The Miami Dolphins have been the NFL’s most disappointing team through the season’s first five weeks. They’ve been bad (2-3 as they enter their bye) and boring.
No surprise, then, that the Dolphins’ report card a third of the way through the season is largely a bunch of ugly grades.
Miami Dolphins Grades Through 5 Games
Quarterback | D-
Even before Tua Tagovailoa got hurt, the production from this position wasn’t what it should have been.
But after he went down, things got really bad.
In the three games since Tagovailoa’s concussion, the Dolphins rank last in dropback success rate (33.3%) and 29th in dropback EPA (-.22). Tyler Huntley ranks 36th in EPA+CPOE (-.005) out of 38 passers with 20 or more snaps this year.
Wide Receivers | C-
Let’s not grade this unit on production alone. It’s not their fault that Huntley and Skylar Thompson haven’t seen them when open.
But even grading on that curve, this has been below standards for Tyreek Hill (59% catch rate, 35.9% success rate) and Jaylen Waddle (42.9% success rate, four drops).
The Dolphins’ WR3 position has four catches for 51 yards, zero touchdowns, and four interceptions on 15 targets this year. Their QBs’ combined rating when targeting any wide receiver other than Waddle and Hill? 1.7.
Running Back | B
The Dolphins rank 31st in rush EPA (-.263) and 25th in rush success rate (37%), but that’s been more a function of play-calling and situational blocking than the quality of Raheem Mostert, Jaylen Wright, and De’Von Achane (who’s dealing with a concussion).
Yes, Mostert is averaging just 3.6 yards per carry, but that’s because he’s getting just three-fifths of a yard per carry before contact (152nd among all NFL players).
Wright ranks fourth among all rookie running backs in yards per attempt (4.8), and fullback Alec Ingold has been a battering ram.
Tight End | F
Where to begin?
Perhaps here:
Julian Hill is the Dolphins’ highest-usage tight end (47.7% participation rate), and he has more than twice as many penalties (seven, for 50 yards) as he has catches (three, for 30 yards).
In all, the Dolphins have gotten 22 catches for 197 yards and zero touchdowns on 37 targets (5.3 yards per attempt) when throwing to their tight ends.
And their run blocking hasn’t been much better. They’ve far too often lost their battles at the point of attack. What’s happened to Durham Smythe?
Offensive Line | B
Terron Armstead alone brings this unit up an entire letter grade. When healthy, he’s been excellent, particularly in the run game. He’s also allowed just five pressures and no sacks in 115 pass-block snaps (4.3% pressure rate).
As a unit, Miami is in the top half in both pass-block win rate (61%) and run-block win rate (71%). The Dolphins are also seventh in pressure rate (28.5%) and 14th in yards before contact per carry (1.6).
Miami’s offensive line hasn’t been perfect, but it’s been good enough.
Defensive Line | B+
The Dolphins’ top two interior defensive linemen have been excellent this year.
Zach Sieler and Calais Campbell have combined for four sacks, seven tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hits, and 13 pressures. Both rank in the top 20 in pass-rush win rate at their position (16% for Campbell, 11% for Sieler).
Sieler, in particular, has been an ironman, logging 225 of a possible 287 snaps. The issue for the Dolphins has come during the 130 snaps in which Campbell has been off the field.
Backups Da’Shawn Hand and Benito Jones have combined for one sack, three pressures, and two tackles for loss. Jones has been a liability on run defense.
EDGE | C+
The Dolphins don’t have a single outside linebacker in the top 20 in pass-rush win rate or one in the top 10 in run-stop win rate.
They don’t have a player, regardless of position, on pace for double-digit sacks. And with Jaelan Phillips out for the rest of the year, it’ll be a smoke-and-mirrors approach for Anthony Weaver until Bradley Chubb (knee) comes off of injured reserve.
Emmanuel Ogbah has been the Dolphins’ best pass rusher this year, leading the team with two sacks, four tackles for loss, and five QB hits.
The knock on Chop Robinson in college — that he is disruptive but doesn’t really make many plays — has carried over into the NFL. He has zero sacks, one tackle for loss, and one quarterback hit in 131 snaps despite ranking third among all rookies in pressure rate (13.3%) with 60 or more pass-rush snaps.
Linebackers | B
Jordyn Brooks is probably the Dolphins’ No. 1 offseason acquisition. He’s the only player on either side of the ball with a 100% participation rate this year, yet has just one missed tackle in 40 tries.
Brooks has also been an effective blitzer, bringing pressure on 28% of his pass-rush snaps.
David Long Jr. has been solid as always against the run, but he’s been a liability in coverage, surrendering 8.3 yards per target and a 125.0 opponent passer rating. Long has also missed three tackles this year.
Backups Anthony Walker and Duke Riley have been fine, but nothing special.
Secondary | B-
While Jalen Ramsey has been largely excellent (particularly in the run game), more has certainly been expected from this star-studded group — particularly at safety.
Dolphins defensive backs have given up two touchdowns and have surrendered completions on 62% of their coverage area, with a 7.2 yards-per-pass average. The group as a whole has one interception.
But those stats would look much better without Jordan Poyer, who has allowed completions on eight of nine attempts for 136 yards (15.1 per target). It’ll be interesting to see how the defense fairs while Jevon Holland recovers from a hand issue.
Kendall Fuller (71.9 passer rating against) and Kader Kohou (66.2) have been largely solid at corner.
Special Teams | D-
The only reason we didn’t give the Dolphins an F?
Braxton Berrios ranks second in the NFL in punt-return average (17.0) among returners with five or more opportunities. He’s also been a capable kickoff returner.
Beyond that? Yikes.
Jason Sanders has missed half of his field-goal attempts between 40 and 49 yards (the second-worst success rate in football).
Jake Bailey is one of five players to have a punt blocked this year, and his net (39.6 yards per punt) ranks 29th.
Danny Crossman’s unit has also committed far too many penalties and skipped a snap on a field-goal attempt.
Overall | D+
If not for a forgiving schedule, the Dolphins very easily could be 0-5. They’ve led for just 11 minutes, eight seconds of a possible 300 minutes this year.
They are 31st of 32 teams in point differential (-10.6 per game) and DVOA (-38.6%), and 30th in penalties (43 for 390 yards).
Miami’s two wins have come against teams that would draft in the top seven if the season ended today.
Mike McDaniel has not maximized his talent a third of the way through the 2024 season.
