Eyes of the Guru IDP Info, Part 27: Miami Dolphins

Photo: USA Today Sports

There are plenty of good things to point out about the last year's Miami defense. They were tough versus the run, finishing seventh in yards, tied for fourth in yards per carry, and fifth in runs allowed of 20+ yards. The Dolphins were third in the league with 56 sacks, and their 27 turnovers ranked eighth. On the other hand, the pass defense was atrocious for the second straight season, and they ultimately gave up a lot of points.

We can throw out virtually everything we knew about this defense in the past because this is not the same squad in 2024. The first change was hiring Anthony Weaver to replace Vic Fangio as defensive coordinator. What followed was an avalanche of roster adjustments.

Over the last few years, Miami has run a multi-front scheme, moving players around to keep offenses guessing. It was a complicated scheme with many bells and whistles that arguably kept defenders thinking rather than reacting. Not to mention all the situational packages and substitutions. That too, will change in 2024.

Weaver has an excellent track record of helping build outstanding defenses, including his most recent work in Baltimore from 2021 through 2023. His brand of defense is physical, aggressive, and disruptive, putting players in situations to exploit their strengths. With the potential for as many as seven new starters, the first challenge for Weaver will be figuring out what those strengths are and how the puzzle pieces fit together.   

The Dolphins started re-shaping the roster by being extremely active in free agency. They signed five interior linemen, an edge defender, two inside linebackers, two safeties, and two corners, most of whom will either start or be in the mix for significant roles. Miami was not done after free agency though. The draft brought them edge defenders in the first and fifth rounds, and a safety in the sixth. If you like training camp battles, this is the team to tune into. Apologies in advance for the length of this edition but there is a lot to cover here.

Defensive Linemen

The salary cap was a factor in some of the team's personnel decisions. They would have loved to keep Christian Wilkins, but the Raiders gave him a lot of money. Emmanuel Ogbah and Raekwon Davis are also gone, leaving Zach Sieler as the only returning tackle to play more than 30 snaps last year. Calais Campbell signed a one-year deal and is expected to replace Wilkins as the starter. Miami also signed Neville Gallimore, Benito Jones, Teair Tart, and Jonathan Harris. Gallimore projects as the starting nose tackle, with Jones and Tart possibly competing for a roster spot as his backup. Harris and Da'Shawn Hand are the favorites to back up the outside tackles.

Sieler has been an outstanding option for fantasy managers in recent years. His first full season as a starter was 2021. That year, he went 34-28-2 with 3 turnovers and scored his first top twelve ranking. In 2022, Sieler was 41-30-3.5 with a couple of forced fumbles and his second top-twelve. In 2023, he exploded, adding 10 sacks and 4 turnovers to his 64 combined tackles to finish third among interior linemen.

Some things would normally be red flags for Sieler. Last season was his first with more than three and a half sacks. Will that be a career outlier? A new coordinator always brings scheme and role changes. Will that have an adverse effect?

Those questions add a dash of risk but there are plenty of positives to override any concerns. Sieler is a great fit for what Coach Weaver wants to do. If he never comes close to ten sacks again, the strong tackle production means a high floor. If that is not convincing enough, consider some of the players Weaver has worked with either as a defensive line coach or coordinator. The list includes Mario Williams, Marcell Dareus, Jadeveon Clowney, J.J. Watt, and Justin Madubuike, who led all tackles with 13 sacks last year.  

At age 38, Campbell is not the player he once was. He is a step down from Wilkins on the field but is also about eight million dollars cheaper. There was a long stretch of his career when Campbell was a dependable, every-week must-start for us. Unfortunately, we have not seen that player since 2019. To his credit, 2023 was a bounce-back year for Campbell. A solid 55 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, and a pair of turnovers were his best numbers in four seasons. We have to consider that he played on the edge for the Falcons last season. The Dolphins will rely heavily on Campbell as a five-technique, so the opportunity will be there in a role he is familiar with.

If Weavers brings the Ravens' tendencies with him, the nose tackle will leave the field in sub-package situations. Gallimore should do well in the role, but the chances of useful production from the position are slim.

Starters Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb are working their way back from serious injuries. Phillips tore his Achilles in week 12, and Chubb had an ACL injury in week 18. They will open training camp on the PUP and are not locks to be in the week one lineup. The Dolphins thought they had all their bases covered when they signed quality veteran starter Shaquil Barrett and used their first-round pick on Chop Robinson to sure up the position. That fell apart when Barrett decided to retire out of the blue in late July. If neither starter is ready, Miami may be forced to rely heavily on their other rookie, fifth-round pick Mohamad Kamara, early in the season. 

Chubb had the best year of his career in 2023. He set new highs in tackles with 45, assists with 28, and turnovers with 8. The 11 sacks were the second most of his career, and the rank of sixth is a personal best. With his injury happening at the end of the season, there is no way Chubb can be 100% in September. The injury to Phillips was a few weeks earlier, and players tend to recover faster from Achilles injuries, so he has a better shot at playing in week one. However, it could be mid-season or later before either player returns to form.

If Chop Robinson gets an opportunity to open the season as a starter, it might be hard for the coaching staff to take him out of that role even if the others are ready. He is an elite athlete with an explosive first step that gives offensive linemen fits. Robinson has the quickness to run around a block on one play and the power to run through it on the next.

Drawing comparisons to players like Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons, Robinson is all but certain to become a good starter early in his career, but he is still a bit raw from the technical perspective. He won't be able to win matchups on pure athleticism as he did in college, but the young man is 21 years old, and the tools are there for Robinson to evolve into an elite edge defender.

Robinson turned in surprisingly modest production at Penn State. In 22 games for the Nitney Lions, he totaled 41 combined tackles and 9.5 sacks. Rookie pass rushers rarely post great numbers, but there is a chance we could see a Jevon Kearse-like beginning for Robinson. For those who may not know what that means, Kearse was nicknamed the freak after going 48-9-14.5 and forcing 6 fumbles as a rookie for the Titans in 1999.

• Edge Jaelan Phillips – PUP candidate
• Edge Bradley Chubb – PUP likely to open the season
• Edge Shaquil Barrett – Possible depth
• Edge Chop Robinson – Dynasty target with the potential for a strong rookie season
• DT Calais Campbell – Probable DT2 with some risk
• DT Zach Sieler – High floor makes him at least a priority DT2
• DT Neville Gallimore – No impact
• DT Benito Jones – No impact
• DT Da'Shawn Hand – No impact
• DT Jonathan Harris – No impact