Jeff Hafley isn’t trying to shield his Dolphins from the messiness of training camp. He wants it. He wants the off-balance reps, the wrong answers, the moments where a player stretches past what feels safe and finds out where the edge really is.
That message has been front and center for Miami’s first-year head coach as the team heads into a busy week, with Wednesday’s joint practice against Washington coming before Friday’s preseason opener. Hafley’s point is simple: if a young team spends all camp protecting itself from mistakes, it won’t grow.
“Some guys get so comfortable, right?” Hafley said Monday.
“And they’re so scared to make a mistake that they play things safe. How do you grow if you’re going to play things safe?
That doesn’t make any sense to me because you’re comfortable or you don’t want to look bad? It’s not about looking bad.”
He’s applying that same idea to how the Dolphins work on the field. Hafley said he’s been willing to experiment with quarterback snap counts and accept some early pre-snap penalties if that’s what it takes to learn.
He also wants players trying different techniques, even when the first few reps don’t look pretty. On a recent practice, that meant telling a cornerback to use his hands and length more aggressively in team drills.
"Like step out of your comfort zone. Don’t worry about the results," Hafley said.
"That’s what practice is for. That’s why I get mad in practice.
I think bad coaching is when a guy gets beat and you just go up and you yell at him. No, ask him, ‘What did you do?
What did you see? What did you try?
Did it work? Let’s go back and watch it on film.’
If a guy’s not running to the ball or he’s (showing) lack of effort or physicality then yeah, yell at him. But this is where these guys get paralyzed in their minds, and I just don’t want that to happen.
“So when I see a long corner and I get a flashback, ‘You’re not using your length. Step and punch and try something different.’ I think that’s huge for everybody on our team, and it’s just how we need to coach these guys.”
That philosophy will get a live test this week against Washington, a setting Patrick Paul said naturally raises the intensity. Hafley hasn’t said whether players such as quarterback Malik Willis or running back De’Von Achane will play, but he made clear Monday that the full roster has to be ready.
“You never know what to expect, but you kind of just go out there, and it’s like a regular practice. You just start,” said tackle Patrick Paul, whose brother, Chris, is an offensive lineman for the Commanders.
“There’s no like pre-anything. It’s just from the jump you’re going.
It’s going to bring the best out of a lot of people because you’re going against new competition. These aren’t your teammates.
These are people you’re about to play, so you need to go out there and compete."
The Dolphins also made a move along the offensive line Monday, agreeing to acquire tackle Caedan Wallace and a 2029 seventh-round pick from the New England Patriots in exchange for a 2028 sixth-rounder. The deal is still pending a physical.
Wallace was a third-round pick out of Penn State by the Patriots in 2024 and has appeared in 10 games with two starts over the last two seasons.
Miami also placed kicker Zane Gonzalez on injured reserve and signed cornerback Nick McCloud as injuries continue to affect the secondary.
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Dolphins Veterans Are Suddenly Fighting For Their Jobs In Camp
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Bakers situation has grown even murkier because he has not been able to practice while working back from injury, and Johnson is no longer sitting comfortably in place as the safeties sort themselves out. Zayne Anderson has emerged as a real push for that spot, which is exactly the kind of competition Miami appears willing to embrace as camp moves forward and the final roster picture comes into focus. [Read more 🡒]
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Kenneth Grant, the second-year first-round pick, is the most obvious player positioned to benefit from the extra snaps. The coaching staff and front office want more from him and the rest of the line as Miami rebuilds its defense, and this latest setback only sharpens the spotlight on whether that group can carry more of the load right away. [Read more 🡒]
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On defense, the mix of veterans and rookies makes the competition even more interesting. Max Llewellyn is listed ahead of Cameron Goode at edge rusher, while Jacob Rodriguez shares a linebacker spot with Tyrel Dodson, both of which point to real battles that should carry into the rest of preseason. For Miami, the early chart does not just map out where things stand now, it also shows where jobs are still very much up for grabs. [Read more 🡒]