The Miami Dolphins are heading toward another offseason with a long list of roster decisions, and a handful of players who could be working their way into bigger roles before the calendar flips to 2027.
There are 22 Dolphins currently slated to hit free agency in 2026, and that group is split across three categories: 12 unrestricted free agents, five restricted free agents and five exclusive-rights free agents. A franchise tag for any one player is described as highly unlikely because of the financial commitment it would require.
The pending unrestricted free agents are T Austin Jackson, TE Greg Dulcich, CB JuJu Brents, P Bradley Pinion, CB Darrell Baker Jr., WR Jalen Tolbert, EDGE Joshua Uche, LB Willie Gay Jr., S Zayne Anderson, LB Ronnie Harrison Jr., EDGE Malik Herring and EDGE Robert Beal Jr.
The pending restricted free agents are OL Jarrett Kingston, LB Shaka Heyward, TE Cole Turner, WR Jared Wayne and C Andrew Meyer.
The pending exclusive-rights free agents are LS Tucker Addington, LB Jackson Woodard, T Chukwuebuka Godrick, CB Reese Taylor and QB Kyle McCord.
It’s also possible - and maybe even likely - that some of these players won’t still be around by season’s end. But if the Dolphins are looking ahead to 2027, a few names stand out as the best bets to stick.
JuJu Brents looks like a player Miami should want to keep. He’s been productive at a premium position, and the only real concern in his career has been staying healthy. So far in 2026, though, he hasn’t missed a game.
Greg Dulcich is another possible fit. The Dolphins already showed they valued him by giving him more than most of their other free agents when they brought him back on a one-year deal in the offseason. He’s still young, has upside, and Miami doesn’t have an overload of proven tight ends.
Joshua Uche has also put himself in the mix. He’s 29 and has been the Dolphins’ second-best edge defender, if not the best one. The big question is whether Miami would be willing to keep him if another team comes calling before the trade deadline with a draft-pick offer.
Bradley Pinion might be the surprise name on the list, but the case is there. He’s 33, he’s been punting well, he’s inexpensive and there’s plenty of evidence that punters can keep doing the job deep into their 30s. The one messy moment - when he dropped the ball before getting into his punting motion - doesn’t seem enough to change the bigger picture.
Austin Jackson’s situation is trickier. The tackle has had a poor start by Pro Football Focus, where he’s dead last among NFL tackles, but the Dolphins still view him as a solid veteran.
The real issue is cost, especially if bringing him back means another role that isn’t a starting one. There’s also the matter of whether Jackson would even want that after being asked to take a pay cut this year.
Jalen Tolbert’s path back looks harder to picture. He’s already behind Malik Washington and the team’s three draft picks at receiver - Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell and Kevin Coleman Jr. That makes a return to Miami a tough sell.
Zayne Anderson has already seen his role change once this season. He got the start at safety in the opener, but has since settled back into the special teams work he’s known for. He’s 30, and that makes him less of a priority.
Ronnie Harrison Jr. is in a similar spot in terms of age, and his availability hasn’t helped. He made the 53-man roster after an impressive training camp, but he’s been sidelined since Week 1 with a hamstring injury.
The restricted free agent group is a different conversation. The lowest qualifying tender in 2026 was $3.5 million, and none of Miami’s pending RFAs signed for more than $1.1 million this year, so the Dolphins are highly unlikely to hand out any qualifying offers.
That means the real question becomes which RFAs Miami would want to try to retain anyway. Three players stand out there: Jarrett Kingston, Andrew Meyer and Cole Turner.
Kingston, who was claimed off waivers from the Houston Texans, played well in relief of Jonah Savaiinaea in the Week 5 game against Cincinnati.
Meyer has been in the Dolphins’ developmental pipeline for three years, and offensive linemen always have value.
Turner’s situation is notable because Miami placed him on injured reserve in training camp instead of simply waiving him with an injury designation, which suggests the team sees something worth exploring.
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General manager Jon-Eric Sullivan is said to be open to listening on trade possibilities, a sign that Miami is looking at the bigger picture rather than clinging to short-term comfort. For Sieler, that leaves a familiar tension around a veteran on a team in transition: a productive player wants clarity, the front office wants flexibility, and the deadline can force both sides into a decision neither can fully control. [Read more 🡒]
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One of the names that keeps surfacing will feel familiar to Dolphins fans, and not in a casual way. Miamis defense has already made a strong investment at linebacker, so any renewed Dallas interest would come with plenty of context from earlier in the year and a reminder that the Cowboys have been poking around this fit for a while. Whether the deadline brings a real push or just more smoke, it is another sign that the market around Miamis roster could stay active. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Deadline Debate Now Includes Several Familiar Names
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Austin Jackson has surfaced as one of the more intriguing possibilities in that mix, while Wrights status only adds another layer to the discussion around how aggressive Miami might want to be. The deadline always brings some noise, but in this case the noise is tied directly to players the Dolphins know well and a roster that is still very much being evaluated for both the short term and what comes next. [Read more 🡒]