is entering the final year of his
rookie deal and wants to be paid more than the $2.4 million he’s slated to make in 2021.
4. Interior offensive line
It is imperative that the Dolphins fortify the interior of the offensive line because that’s where the bulk of the pressure came from last season. Ted Karras, who started every game at center and served as one of Miami’s team captains, is an unrestricted free agent and the three players who manned the guard spots — Ereck Flowers, Jesse Davis and Solomon Kindley — all had subpar seasons.
Kindley needs to get in better shape to contribute more in the run game, while Flowers and Davis have shown us who they are as multiyear starters.
It is possible that upgrading the center spot will help the guards play better, but there are no guarantees on that, especially if Miami lets Karras sign elsewhere and replaces him with Michael Deiter or a drafted rookie.
It is also possible Miami could draft an offensive tackle early and move right tackle Robert Hunt to guard, the position most draft analysts expected him to play in the NFL. There’s also speculation that Miami has interest in signing Patriots free-agent guard Joe Thuney, but the Dolphins don’t have the cap space to add the veteran, who made $14.7 million last season after receiving the franchise tag from New England.
5. Edge rusher
Finding a defensive lineman who can consistently set the edge and pressure the quarterback would improve Miami’s defensive front, which allowed 116 rushing yards per game (ranked 16th). The Dolphins got the bulk of the team’s 41 sacks from blitzing linebackers, which typically produced a free rusher.
While the scheme was sound, it was built off a smoke-and-mirror approach and strong coverage from the secondary. And the Dolphins didn’t have a single defensive lineman or linebacker who could routinely disengage from an offensive tackle or guard and hunt down quarterbacks.
Adding a player with the size (260-290 pounds), strength and pass-rushing arsenal to do so would benefit that unit because it would take some of the attention away from Emmanuel Ogbah, whose nine sacks and 21 quarterback hits led the team.
Ogbah’s playing on the final season of the two-year, $15 million deal he signed last offseason, and the Dolphins could potentially create some cap space by extending his contract. But waiting to see if Ogbah can recreate his 2020 production might be a smart strategy before committing more money to him.