The positives — but the risk — in Dolphins keeping intact defense that fueled turnaround
When the Dolphins open the season in September, they’re expected to have at least three and perhaps as many as six new starters on offense, depending on how the remainder of the offseason plays out on the offensive line.
But the Dolphins might not have a single new starter on defense, which is somewhat unusual in a league where player movement is rampant.
When teams could begin signing outside free agents to contracts on Wednesday afternoon, it wasn’t a coincidence that all but one of the Dolphins’ expected, previously-reported acquisitions play on offense.
And the one who plays defense - cornerback Keion Crossen - is primarily a special teams player; he was on the field for just two percent of the Giants’ defensive snaps last season and has started only four games in four seasons - all for a bad Texans defense in 2020.
Defensively, the Dolphins hope that continuity - from the coaching staff to the starters to even some of the backups - will allow Miami to build on a strong nine-game close to last season, when Miami permitted just 15.5 points per game, compared to 29.1 for the first eight games.
For the entire season, no team relinquished as few points as the Dolphins did over that final nine-game stretch, which included eight wins against quarterback Tyrod Taylor, Lamar Jackson, Joe Flacco, Cam Newton, Mike Glennon, Zach Wilson, Ian Book and Mac Jones.
So what changed from the first half to second half? “Little bit of scheme change, little bit of different approach, little bit different execution,” said defensive coordinator Josh Boyer, who was retained by new coach Mike McDaniel.
What Boyer didn’t and realistically couldn’t mention was a big drop in quality of opposing quarterbacks.
Jackson was the only above-average opposing quarterback in that group of eight wins in nine games. But the Dolphins - by keeping this defense together - are indicating that they believe their excellent defensive work over the second half of the season was more a reflection of their own ability than the deficiencies in most of the quarterbacks they were facing.
“We are going to be a very cohesive group with the guys that have been here and the new guys that we’re adding,” Boyer said recently.
The Dolphins retained one of the biggest pieces of their front seven by raising their offer to keep defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah on a four-year, $65 million deal. Besides his 18 sacks the past two seasons, his 126 quarterback pressures over that time are sixth-most among edge players, just three behind Joey Bosa, per Pro Football Focus.
Though there was speculation that Miami could try to replace cornerback Byron Jones with JC Jackson, that was never realistic. Jackson secured a five-year, $82.5 million deal with the Chargers, and Jones’ entire $14.4 million salary for 2022 became guaranteed recently when he underwent surgery in the ankle/Achilles area; he’s expected to be fine for the start of training camp.
There was at least one opportunity to upgrade a unit that finished 15th in total yards per game relinquished: the inside linebacker slot opposite Jerome Baker. But the Dolphins bypassed a couple dozen starting options at that position - including six-time Pro Bowler Bobby Wagner - and instead opted to stick with Elandon Roberts, Duke Riley and Sam Eguavoen.
That means the starting front seven of Ogbah, Christian Wilkins, Raekwon Davis, Baker, Roberts, Jaelan Phillips and Andrew Van Ginkel is expected back. Backup defensive lineman Zach Sieler and backup linebackers Riley and Eguavoen also are due back, and the Dolphins have spoken to linebacker Brennan Scarlett about possibly returning.
The Dolphins also could keep Adam Butler, whose $3.4 million salary is non-guaranteed.
On the back end, Xavien Howard and Jones are set to return at cornerback, with Nik Needham handling the nickel spot. Jevon Holland and Brandon Jones figure to be the starting safeties, and the Dolphins will determine whether to keep Eric Rowe, whose $2.5 million salary is non-guaranteed. His cap hit drops from $5.1 million to $525,000 if he’s cut, which has created questions about his future.
Boyer made clear the young players need to elevate their games.
Boyer didn’t offer specifics, but for Brandon Jones, that means improving in coverage; he allowed a 114.2 passer rating in his coverage area last season, with 22 completions in 25 targets.
For Phillips, that means improving against the run; Pro Football Focus rated him 102nd of 113 qualifying edge players in that area.
For Van Ginkel, that means converting pressures into sacks. He was fifth among all edge players with 16 quarterbacks hits but converted just four of those into sacks.
For Davis, it means creating more negative plays; he has just two tackles for loss and half a sack in two NFL seasons.
“We are expecting some guys to take big jumps, especially guys going from year one to year two,” Boyer said, with Phillips and Holland among those in that category. “There’s a short leash. You better be good, better be productive. We need to take some jumps.”
How can the Dolphins avoid another slow defensive start to a season, something that has plagued them? Keep in mind that only the Jets allowed as many points per game over the entire season as the 29.1 per game that Miami relinquished, on average, in the first eight games.
“We need to be in phenomenal condition,” Boyer said. “We need to have a good understanding of things we’re trying to do.”
And the Dolphins need to play better against some of the league’s top 20 quarterbacks. The Bills scored 35 and 26 in Josh Allen’s two starts against Miami, though the Dolphins defense played well in the second game.
Tom Brady’s Buccaneers scored 45 on Miami. Matt Ryan’s Falcons scored 30 and Derek Carr’s Raiders scored 31 in an overtime win.
Next season, the Dolphins will face a mix of very good quarterbacks and some average ones.
The most difficult challenges, beyond two games against Allen’s Bills: a home game against Aaron Rodgers’ Packers, a home game against Kirk Cousins’ and second-team All Pro receiver Justin Jefferson’s Vikings, and road games at Joe Burrow’s Bengals, Justin Herbert’s Chargers and Jackson’s Ravens.
Chicago, the Jets, Detroit, Houston, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and possibly Cleveland could present less daunting obstacles.
THIS AND THAT
According to a source, the Dolphins signed Alec Ingold - considered one of the NFL’s best fullbacks - to a two-year deal that could be worth up to $7.5 million. The former Raiders player is coming off an ACL injury in Week 10 but should be ready for training camp.
As reported earlier this week, the Dolphins have reached agreements with receiver Cedric Wilson Jr., quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, running back Chase Edmonds and guard Connor Williams.
▪ The Dolphins will have eight picks in April’s Draft, and the NFL announced that the Dolphins’ picks will be 29th (from the 49ers), 50th, 102nd (a 49ers compensatory draft pick), 121st, 125th (from the Steelers), 158th, 224th (from the Ravens) and 247th (from the Titans).
Here’s my Wednesday piece with lots of nuggets on new Dolphins receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr., including comments from Dak Prescott, Mike McCarthy, ESPN analysts and more.
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 7:03 PM.
