The Dolphins have added another quarterback to the mix, landing Kyle McCord from the Packers after a busy stretch of moves at the position.
Miami’s deal for McCord came one day after the team sent Quinn Ewers to Jacksonville for the same 2028 sixth-round pick that is now headed to Green Bay. On Sunday, the Dolphins also moved on from Cam Miller and Mark Gronowski, leaving Malik Willis and McCord as the two primary quarterbacks on the roster.
McCord arrives in Miami after a preseason run in Green Bay that turned plenty of heads. In three exhibition games, he completed 46 of 70 passes for 446 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, finishing with a 102.4 passer rating. Every one of those four touchdown throws came in the Packers’ 42-38 win over Arizona on Thursday.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur had strong words for what McCord showed before the trade.
“He did a heck of a job,” LaFleur said. “He was just so poised in his ability to operate and function.
He definitely has the demeanor, no doubt about it. He’s in total control out there, and he’s willing to stand in the pocket, deliver in the face of pressure.
Yeah, I thought he did an outstanding job.”
That showing lined up with the pre-draft view of McCord, who was selected by Philadelphia in the sixth round of the 2025 draft out of Syracuse. He was later waived and brought back on the Eagles’ practice squad before signing with Green Bay in January.
NFL.com’s draft profile described him as a "good backup with the potential to develop into a starter" and compared him to Mitchell Trubisky. Lance Zierlein’s pre-draft evaluation painted the same basic picture, calling him a "Pocket passer with good size who played in a high-volume, pro-passing scheme that should give him a head start as a pro.
McCord was too inconsistent at Ohio State, relative to the talent around him, but he proved to be confident and productive last season at Syracuse without that same level of supporting talent. His fundamentals are usually solid and he plays with adequate poise in the face of pressure.
He has enough arm to make window throws and push the ball around the field. McCord seeks to attack coverages vertically instead of operating as a “Checkdown Charlie.”
While he can hit chunk throws, his decision-making and ball placement aren’t always good fits for his gunslinger mentality. His mobility inside and outside the pocket is average.
McCord has good size, adequate talent and commendable resilience. He could find a home as a backup quarterback with modest upside."
At Green Bay, McCord’s preseason tape matched that profile. He looked comfortable working from the pocket, didn’t get rattled when the rush closed in, and showed the arm strength to push the ball downfield - especially against Arizona.
There were already whispers that the Packers might not carry him on the 53-man roster, and Miami fit as a landing spot for another reason too. The Dolphins have several former Packers in the building, including general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan, who was Green Bay’s vice president of player personnel from 2022 to 2025 and Brian Gutekunst’s right-hand man.
McCord also brings an indirect tie to Jeff Hafley, who was the co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Ohio State in 2019. McCord began his college career with the Buckeyes in 2021 and spent three seasons in Columbus before transferring to Syracuse in 2024.
He and Hafley never overlapped, but the Dolphins could still be working with useful information from McCord’s time at Ohio State.
There’s also a link to new senior passing game coordinator Kevin Patullo, who was the Eagles’ offensive coordinator last year. McCord’s path has been a winding one already, and now Miami is betting on what he showed in Green Bay carrying over.
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The most intriguing name for Dolphins fans may be cornerback Kader Kohou, whose availability adds another layer to Miamis secondary picture. With the roster always subject to late tweaks this time of year, the possibility of a reunion is the kind of back-end move that can tell you a lot about how the front office views its current depth and whether it wants more insurance before the season settles in. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins May Have Finally Fixed Their Backup Quarterback Problem
The Dolphins spent the week reshaping the bottom of their quarterback room, moving Quinn Ewers to Jacksonville for a 2028 sixth-round pick while also waiving Cam Miller and Mark Gronowski. In return, Miami brought in Kyle McCord from Green Bay for the same kind of draft compensation, a swap that gives the team a more defined pecking order behind starter Malik Willis.
McCord is expected to handle the primary backup role, which is the part of this story Miami has been trying to settle for a while. For a team that wants stability if the starter has to miss time, the move at least gives the Dolphins a clearer answer, even if the real test will come only if Willis ever has to watch from the sideline. [Read more 🡒]
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Even with the first 53-man roster in place, this still feels more like a checkpoint than a final answer. Miami plans to keep working the waiver wire and the free-agent market before Week 1, which means some of the players who survived the first cut are hardly safe, and a few others who missed out could still find their way back into the mix before the opener. [Read more 🡒]