Kelly: Decision makers have Dolphins, Tua in compromising position
Time to stop pretending the Miami Dolphins aren’t rebuilding because every move made this offseason smells more like South Florida’s NFL franchise is headed towards a restart, not a renovation, or resurgence.
Just like incorporating more vegetables into our diet, we need to embrace this approach because it’s healthier for us long-term.
While the 2025 season might not be delicious, it could lead to a more fit franchise.
That means sacrifices must be made.
Changes are needed.
Mindsets must be shifted.
And the first one that has to go is that everything’s Tua Tagovailoa’s fault.
If your focus is on Tagovailoa, claiming he’s the source of what’s wrong with the Dolphins, then you’re a blind ball-watcher.
Your anger is misguided because you’re fixated on the wrong thing, the wrong player, the wrong area.
Tagovailoa has NEVER delivered a losing season in his five-year NFL career.
He’s proven year after year he’ll do whatever it takes in the offseason to improve. The quarterback’s biggest challenge is staying healthy, and available for 17-plus games.
What Dolphins critics, skeptics need to focus on in 2025 is the team that is put around him. At the moment - three weeks into free agency, a month before the NFL draft - the roster General Manager Chris Grier has assembled features far more questions than answers.
Let’s start with the biggest head scratcher.
As the roster stands, Liam Eichenberg remains Miami’s starting offensive guard. Considering he’s struggled for most of his 52 NFL starts, this 2021 Dolphins second-round pick - who we can all agree is a draft bust Miami chose to re-sign - should be the second or third offensive lineman coming off the bench.
Eichenberg wouldn’t be a starter anywhere else, and the lack of interest, and minimum money given to re-sign (one-year, $2 million salary, which was guaranteed) proves this.
And that’s not the only problem with the offensive line expected to protect the NFL’s most fragile quarterback.
Since it appears Terron Armstead is leaning toward retiring, the Dolphins are taking a gamble that Patrick Paul, last year’s second-round pick, is ready to anchor the critical left tackle spot.
He spent all of 2024 preparing for that job, but his three starts and 337 offensive snaps hints that Paul might not be ready to stop the NFL’s best pass rushers.
What if he fails? Newcomer Larry Borom clearly isn’t the answer since he was a disaster at left tackle for the Chicago Bears last season.
And that’s not the only offensive issues since Miami needed to upgrade the in-line tight end (incumbent Julian Hill vs. newcomer Pharaoh Brown) spot, add a physical back (Alexander Mattison) who can help Miami convert in short yardage situations, and must find a third receiver (Nick Westbrook-Ikline) who compliments Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle better than Malik Washington did in his rookie season.
But since Tagovailoa’s early years (2020 and 2021) the quarterback has proven he can keep an offense, and team afloat with limited weapons, no run game, and a troublesome offensive line. It’s not ideal, but it’s been done.
Therefore, there should be an even greater level of concern placed on the defense Anthony Weaver’s tasked to rebuild without Calais Campbell.
Campbell, who remains a free agent, is likely signing with a title contender if he does commit to playing a 18th season, and that could leave Miami’s defensive line exposed.
Right now the only trench players not named Zach Sieler on the roster are Benito Jones, Matt Dickerson and Neil Farrell, three players who can all generously be described as NFL journeymen.
Miami also has five unproven safeties vying for the two vacated starting spots, and the cornerback spot opposite Pro Bowler Jalen Ramsey resembles mystery meat.
Football games are won and lost in the trenches, and until those holes get filled appropriately the only chance this Dolphins team has of winning the AFC East is if Josh Allen suffers a serious injury that forces him to miss more than half the season.
That’s why I firmly believe this season’s outcome doesn’t hinge on Tagovailoa’s performance because he’s presently leading a team that arguably has the worst offensive and defensive line in the NFL.
In his end of season press conference, Grier vowed to rebuild the trenches, like he initially did in 2019, the first of two draft classes where the franchise used nine draft picks on offensive and defensive linemen.
To save this version of the Dolphins this franchise might need to do that again, and must produce the best draft class in Dolphins history, something that exceeds anything Grier has ever done since taking over the reins in 2016.
And keep in mind his first draft class produced two Pro Bowlers in offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and cornerback Xavien Howard, and included tailback Kenyan Drake and return specialist Jakeem Grant.
That means with Miami’s 10 draft picks this franchise needs to find at least four starters, and two of them need to turn into Pro Bowlers in their first four seasons.
The realist in me views that as highly unlikely, a long shot, but not impossible.
This story was originally published March 27, 2025 at 12:19 PM.
