The Miami Dolphins are heading into their first training camp under Jeff Hafley with no shortage of roster problems, and a few spots look far shakier than the rest. De'Von Achane and Aaron Brewer already locked in extensions, but those deals only do so much. For Miami to have any shot at being competitive in 2026, a lot of young players and a few questionable veterans are going to have to deliver.
The wide receiver room is the first place where the alarm bells start ringing. Malik Washington’s historic inefficiency is already a concern, and it becomes even more glaring because he may be the only holdover among the Dolphins’ expected top six or seven receivers.
Miami’s best immediate answers appear to be a pair of one-year stopgaps in Jalen Tolbert and Tutu Atwell. Tolbert brings a contested-catch style, while Atwell offers speed and a downfield element, and both fit with Malik Willis’ strength as a vertical thrower.
Still, neither one has ever been asked to carry a true WR1 workload.
Then there are the rookies, and that group comes with its own uncertainty. The Dolphins may or may not be counting on three first-year wideouts, but Chris Bell is coming back from a torn ACL, so the reality is closer to two.
Bell is the most intriguing of the bunch, with Caleb Douglas and Kevin Coleman Jr. also in the mix. Even with that talent pool, this is not exactly a room that inspires confidence.
Safety may be even thinner. Michael Taaffe, the Texas Longhorns All-American who somehow landed with Miami in the fifth round, arrives with plenty of big-game experience and a real chance to push Lonnie Johnson Jr. for the starting free safety job.
Dante Trader Jr., now entering his second season as a pro, brings the box presence and tackling that the group needs. After that, the depth chart gets awfully sparse.
That’s where Hafley’s background becomes important. A lot of his coaching work has centered on the secondary, and Miami may need every bit of that expertise to steady this unit. Taaffe is an exciting prospect and could end up being one of the best steals in the draft, but relying on a fifth-round rookie to clean up a position of obvious need is a dangerous place to be.
Cornerback has a better ceiling, but it still comes with real questions. Chris Johnson, the San Diego State defender Miami took 27th overall, has the traits to become a legitimate CB1, and his fit in zone coverage makes sense in Hafley’s system.
There’s obvious optimism here. The problem is the jump from San Diego State to the NFL is massive, and Johnson will be doing it on a roster that looks far less forgiving than the one Quinyon Mitchell stepped into with the Eagles.
Beyond Johnson, the options get shaky fast. Miami did not make any meaningful additions at corner outside of its second first-round pick.
JuJu Brents brings intrigue, but durability remains the issue. If Johnson and Brents hold up, the Dolphins might have something workable on the boundary.
If one of them gets hurt, or if Johnson needs time to adjust, the whole picture could turn messy in a hurry.
In Other News...
Dolphins May Already Have Another Draft Class Problem Brewing
The Dolphins draft haul from the past two years is already setting up a fresh round of front-office decisions, and the calendar is moving faster than Miami would probably like. General manager Jon-Eric Sullivan will have to sort through a number of contract questions after the 2026 season, with Patrick Paul headed toward a contract year in 2027 and no fifth-year option to soften the timeline.
Chop Robinson gives Miami a different kind of decision because the club does have a fifth-year option in play, and his 2026 performance figures to weigh heavily on how the Dolphins handle it. Elsewhere in that same class and the one around it, Jaylen Wright is not viewed as a sure long-term piece, Tahj Washington is fighting for a place at all, and Malik Washington has shown enough growth to look like part of the plan for now before his own contract situation comes due after 2027. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins May Have Let 5 Costly Roster Mistakes Walk Away
Miamis offseason roster churn left the front office with a familiar question: how much depth can a team afford to lose before it starts feeling the effects in the fall? The Dolphins moved on from a handful of players or let them test the market, and several of those names have already found new homes elsewhere, including stops with the Chiefs, Chargers, Giants and 49ers. For a team trying to keep pace in a competitive AFC, those are the kinds of departures that can look routine in March and a lot more significant once the games start counting.
What makes the situation worth watching is that this is not just about star power, but about the supporting cast that helps a roster hold together over a long season. Miamis decision-making around players such as Kader Kohou, Cole Strange, Elijah Campbell, Jack Jones and Alec Ingold could end up being judged less by what it saved in the moment and more by what it leaves exposed later. The real test will come when the Dolphins need reliable snaps, familiar roles and answers from the bottom and middle of the roster, and those are the spots that are hardest to replace on the fly. [Read more 🡒]
Hill And Waddle Fell Agonizingly Short Of Dolphins History
Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle did plenty in Miami to leave a mark, but when it comes to the Dolphins all-time receiving yards list, both former stars ended up just short of history. O.J. McDuffie still owns the fifth and final spot on that leaderboard with 5,074 yards, a number that has become a small but stubborn benchmark for every wideout who has come through the building since.
Hill was closer than most people might realize, and Waddle was even nearer to becoming one of the five most productive receivers in franchise history. Instead, the current Miami pass-catching group is staring up at a record book that still feels a long way off, with Malik Washington leading the active receivers but nowhere near putting McDuffies place in real danger anytime soon. [Read more 🡒]