The Miami Dolphins are deep into a rebuild, and the shape of the roster makes that plain. New leadership has moved on from a lot of older, pricier veterans, and only four players over 30 remain. Two of those are specialists, Zane Gonzalez and Bradley Pinion, which tells you exactly where this team is headed: younger, cheaper, and built around a new core.
The 2026 NFL Draft added 13 more players to that mix, but youth alone doesn’t solve everything. Miami still doesn’t have a long list of young players who are already established.
De'Von Achane, Jordyn Brooks, and Aaron Brewer are the clearest names in that group. After them, there’s plenty left to be sorted out.
That’s what makes Bleacher Report’s pick for Miami’s most promising building block stand out. Kristopher Knox chose Chop Robinson, writing:
"Edge-rusher Chop Robinson might not draw the attention that Achane does, but the third-year defender is shaping up to be a defensive building block. A first-round pick out of Penn State in 2024, Robinson made just four starts in his first two seasons, but Miami is hoping for more ... With 10 sacks and 32 quarterback pressures already on his resume, Robinson is poised to be the new headliner of Miami's pass rush."
There’s production there, sure, but the underlying numbers paint a less flattering picture. Pro Football Focus gave Robinson a 54.8 grade in 2025, which placed him 97th out of 115 qualifiers. SIS also had his 11.7 pressure percentage at 84th among 159 EDGE rushers with more than 40 attempts on the season.
That doesn’t make him a lost cause, but it does make him far from a finished product. If anything, the player who looks most secure as a real building block is Patrick Paul.
At 6'7" and 326 pounds, Paul has the kind of frame that jumps off the page. After spending a year learning behind Terron Armstead, he moved into the starting job and immediately made his presence felt. PFF graded him at 66.2 overall, which ranked 45th out of 89 qualifiers, though that number is dragged down by run blocking that still needs work.
In pass protection, though, Paul took a real step. His 74.4 grade ranked 28th, and he allowed only five sacks while protecting one of the NFL’s least athletic quarterbacks. With Malik Willis behind him, there’s even a path for that sacks-allowed number to drop to zero, since Willis can create with his legs.
Paul is still only 24, and the best part for Miami is that he’s just getting started. He won’t be eligible for a contract extension until after the 2026 season, but the Dolphins would be smart to move early on a big-money deal. Whether Willis turns into the answer or Miami goes back to the draft, the left tackle spot looks covered for the foreseeable future.
In Other News...
Dolphins Receiver Battle Suddenly Has One Surprise Name To Watch
The Dolphins receiver room is one of the more open competitions on the roster this spring, and Caleb Douglas has quickly become a name worth tracking. Miami used a third-round pick on the wideout, a move that caught some attention because many around the league expected him to be more of a day-three selection, but the team clearly saw enough to make him part of a class that included three drafted receivers.
Now the question is whether that investment translates into a real path to a starting job. With no clear answer yet on who will line up first at wide receiver, Douglas is in the mix, and the fact that coaches Jon-Eric Sullivan and Jeff Hafley have seen something in him only adds to the intrigue as Miami tries to sort out its passing game around a roster built to chase bigger goals. [Read more 🡒]
Tua Just Reached The Moment Dolphins Fans Knew Was Coming
Tua Tagovailoas next chapter has already become one of the more watched storylines of the offseason, and not just because of where its happening. After years of debate in Miami over whether he could stay healthy and sustain the level he flashed before the regression set in, he has landed in a setting where every throw is being weighed against the version of him Dolphins fans kept waiting to see again. The early buzz out of Atlanta has been encouraging, with Tagovailoa standing out in practices and forcing the conversation to shift from what went wrong in Miami to what might still be possible.
The bigger question now is whether this is the start of a real rebound or just another stop in a career that has already invited plenty of labels. Fans and analysts have been split on the outcome for months, with some expecting a short-term bridge role and others still holding out hope that he can get back to his earlier form. Atlantas quarterback situation gives him a path to prove it, but the pressure is obvious: if he keeps building on this start, he can change the narrative around his future, and if he doesnt, the league may decide it has seen enough. [Read more 🡒]
Mark Gronowski Could Force A Tough Dolphins Quarterback Decision
The Dolphins quarterback room for 2026 already looks very different, with Tua Tagovailoa now in Atlanta and Malik Willis projected to take over as the starter. Quinn Ewers is expected to settle in as the No. 2 option, which leaves the final spot in the room to a younger competition that could matter more than it first appears.
Mark Gronowski, an undrafted rookie with a dual-threat rsum and plenty of college success behind him, is pushing Cam Miller for that third quarterback job. Miami may not want to carry more than three passers, but if Gronowski doesnt make the active roster, the practice squad is the other obvious path, and even that comes with a risk if another team decides it likes his upside enough to make a move during the season. [Read more 🡒]