The Miami Dolphins spent this offseason making hard calls, and not every one of them will age the same way.
Some departures were part of a bigger reset. Others looked more like calculated risks. With training camp getting closer, Miami may find itself wondering whether it let a few useful pieces walk out the door without much of a fight.
Kader Kohou is the first name that stands out. The cornerback missed time again and appeared in only nine games last season, so his exit wasn’t a shock.
Still, Miami chose not to hand him another contract, and that could become a problem. Kohou landed with the Chiefs on a one-year deal worth $1.8 million, a number that wouldn’t have been difficult for the Dolphins to absorb.
He offered value in the secondary, and with the current uncertainty at the position, keeping a veteran who was still growing into his role might have made sense. Kohou will be back in Miami with Kansas City in Week 3.
Elijah Campbell fits a similar mold. Like Kohou, he brought experience and depth to the cornerback group, and his contract with the Giants was modest: one year, $1.4 million, with only $437,000 guaranteed. That’s the kind of low-cost deal Miami could have matched if it wanted another option for Jeff Hafley and a little extra insurance in the secondary.
Jack Jones also looks like a missed opportunity. He was one of the more pleasant surprises in 2024, his lone season with the Dolphins, and he signed with the 49ers on a one-year deal worth $1.2 million with no guaranteed money.
Miami could have kept him on those terms and let him battle for the boundary job. Instead, he’s headed elsewhere, and the Dolphins will see him in Week 2.
The offensive line lost a chance at another depth piece when Cole Strange moved on. Strange wasn’t in Miami long, but the time he spent there was productive, and his ability to play guard mattered on a line that has already gone through plenty of changes.
He didn’t project as a starter, but the Dolphins could have used him as competition and insurance. Instead, he signed with the Chargers for two years, reuniting with Mike McDaniel.
Strange will return to Miami in Week 16.
Then there’s Alec Ingold, the most notable of the group because Miami did try to keep him. The two sides just couldn’t land on a new contract, and he wound up with the Chargers on a two-year deal that averages $3.7 million per season with $3.7 million guaranteed.
The Dolphins are expected to lean more heavily on the run in 2026, which makes the loss of a physical fullback stand out even more. Ingold will also face Miami in Week 16, this time back in Miami.
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 🡒]
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 🡒]