The Miami Dolphins are 0-5, and the part that really stings is that they haven’t led for even one second in 300 minutes of game action.
That’s rough on its own. What makes it worth stepping back is the bigger question underneath all the losing: is this start actually shocking, or does it just look uglier than the franchise’s reset always promised it would?
The answer, based on how this roster was built, leans heavily toward the second option. Miami’s problems have been pretty clear from the jump: not enough talent in key spots, and not enough experience in the places where talent still exists. That’s how you end up with the little things veteran teams usually avoid - the untimely penalties, the missed assignments, the errors that pile up fast.
None of this happened by accident. General manager Jon-Eric Sullivan had already talked repeatedly in the preseason about the lack of depth. A lot of that was tied to the organization’s decision to clear salary-cap space for 2027, which meant moving on from most of the front-line players who might have helped this team win more games right now.
So the Dolphins went shopping in the bargain bin. The plan was to find hidden value - young players ready to break through, or former high draft picks trying to salvage their careers. Outside of quarterback Malik Willis, most of the roster-building came with the same message attached: cheap.
And cheap usually comes with consequences.
That’s why the first five games have looked like a team absorbing the cost of a teardown. Head coach Jeff Hafley has said more than once that this year was about more than wins and losses, and that framing makes a lot of sense when the people making the calls knew losses were probably coming in bunches.
The 2026 season was always going to be about development. That included Miami’s entire rookie class, plus recent high picks such as Chop Robinson, Kenneth Grant and Jonah Savaiinaea.
It also was supposed to be about laying the groundwork for something bigger - a foundation, an identity, a culture, whichever label you want to use. Hafley and Sullivan want a new Dolphins way, not a borrowed one.
There was also the Willis question. Miami wanted to find out whether he could grow into the long-term answer at quarterback.
On that front, the early returns haven’t been especially encouraging. But there was never a guarantee Willis would take the job and run with it, and there’s still plenty of time left for him to show more.
The Dolphins are not about to end the audition anytime soon. His play should also sharpen as he gets more time with his offensive teammates, though he still has to make his own case.
What has been encouraging is that some young players have already flashed. Jacob Rodriguez, Kadyn Proctor, Chris Johnson, Michael Taaffe and Trey Moore in training camp all showed enough to count as positive signs, and Robinson has taken a step forward as well.
As for the broader mission of building an identity, that part is still a work in progress. Wins would obviously make it look a lot cleaner, but the Dolphins have shown enough fight to hint that something is being built, even if it’s not close to finished.
So yes, the 0-5 start is ugly. No one is pretending otherwise.
But this season was always supposed to be a beginning, not a finish line. And when a reset is this obvious, a rough record doesn’t automatically mean the whole plan is off track.
In Other News...
Dolphins 0-5 Spiral Puts Pressure On Key Veterans After Bye
Miamis bye week arrived with the same uncomfortable backdrop it has carried through the first month-plus of the season: an 0-5 start and not a single lead held in any game. For a team built to contend, that kind of opening has put a spotlight on the veterans who are supposed to steady things, from quarterback Skylar Thompson to Tyreek Hill, Jaelan Phillips and Riley Patterson, as the Dolphins try to sort out why the execution has been so far off.
The frustration is not just about one bad phase, either. Injuries have made the margin thinner, missed assignments have piled up, and the lack of clean operation has shown up on both sides of the ball. Miami needs more from its most established players when it returns, because without sharper performances soon, the season is going to keep asking harder questions than the Dolphins can afford. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Waddle Decision Is Already Fueling Hope For Miamis Future
Jaylen Waddles move to Denver was always going to reshape how Dolphins fans viewed the roster-building process in Miami, and early returns are giving the franchise reason to feel good about the deal. The Dolphins turned Waddle and a 2026 fourth-round pick into multiple draft selections, then used that extra capital to add Chris Johnson, Chris Bell, Trey Moore and Kyle Louis, a package that gave Miami more swings at building depth and replenishing the roster around its younger core.
What has made the trade look even better from Miamis side is how the first chapter has played out on both ends. Waddles production in Denver has been quiet, while Johnson has already flashed enough as a rookie to suggest the Dolphins may have landed a useful piece for the future. Bell is still working back from a knee injury, and Moore and Louis are on injured reserve, so the full verdict will take time, but the framework of the deal is already giving Miami hope it made the right call. [Read more 🡒]
Troy Aikman's Dolphins Role Just Took An Important Turn
When the Dolphins turned to Troy Aikman for help in their search for a new general manager and head coach, it was part of a broader effort to get the next run of football leadership right. That process has already produced Jon-Eric Sullivan as GM and Jeff Hafley as head coach, giving Miami the kind of reset it wanted after bringing in an outside voice to help evaluate the field.
Aikmans role now has shifted into something far less defined. He is not operating under a formal agreement with Miami anymore, though the door remains open if the Dolphins want to call on him again. And with recent media speculation noting his possible availability for other NFL opportunities, his next move is worth watching even as Miami moves ahead with its new football leadership. [Read more 🡒]