How Dolphins’ path has become narrower. And option for pick 13 asked to visit team offices
By being disciplined and spendthrift, the Dolphins have snagged smart value signings in free agency and not added to their long-term salary cap burden.
But for the moment, they have also left several glaring key needs unfilled, and with a narrow path to address them adequately.
The view here is that the offseason should not be judged until we know what players are hired for those positions.
But this much is clear: There are far fewer options to fill those holes than there were a week ago.
Arguably nine of the top 10 free agent cornerbacks are off the board, with Asante Samuel Jr. the biggest name left. So are the top half dozen defensive tackles, aside from Calais Campbell, who has a standing offer from Miami. So are more than half of the proven, impact safeties.
If the Dolphins had restructured Tua Tagovailoa, Jordyn Brooks and Zach Sieler, they could have created $30 million in instant cap space to sign established cornerbacks, defensive tackles and safeties and not need to worry about filling them later.
Now, the Dolphins are in a precarious spot at each, with only one able to be filled with the 13th pick in the draft.
Let’s put it this way: At the moment, there are only a handful of defensive ends and cornerbacks who Miami could add and feel totally comfortable projecting them for major playing time next season.
At cornerback, those players are Michigan’s Will Johnson (the only corner who likely would make sense with the 13th pick in the draft, unless the Dolphins fall in love with Texas’ Jaedae Barron or FSU’s Azareye’h Thomas or Kentucky’s Maxwell Hairston in a first-round trade down) or a handful of veteran starters still unsigned — Samuel, Rasul Douglas, James Bradberry, Stephon Gilmore, Mike Hilton and Tre’Davious White, most of whom have seen better days.
If you end up with anyone else — a cornerback at No. 48, a disappointing veteran such as C.J. Henderson — there’s no way you can feel confident that you have found a good starting cornerback. And nearly all of the aforementioned cornerbacks have something to prove; the prospect Johnson missed significant time with turf toe last season and won’t work out at Michigan’s Pro Day because of a hamstring injury.
At defensive end, if Campbell retires or signs with Baltimore, there’s no free agent currently available who likely would have a similar impact except Za’Darius Smith. There’s no 3-4 defensive end/tackle projected for Miami’s range at No. 13.
At safety, there could still be a few veterans available if the Dolphins don’t draft a safety at 13 (Georgia’s Malaki Starks or South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori) and if free agent signings Ifeatu Melifonku, Ashtyn Davis and incumbent Elijah Campbell don’t stake a claim to starting jobs in OTAs.
The group of unsigned safeties, at the moment, includes Julian Blackmon and Justin Simmons, who would immediately be the best safeties on Miami’s roster if they signed. (Blackmon would seem like a no-brainer addition now.)
Rayshawn Jenkins, Marcus Williams, Juan Thornhill, Jordan Fuller, Quandre Diggs, Chuck Clark, Vonn Bell and a dozen others also remain available. So the case could be made to be patient here.
At guard, the spot opposite James Daniels could be filled by one of several promising offensive linemen at No. 13 (tackle/guards Kelvin Banks, Will Campbell, Grey Zabel or Armand Membou or guard Tyler Booker) or a veteran who shakes free later in free agency. (Teven Jenkins and Brandon Scherff are the biggest names still available now.)
At nose tackle, there are still a dozen serviceable options, so there’s less reason to worry there than at cornerback.
Perhaps good cornerbacks, defensive linemen and safeties will be released in May or June. But that’s a risky gamble.
There’s also the question of whether Miami will automatically hand the left tackle job to second-year second-round pick Patrick Paul if Terron Armstead retires (a decent possibility). I find it interesting that plugged-in agent Drew Rosenhaus, during his weekly TV segment on WSVN 7, has multiple times identified left tackle as one of Miami’s biggest needs in his view. (Mel Kiper does, too, below.)
PFF rated Paul the worst run blocker among all 81 NFL tackles last season. and fourth worst overall. Armstead was rated fourth.
This patient, disciplined approach by Miami could work out well if Campbell re-signs and if the Dolphins land a standout safety and cornerback and guard that fall through the cracks of free agency or at No. 13 in the draft.
But the path is now very narrow to fill all of those needs. It doesn’t mean the needs won’t be filled; Grier pulled a rabbit out of his helmet with Campbell, at just $2 million, last May, and has found helpful summer additions in the past. But the job is now harder.
Visit booked
Emmanwori, the speedy South Carolina safety, has been booked for a visit at Dolphins headquarters, according to The Athletic’s Josh Kendall.
Teams can summon as many as 30 nonlocal draft prospects to team headquarters for medical exams and meetings with executives and coaches, but not on-field work. Emmanwori will be one of those “30” visits for Miami.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said: “The assessment of Emmanwori’s tape could depend on which games you watch. He’s a physical specimen with rare size and outstanding speed, but he doesn’t always play with a “first to the action” mentality in run support.
“When he gets it cranked up, he becomes a much more effective tackler and overall run stopper from sideline to sideline. He’s capable of playing over the top, inside the box or even matching up with pass-catching tight ends. He’s upright with average transition fluidity in coverage, but he has great recovery speed and uses his length to throw a blanket over the catch point. He has rare NFL traits and talent, so a boost in urgency could take him from a good starter to a Pro Bowl-caliber player.”
He had four interceptions last season and six in three seasons in South Carolina.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. slotted him 18th in his newest mock draft on Tuesday, noting: “We witnessed Emmanwori’s speed [4.38 in the 40] and explosiveness [43 inches in the vertical jump] at the Combine, and we saw his ball-hawking traits [four picks] last season.”
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah has Emmanwori going 24th in his Tuesday mock draft.
▪ Kiper has Miami picking LSU guard/tackle Campbell at No. 13 instead of the Michigan cornerback Johnson or either first-round safety.
“Miami should be focused on finding Armstead’s heir apparent,” Kiper said. “Plus, this team ranked 28th in pass block win rate last season [55.7%], so it needs upgrading anyway.
“Yes, Campbell’s arm length comes into question. He measured 32⅝ inches at the Combine, which isn’t ideal for an NFL offensive tackle. But plenty of tackles start their careers at guard, and Campbell’s great footwork points to a successful career despite the length limitations.”
▪ Jeremiah also has Miami bypassing Michigan’s Johnson and instead drafting Starks, adding: “The further we get into the evaluation process, the more teams I find that are in love with Starks’ game. He would be a plug-and-play replacement for Jevon Holland, with the versatility to play as a high safety or nickelback.”
▪ Cornerback Siran Neal, a core Dolphins special teams player who wasn’t pursued by Miami as of recently, agreed to a deal with San Francisco, per NFL Network.
Neal played 372 special teams snaps but just 58 on defense in his one season for Miami after leaving the Buffalo Bills.
The Dolphins have added experienced special teams players this offseason in cornerback Artie Burns and tight end Pharoah Brown, among others.
This story was originally published March 18, 2025 at 1:54 PM.
