A new offense and defense must be installed, and tinkered with, getting it tailored to the roster’s strengths and masking its weaknesses.
An inexperienced starting quarterback must be being broken in, and he has a lackluster stable of weapons at his disposal.
An offensive line and defensive line needs to be stabilized, and a new starting secondary has to be developed.
The Miami Dolphins have a lengthy to-do list that must be addressed as training camp opens this week, with veterans reporting on Tuesday, and the start of on-field practices on Wednesday.
Here are the ten lingering questions Dolphins coaches and management hope the team will find answers to over the seven weeks leading up to the Sept. 13 season opener on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Will offense get off to a slow start?
Bobby Slowik had one impressive season coaching C.J. Stroud in Houston, and one disappointing season that led to his dismissal as the Texans’ offensive coordinator. He spent last year as Miami’s pass game coordinator, and in that season Miami’s passing game regressed (losing Tyreek Hill to a season-ending knee injury didn’t help). While there is some carry-over from last year’s offense, Slowik will be making significant tweaks, and is working with a new, and inexperienced starters at quarterback, receiver, and tight end.
Can Malik Willis carry an offense?
Willis, whom the Dolphins guaranteed $45 million over the next two seasons by signing him as a free agent, has played well in spurts as a backup in Green Bay the past two seasons. But this will be the first time he’s asked to carry, and lead an offense. Defenses will eventually create a book on Willis, who has a reputation as a scrambler, taking away his strengths and forcing him to lean into his weaknesses. He’ll need to overcome those challenges to convince Miami’s decision makers they must continue investing playing time.
Can edge rushers be counted on?
The Dolphins have an unproven cast of edge rushers on the roster, and need to find four to serve as starters, and rotational players. Chop Robinson, Josh Uche, David Ojabo and Robert Beal Jr. are in the driver’s seat to fill those roles, but they need to establish themselves as more than situational pass rushers, or run stoppers. Miami needs to find an edge rusher or two who can play every down to avoid forcing the team to use a 3-4 front as this defense’s base.
Does Miami have a leading receiver?
Miami’s offense no longer has Hill or Jaylen Waddle to lean on because of this offseason’s roster and salary purge. At this point Jalen Tolbert, a career backup who has 91 career receptions for 1,093 yards and 10 touchdowns in his previous four seasons, looks to be the alpha receiver in Slowik’s offense. The hope is that at least one, maybe two other receivers step forward and become reliable playmakers for the offense.
Does Miami have enough cornerbacks and safeties worthy of starting?
There isn’t a proven, established starting safety or cornerback on Miami’s entire training camp roster. The entire secondary is filled with journeymen, special teams contributors, fragile talents, or players lacking experience. Safety Dante Trader Jr. and rookie Chris Johnson, who will likely serve the nickel cornerback role, are viewed as the frontrunners to hold two of five starting roles in the secondary, if they can stay healthy. Who else takes the second safety spot, and the two boundary cornerback roles will depend on who shines in training camp and the exhibition season, and who stays healthy.
Is tight end Greg Dulcich starter material?
Dulcich has started 13 games in his previous four seasons, and his performance last season in Miami’s offense hinted that he could become a primary weapon this season. But to achieve that he’ll need to stay healthy, learn the offense, and develop chemistry with Miami’s starting quarterback, who will likely use the tight end as the offense’s safety valve. Miami has very few options behind Dulcich because of the unit’s level of inexperience.
Can Miami keep Austin Jackson healthy for the season?
Jackson broke his foot last training camp when a teammate stepped on it during practice, and that injury plagued him all of 2025, and required an offseason procedure that kept him sidelined all OTAs and minicamp. Considering Jackson’s injury prone past, it would be wise for the Dolphins to bring him along slowly in training camp, limiting his practice participation to non-contract drills until the exhibition season arrived. The problem with that approach is that Miami has a limited amount of quality backup offensive tackles.
Is Jonah Savaiinaea a starting NFL guard?
Savaiinaea, a former Arizona standout the Dolphins traded up to select in the second-round of the 2025 NFL draft, struggled massively last season. He was one of the worst rated offensive guards because of his inconsistent performances as a pass protector. Miami’s new coaching staff hopes moving him from left guard to right guard, putting Savaiinaea on the side he played for the Wildcats during his college career, will help him improve. If his play doesn’t begin to stabilize Miami should consider giving rookie D.J. Campbell a test drive as Miami’s starting right guard.
Have second-year defensive tackles improved?
Last year’s Dolphins defense struggled defending the run, allowing 4.8 yards per rushing attempt and 132.4 rushing yards per game, and inconsistent play of Kenneth Grant, Jordan Phillips and Zeek Biggers was a major factor in those struggles. Miami played Grant and Phillips plenty last season because they viewed the snaps as an investment in their future. The time for that investment to begin paying off is now because the Dolphins need to put opposing offenses in difficult down-and-distance situations to have success on third downs.
Who is the third starting linebacker?
Jordyn Brooks and Tyrel Dodson had a productive season as Miami’s inside linebacker duo last season, and if healthy they’ll likely have another season to dial up their chemistry. The Dolphins have a trio of rookies in Jacob Rodriguez, Trey Moore, Kyle Louis who are all being groomed to play all three linebacker spots. Miami could use all three in situational packages, having Moore serve as a rush specialist and Louis serve as a coverage specialist. Rodriguez, the Dolphins’ 2025 second-round pick, could possibly unseat Dodson for the green dot role, but it depends on how well he performs in training camp and the exhibition season.
