The Dolphins’ tight end overhaul in 2026 makes one old decision look even rougher now: letting Elijah Higgins get away.
Miami is carrying three rookies at the position, but Friday brought a reminder of the one that slipped through its fingers when the Arizona Cardinals signed Higgins to a contract extension. For a team that hasn’t often watched a late-round cut turn into something useful elsewhere, this one stings.
Higgins’ path out of Miami is a familiar one by now. The Dolphins drafted him in the sixth round of the 2023 draft out of Stanford as a wide receiver, with the plan to convert him to tight end. Instead, he didn’t survive the move to the 53-man roster, and Arizona claimed him off waivers.
Since then, he’s carved out a real role with the Cardinals as the backup to Trey McBride and has even started at times in two-tight end sets. That’s a pretty good outcome for a player Miami decided not to keep.
What makes the miss harder to swallow is the choice the Dolphins made at the position that year. They kept Durham Smythe, rookie free agent Julian Hill and veteran Tyler Kroft, who played eight games, mostly on special teams, and did not catch a pass. It was Kroft’s final NFL season, and in hindsight the Dolphins clearly would have been better off holding onto Higgins instead.
The draft context only adds to the regret. Miami had just four picks in 2023 because of the trades that landed Tyreek Hill, Bradley Chubb and Jalen Ramsey, plus the tampering violation that cost the team a first-round pick. The other selections were Cam Smith, De’Von Achane and Ryan Hayes, and Achane is the only one who has panned out.
There’s another twist here, too: Higgins was taken after Hunter Long was included in the Ramsey trade that also cost the Dolphins a third-round pick.
Miami tried the veteran route at tight end the last two seasons, with Jonnu Smith in 2024 and Darren Waller last year. Now the most experienced player in the room is Greg Dulcich, who is only 26 and in his fifth NFL season.
The Dolphins do have youth at the position, and maybe Will Kacmarek, Seydou Traore and Justin Joly will turn into meaningful contributors sooner rather than later. But the Higgins miss is hard to ignore, especially when you consider how rare it is for late-round Dolphins cuts to go on and find success with another team.
In Other News...
Dolphins Fans Have One More Reason To Watch This Weeks Rookie QB Spotlight
This weeks rookie quarterback spotlight carries a little extra intrigue for Dolphins fans, because Kyle McCord is expected to make his first NFL start alongside two other first-year signal-callers in Fernando Mendoza and Carson Beck. Mendoza, the No. 1 overall pick, has already seen brief action this season, while Beck and McCord are set to debut as starters, giving the league a rare cluster of fresh faces under center in the same week.
If all three take the field, it would be only the second time since 2019 that multiple quarterbacks have debuted as starters in the same week, and it would also push the seasons total to 50 different quarterbacks starting through Week 10. For Miami, McCords turn adds another layer to a season already defined by turnover at the position, and it gives fans one more reason to keep an eye on a week that could wind up being a notable one for rookie quarterbacks across the league. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Suddenly Face A Bigger Week 10 Problem Than The Colts
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Miami also enters as an underdog, with the betting line moving after those injuries, which only adds to the uncertainty around Sunday. Predictions from contributors are split on how it will play out, but for the Dolphins the bigger concern is less about one result than what a loss could mean in a season already drifting into uncomfortable territory. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins May Need To Make A Tough Call On Chris Bell
Chris Bells rookie season has already been a stop-and-start one, and now a knee injury may keep the Dolphins wideout out of Week 10. Bell has played in eight games, but his impact has been limited, with his early-season production still clouded by the recovery from a previous ACL tear. For a Miami receiving group that has been trying to sort out roles on the fly, his availability matters even beyond the box score.
If Bell cannot go, the Dolphins may have to lean more heavily on their other young receivers. Fellow rookies Jalen Tolbert and Kevin Coleman Jr. could be in line for more snaps, giving Miami a chance to see whether one of them can seize a bigger opportunity. For Bell, the bigger question is less about one missed game than whether the team can keep waiting for him to fully round into form. [Read more 🡒]