Phins 2025 team is all but set now… How does the roster look?
The Miami Dolphins have cut down, added players from the waiver wire, and set their practice squad for the Week 1 kickoff against the Indianapolis Colts. General Managers Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel appear to be on the hotseat… and they should be! This is the team they built and the vision they want, so they will sink or swim on how it performs. Let’s hope they are right!
We are a desperate fan base who hasn’t won a playoff game in over two decades. Every one of us wants to finally get over the hump, but is this the team and leadership to finally rise out of the mire?
So, let’s take a look at the team the Phins have built and see what type of team it will be.
Where are this team’s strengths and weaknesses?
This team clearly has some real strengths, but it also looks to have some areas of trouble. In the end, we don’t know how they’ll mesh or what type of season we’ll have. Only time will tell that.
Here’s our team as it stands now ranking the position group from best to worst based on talent and depth.
The front seven is clearly our deepest and strongest unit.
If Miami has success, it will be driven by this stellar group. It’s potent enough to have real impact and deep enough to endure injuries that we always seem to have. Phillips, Chubb, Robinson, and Judon is a long list of talented edge players. Jordyn Brooks is a massive piece with his leadership and ‘do it all’ talents, and he must stay healthy. While I like Dodson has Robin to Brooks Batman. Miami can take hits anywhere in this group, but you can bet with the best pay per head that Brooks is the lynchpin of this unit.
The pass catching group is diverse, deep, and talented. Clearly, just like the pass rushers on defense, this unit will drive their side of the ball. Elite talent and the depth, this unit is the second-best position group on the Dolphins. Waddle and Hill bring blazing speed, Westbrook size, and the Washington brothers’ shiftiness. Eskridge has pop and can play in the return game.
Unfortunately, the throw game isn’t as much a focus in today’s game with a growing emphasis on the run game. Still, it’s a passing league and so there should be real hope that they’ll be able to create yards and scores to take some of the load off the defense. The Phins run game must compliment them if they want to be more than just pop and fizzle.
Pass rushers without a stout defensive front are hit or miss, defenses must pressure from the inside and stop the run. . Thankfully this team has both.
Zach Sieler is a fan favorite for a reason: He’s one of the best in the game. Surprise rookie Jordan Phillips brings power and toughness inside and fellow rookie Kenneth Grant has all the potential in the world. I’m not a fan of Bulter or Jones, but they are bodies. Biggers is another rookie who is big and can play a part on specials teams with his curious ability to deflect kicks.
This unit has some depth, but the two rookies are young and will be asked to play more games than they ever have. It will be critical for Sieler to stay healthy and lead them. But if Sieler plays all season, combined with the linebacking group and edges, this could be the best front seven top to bottom that fans have had in a long time.
The next level of positions group
Offensive line makes the NFL world go around. This unit has three players for sure in Paul, Brewer, and Daniels. The addition of Jonah Savaiinaea offers the potential for a fourth, but he is raw and is a young rookie. If he can at least not be an issue, this will be the best O-line we’ve had in a long time.
Still, there is little depth. Smith and Borom aren’t quality players. Jackson is always hurt and isn’t a quality player in my evaluation. Some disagree. But given his history of injuries and the lack of depth, the whole package at right tackle is a concern. The ‘cavalry’ of Eichenberg and Meyer doesn’t float my boat. Brunskill though is a solid addition.
Beyond the depth, I still have real concerns that they will be able to run the football inside. And pounding the rock between the tackles is a major key for success or failure, in my eyes.
This unit has star talent in Achane, but he’s already injured and gets nicks every year. Wright who we traded up for is also injured and has struggled with vision. Thankfully, rookie Ollie Gordon is a real bright spot. Gordon is big, powerful, and willing and if the Dolphins can threaten the interior in the run game, he’ll play a major part as will blocker Ingold.
I just don’t like the question marks with injuries and young players. But both of these questions can turn to answers if they play out to the positive. That though will take time to see if they do or don’t.
Tua can play and is a difference maker… and a hot button topic. His injury history is clear and a major concern because neither Wilson nor rookie Ewers can carry this offense for a sustained period. Still if Tua stay healthy for the season, this offense will be dangerous enough for the Phinns defense to balance them out and make them competitive.
I still don’t understand the addition of Wilson because his talents are so different than Tua’s. Ewers has shown growth, and his skillset is much closer to Tua’s, so that’s a positive. But I don’t see either of the backups doing much to uplift the offense if Tua is out.
Positions group of concern
Fitzpatrick is back and he’s still a very good player. Davis is hurt and so is rookie Trader Jr. Campbell is a body an Melifonwu has talent but was injured though much of camp and has a history of injuries. Fitzpatrick is enough to make this unit competitive. If Fitzpatrick gets hurts though, this unit will crumble.
So, the good news is Fitzpatrick has been very healthy for a few years. But the fact that this whole unit made or broken on one player, gives me the willies.
Cam Smith is a scratch from above as he’s been put on Non-Football Injury list. The addition of Douglas brings a veteran with wanning talents. Bonner is nicked. Jones is a talent but is hit or miss who struggles to tackle. A good piece, but inconsistent. Rookie Marhsall Jr. is intriguing, but rookie corners have a long growth curve. He’s pegged as a key piece. How quick and hard he swings the meter to the positive will be key.
Basically, this unit will ride on the performance of Storm Duck. Great name and great kid, but it’s a lot to lay on his shoulders, with retreads and young guys behind him. Thankfully Fitzpatrick and a stellar front seven will off load a ton from Duck and the crew. Still, there is a very thin line here if opposing offenses are good enough to protect and then test this secondary.
The red-haired stepchild of the team
The release of Pharoah Brown was a shocker considering his hype. Not so much when you watched how poor he played in preseason and camp. Still, he was expected to be the physical enforcer. This will fall on Hill, who has the talents, but is ultra inconsistent.
Waller, who hasn’t played much and took off a year from the game, is a talent in the pass game. Can we depend on him to block? No. And it’s a little concerning that smaller Tanner Conner is listed as TE #1. I guess the role of blocker can fall in part on Ingold, but that’s not comforting. Unless Hill pulls it together, then it looks like we will be leaning again into the pass game and outside runs.
Pulling it all together
I know McDaniel is creative and will use all this talent for creating blocking, but the ability to simply lineup and move defense inside with physicality doesn’t look to be a strength of this team. That concerns me. Football is a savage game where physicality is king. We were called soft all season and even showed lack of physicality. If this doesn’t change, we are in for a long season. If though we can prove to dominate in the trenches on both sides of the ball–even at times–, then we could be in for a pleasant surprise.
I think the defense had the right stuff to do it, my concern, again, is this offense.
Let’s hope that they prove me totally wrong!
So, here’s your 2025 team as the designers have envisioned. Whatever you and I think doesn’t matter. What matters is how they perform. Week 1 is around the corner, and we’ll find out very soon!
Go Phins!!!