The Miami Dolphins were one of the busiest teams on the first day of free agency, dramatically speeding up their rebuild with several big-name signings. We’ve seen this strategy backfire throughout the league on multiple occasions, but the Dolphins seem to know what they’re doing. Based on their early actions, the team knows the important positions to address and have successfully identified the best fits at said positions. There’s still a lot of work to do, but the Dolphins are on the right track to success.
Miami Dolphins Rebuild Off to a Strong Start
The Dolphins had holes throughout their roster and knew they couldn’t possibly address them all at once. With that in mind, Miami spent most of the day improving their defense. Defensive performance is inherently volatile, but Brian Flores and company appear to have targeted the best possible fits.
The biggest addition was easily cornerback Byron Jones. Jones isn’t quite on the same level as Stephon Gilmore and Tre’Davious White, but he’s in the tier right below that. While he doesn’t get as many interceptions as you’d like, he’s sticky in coverage and can hold his own against just about any type of receiver. Combining him with a guy like Xavien Howard gives the Dolphins one of the best one-two cornerback tandems in the league. Recent research by Pro Football Focus shows that pass coverage is more important than pass rush, although both obviously are important. By investing in an elite secondary, Miami’s defense should dramatically improve in 2020.
Jones was the biggest name, but he wasn’t the only one. The Dolphins also added edge defenders Kyle Van Noy and Shaq Lawson. Van Noy, a jack of all trades, has the versatility to play on the edge and as a traditional linebacker. Brian Flores obviously knows how to use him, seeing as the two spent years together in New England. Van Noy was one of the most important players in New England’s defense and should play a similarly important role in Miami. Lawson, meanwhile, specializes at getting to the quarterback and providing solid play against the run. This isn’t an elite front seven by any means of the imagination, but it doesn’t need to be. With Jones and Howard providing coverage on the back end, Van Noy and Lawson should have plenty of time to get to the quarterback.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Dolphins signed Ereck Flowers to a three-year, $30 million deal. While this does feel like something of an overpay, he actually wasn’t that bad last year. After spending the early part of his career as a below-average tackle, Flowers spent 2019 at guard for the Washington Redskins. While nobody would confuse him with Quenton Nelson, he was an adequate starter and provided reliable protection. Is he worth $10 million per year? Probably not, but the Dolphins can afford a contract like this. They overpaid for a solid starter, but it still made the team better.
What’s Left to Do
The Dolphins still have a lot to do before they’re ready to truly contend. With the defense addressed, the Dolphins should switch their focus to the offensive side of the ball. There isn’t a free-agent quarterback that makes sense for Miami, so they should work on making life as easy as possible for their next franchise guy.
This starts by doing more to fix the offensive line. Flowers is a nice start, but the Dolphins still need to upgrade the other four starting spots. Miami missed out on Jack Conklin, but they can still get a good short-term fix in Jason Peters. Even though he’s near the end of his career, Peters can still play at a high level and make life easier for a rookie passer. Additionally, he can provide veteran leadership and guidance if the Dolphins take someone like Josh Jones in the first round. Center is easier to address, as the difference between a great and average center doesn’t typically reflect in the win-loss column. The Dolphins could probably find a cost-effective starter like Ted Karras later on in the week.
Miami’s receivers are solid, but they could be even better by adding someone like Robby Anderson. Anderson is something of a one-trick pony, but he does that one trick incredibly well. The speedster could provide a reliable vertical threat to the offense, which would only make life easier for DeVante Parker and whoever is throwing passes next year. Anderson, Parker, and Preston Williams would be one of the better wide receiver trios in the league, and adding Peters and Karras would give the Dolphins a servicable offensive line. They’re still probaby not ready to compete in 2020, but it’s a strong base on which to rebuild your roster.
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