Dolphins bring in another prospect at need position. And Uche, Tolbert news
A six-pack of Dolphins notes on a Friday:
▪ The Dolphins, according to a source, are bringing Stephen F. Austin cornerback Charles Demmings to team headquarters next week, using one of their maximum 30 predraft visits on an intriguing smaller-school defensive back.
The 6-1 Demmings “is capable of mixing into a variety of coverages but is at his best starting from a press look,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said. “He has the hips/feet to match route breaks and the speed to stay with routes as they unfold.
“His recognition and instincts are average from off coverages, and he can be a step slow to drive on throws in front of him. While Demmings lacks ideal play strength and is not a firm tackler, his ball skills and man-cover consistency could land him a roster spot as a future CB4 with gunner potential.”
Demmings, who ran track in high school, had four interceptions last season and impressed at the Senior Bowl. Several teams are bringing him in for 30 visits.
The Dolphins also have been inviting several other corners to team headquarters, including LSU’s Mansoor Delane (a possibility with Miami’s pick at No. 11) and UM’s Keionte Scott.
▪ Despite Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson’s visit to team headquarters, Adam Schefter said on ESPN that he does not believe the Dolphins are in themix for him. Which makes sense considering that general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan said Willis is their guy and who they want to build around.
Schefter and ESPN colleague Peter Schrager said there’s no obvious team they’re aware of that is specifically targeting him in the first round, though some have a first-round grade on him. So the notion of a team trading up for Simpson at No. 11 (Miami’s first of two first-round picks) seems unlikely.
The question is whether the Dolphins get a call from a team that wants him at No. 30 if he’s there, and whether Miami can parlay that into more 2026 draft capital.
▪ New Dolphins edge defender Josh Uche has only six sacks during his past three seasons after collecting 11.5 as a backup for New England in 2022.
But during the past four seasons overall, he ranks in the top seven in the league in average pass rush win rate. He had 22 pressures last season (a very good number for his 142 pass-rushing snaps), but just one sack.
“It’s not unreasonable to say I need to get back to that point in time,” Uche said of the 2022 season. “Sack-wise, the numbers haven’t been the same, but pressure-wise … all these different specific analytics are still at that high rate, which shows I’m getting to the quarterback efficiently.
“I think I just need to close off those home runs by getting there and getting there a step quicker. It means I’m winning the hard part, which is those matchup — getting to the quarterback, getting off the ball, all those different intricacies.”
At 6-1 and 240, Uche is a natural fit at outside linebacker. But the Miami Columbus High and University of Michigan alum said he also can play defensive end in Miami’s 4-3 base.
“I’ve gone from 3-4 to 4-3, played in a couple different schemes and been asked to do a couple different things and feel I’ve done them well,” he said.
▪ Uche remembers watching Dolphins Pro Bowl edge rusher Cameron Wake growing up.
“I used to watch Cam Wake,” he said. “I swear: you can ask my Pop Warner coach. Even at Columbus, I was in this crazy four-point stance most of my career, and it was because I started off watching Cam Wake get after the quarterback. Every Sunday after church, me and my dad would watch the Dolphins, and I would see what he would do and I’d try to go to practice and do the same exact thing.
“Whenever I talk to kids at my football camps I tell them, ‘Find a player you like, go to practice and try to do what you just saw them do.’ For me, it was Cam Wake. That crazy four-point stance and the way he’d just get off the ball.”
What did Uche end up taking from Wake’s game?
“When I was about in high school, 185 coming out of a four-point stance, most coaches were like, ‘Bro, you’re going to learn a two-point stance,’” he said. “So eventually I had to evolve. But I think watching him taught me how much explosion in that first step, how important it is. I played for the Palmetto Bay Broncos; they moved me from nose guard to d-tackle to defensive end and so every point of the way I just watched what was Cam Wake doing it. That coiled stance is like trademark.”
▪ Uche has fond memories of growing up in South Florida and attending Miami Columbus High.
“Definitely I remember a lot of waking up in the morning seeing what you guys wrote about the game the day before, whether it be us playing South Dade or South Ridge or Northwestern,” he said. “I remember being a kid looking up to [high school recruiting guru] Larry Blustein.
“Any game at Traz Powell used to be crazy. There’s nothing like South Florida football. A big reason I went to Michigan, too, was because I had my South Florida guys there, Devin Bush, Josh Metellus, Devin Gil. A lot of fond memories of being down here in South Florida.”
▪ New Dolphins receiver Jalen Tolbert’s most productive game for the Cowboys last season came in a 40-40 Week 4 tie against the Packers, when he had four catches for 61 yards.
That game apparently stuck with new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley, because Tolbert mentioned that the new Dolphins regime mentioned they saw him in live action and were excited.
Tolbert’s best skill as a receiver? “Downfield ability to high point the ball, catch radius, catching away from my body, and I would say body control as well,” he said. “I would say those are my three.”
This story was originally published April 3, 2026 at 11:53 AM.
