With the NFL offseason almost wrapped up and training camp coming to a close soon, it’s a good time to take a look at each NFL team’s offseason recap as we get just a few weeks away from the start of the regular season. Let’s take a look at the Miami Dolphins’ new team and analyze the team’s incoming and outgoing players as they shape up for the 2026 season.
The Dolphins are entering a new regime under new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley and made quite a few moves over the offseason as the Dolphins enter their rebuild.
The first of their major acquisitions was signing quarterback Malik Willis to a three-year, $67.5 million contract with $45 million fully guaranteed. The Dolphins have officially moved on from the Tagovailoa era and have now handed over the reins to Willis. Willis is a dynamic dual-threat quarterback who can trouble defenses on the ground or through the air, but is unproven and has limited starts in his young NFL career. It’s a pretty high-risk move for the Dolphins as Willis only has 22 career games and six starts spread across four seasons, but the Dolphins are entering a rebuild and believe it’s the right time to take a gamble on a new quarterback.
The Dolphins also signed receivers Jalen Tolbert and Jalen Reagor in free agency. Miami needed some receiver depth badly after they released Tyreek Hill and traded Jaylen Waddle over the offseason. Tolbert had an solid 2024 season with the Cowboys, where he hauled in 49 passes for 610 yards and seven touchdowns, but had a down year in 2025 where he barely eclipsed 200 receiving yards. While Miami’s receiver room won’t be as strong as it was last year, there will be some young talent for Willis to mesh and build chemistry with.
Lastly, Miami brought in pass rushers David Ojabo and Josh Uche to help fill the role left by Bradley Chubb, who left for the Bills in free agency. Both pass rushers have dealt with injuries and inconsistent performances early in their careers, but they are still very talented pass rushers who will get a chance at a fresh start in Miami.
The Dolphins lost a ton of valuable players over the offseason, such as Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Minkah Fitzpatrick and Bradley Chubb. All of those players were key pieces within the previous Dolphins regime and will be hard to replace immediately for this upcoming season.
Miami’s biggest departure of the offseason was moving on from Tagovailoa after six seasons and bringing Malik Willis in as his replacement. Tagovailoa signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons and is currently in a QB battle with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting role.
In previous years, the receiver duo of Hill and Waddle was a terrifying sight for opposing defenses as both talented playmakers could break a game open with their game-changing speed. Unfortunately for the Dolphins, those years are over as Hill suffered major injuries last season and was a cap-casualty cut for the Dolphins, and Waddle was dealt to the Broncos in exchange for a 2026 first-round pick, third-round pick and fourth-round pick.
Defensive stars such as Bradley Chubb and Minkah Fitzpatrick also left as Chubb signed with the Bills and Fitzpatrick was traded to the Jets.
The 2026 NFL Draft was a sole bright spot during the offseason for the Dolphins as they accumulated plenty of young talent in the draft, especially with the extra draft capital received from the Waddle trade. The Dolphins selected a total of 13 players, including six in the top 100. Their main selections included Kadyn Proctor, Chris Johnson, Jacob Rodriguez, Caleb Douglas and Chris Bell.
Proctor was Miami’s first pick in the draft at pick 12 and fills a big need on the offensive line. Proctor has excellent size for a lineman at 6-foot-7, 352 pounds and was a consensus All-American in 2025 for Alabama. He has experience at multiple positions on the line and can slide in wherever needed. The Dolphins used their second first-round pick on cornerback Chris Johnson, who Miami traded up to No. 27 to select. Johnson is listed as the starting nickelback and will have an opportunity to make an impact immediately as the Dolphins underwent quite a few changes in the secondary.
The Dolphins also drafted a pair of receivers in Caleb Douglas and Chris Bell to help fill the gap left by Waddle and Hill. Douglas, who was drafted out of Texas Tech in the third round, is listed at 6’4″ and gives Willis a new big target for the new season, and Bell was a first-team All-ACC selection in 2025 and finished his Louisville career with 151 receptions for 2,166 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The Dolphins have made it clear they are entering the 2026 season with a fresh team and under a new regime. Both sides of the football have undergone significant changes, especially the offense, which has lost their best playmakers in Tagovailoa, Hill and Waddle. Malik Willis will have a tall task of getting the most out of his offense with a young receiving group and very young offensive line. A bright spot within the offense entering the season is running back De’Von Achane, who signed a four-year, $64 million extension in the offseason that can reach $68 million with incentives, and the Dolphins will rely on him heavily in the run game. Achane had his best season as a pro in 2025 and led the NFL with 5.7 yards per carry in 2025.
The Dolphins’ defense has just as many questions entering the season with many fresh faces in the lineup. Jordyn Brooks, who also signed an extension through 2029, will still be leading their defense and will be tasked with getting the most out of his new teammates and acquisitions. Expectations are significantly lower for Miami this season as it’s year one of the rebuild, but it’ll be key to see how Willis leads at the helm in his first real chance at quarterback and with the electric Achane running behind him.
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