Kelly: Dolphins need a mindset change more than a better, earlier draft pick | Opinion
Ask yourself this question, and be honest with your Miami Dolphins fan hood.
Did you enjoy Sunday’s 20-17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a game the Dolphins controlled for all but the first five minutes?
Did you celebrate Quinn Ewers’ first touchdown pass, a 63-yard bomb that Theo Wease Jr. caught on Tampa Bay’s broken coverage and sprinted into the end zone?
“It was a dream come true. Every kid wants to score in the NFL,” Wease said. “I was telling everybody when I caught it, it felt fake.”
Did you enjoy De’Von Achane and the crew pummeling Todd Bowles’ defensive front, rushing for more than 100-yards early in the third quarter, before finishing the game with 145?
Did you cheer on Bradley Chubb’s two sack performance, as he pushes to earn $4.8 million in bonuses that are tied to the Dolphins’ defense finishing the season amongst the top 20 scoring defenses?
“We haven’t had the season we wanted,” Chubb said. “We’re locked in on our goals, and we’re going to finish strong.”
But did you REALLY want the Dolphins to beat the Buccaneers on Sunday, improving the record to 7-9, putting this team one win away from matching last season’s 8-9 record.
Or did you want a loss to help the Dolphins get a top 10 pick, which is the football equivalent of a poker chip that will help the franchise in its pursuit of another starting quarterback?
I realize that’s a lot of questions, but that’s all the Dolphins have these days with another franchise rebuild on the horizon considering it seems Tua Tagovailoa’s days as Miami’s starting quarterback appear to be over.
Whether the Dolphins get that quarterback in a trade for a player, or a draft pick, does it really matter?
Joe Burrow’s seemingly trying to force his way out of Cincinnati, likely attempting to pull a Carson Palmer on the Bengals, talking about losing passion for the game. Remember Palmer had to retire before the Bengals finally moved him to the Oakland Raiders.
Maybe that’s why ESPN brought up a nearly six-year-old trade offer the Dolphins made the week of the 2020 NFL draft, trying to obtain the rights to select Burrow for four first-round draft picks.
Lamar Jackson, the two-time MVP, is seemingly engaged in a power battle with coach John Harbaugh, and might be attempting to force his way out of Baltimore if Harbaugh wins, and the Ravens don’t give Jackson a lucrative contract extension, guaranteeing the $104 million he’s owed over the next two years.
Or it could be a trade up in the first round for Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, a Miami native who won the Heisman Trophy, or Oregon’s Dante Moore, who will be showcased in Thursday’s Orange Bowl showdown with Texas Tech?
The New York Giants probably think they already have their quarterback in Jaxson Dart, so the No. 1 pick will likely go to the highest bidder, whether that be the New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, or the Dolphins.
Doesn’t a top 10 pick look more attractive than pick No. 12, which is where the Dolphins are projected to select after Sunday’s win?
Maybe that internal debate is why we’re watching weird substitutions being made by the Dolphins, and quick triggers on vets who are battling injuries, or seemingly got hurt during Sunday’s game.
The Dolphins already lost a first and third-round pick because of inappropriate contact with Sean Payton and Tom Brady, and alleged tanking allegations made by former coach Brian Flores.
Clearly they can’t get caught doing it again, nor should they compromise the team’s integrity considering Mike McDaniel and his staff are coaching for their jobs, and Dolphins players are likely playing for their futures.
“We’re playing for each other at the end of the day, and we have a lot of pride,” said Ewers, who finished his second NFL start with a 118.0 passer rating. “We’re playing for each other, playing for our last name, and playing for our organization. When adversity strikes, we respond.”
The one thing the 2019 season - the Tank for Tua year - taught me is losing is just as much a culture as winning is, and the last thing a young team wants to do is develop bad habits.
When has tanking for draft picks ever benefitted a successful NFL franchise? The last team that benefitted from it was the Indianapolis Colts, who drafted Andrew Luck first overall in 2012. And he retired six seasons later, sending the Colts back to the abyss of mediocrity.
What the Dolphins need is someone who can evaluate talent better than the last two individuals put in charge of the franchise, and a head coach who can rally his team from deficits, and lead his crew to wins against playoff caliber opponents.
Tanking doesn’t help the Dolphins gain either, and it certainly hasn’t helped this franchise get off the Mediocrity merry-go-round.
This franchise and its fan base need a mindset change more than they need another winning season.
This story was originally published December 28, 2025 at 4:25 PM.
