Miami Dolphins
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The Miami Dolphins received a brutal projection ahead of the 2026 NFL season
The Miami Dolphins’ offseason has been filled with major changes. For starters, theteam fired head coach Mike McDaniel despite winning six of their final nine games, but that was not enough to overcome a second consecutive season without a postseason appearance. Then, Miami completely turned the keys over to new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley.
Sullivan has seemingly adopted a long-term approach to rebuilding the Dolphins roster. He’s cut ties with most of Miami’s highest-paid players, asMichael Ginnitti of Spotrac revealed that the the five largest Miami Dolphins cap hits belong to players no longer on the roster. The players are: Tua Tagovailoa, Bradley Chubb, Tyreek Hill, Jalen Ramsey, and Minkah Fitzpatrick. Four of those players were either traded or released this offseason, while Ramsey was traded last season.
Despite it potentially being the correct course of action for the Dolphins to develop a team capable of winning long-term, the repercussions in the short term have left Miami’s roster with needs at a large number of positions. For that reason, an ESPN analyst has projected the Dolphins’ season to disappoint fans in 2026.
Miami Dolphins Receive 3.5-Win Projection From NFL Analyst
ESPN writer Mike Clay revealed his NFL projections ahead of the 2026 NFL season, and they were not kind to the Miami Dolphins.
Clay projected the Dolphins to win just 3.5 games, which was the lowest number predicted for any NFL team this season. Aside from Miami’s roster, Clay projected Miami to have the third-hardest schedule in the NFL which likely contributes to his low win projection.
This is a dramatic drop-off for the Dolphins, whoClay projected to win 9.5 games last season and be a top-10 team in the NFL. Miami has not won less than four games since the 2007 season, in which they went 1-15.
Regarding Miami’s units, he ranked the Dolphins’ defense as the worst in the NFL, and the offense as the second-worst. He listed the Dolphins running backs and linebackers as their two best position groups, as he gave them an 8 and 7 grade.Miami’s offensive line, tight ends, edge rushers, cornerbacks and safeties all received a 2 out of 10 grade.
Individual Projections
As far as player projections, Clay projected new Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis to have a moderately successful season. He predicted Willis would throw for 3,639 passing yards with 16 passing touchdowns and 11 interceptions. In the rushing department, he predicted 544 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
He also projected another strong season for Pro Bowl running back De’Von Achane, as he predicted Achane totaling 1,270 rushing yards and 539 receiving yards. That would leave Achane with only 29 less scrimmage yards than he had in the 2025 season.
Waddle is also projected to have his best season since 2022, as he’s projected to total 1,105 receiving yards.
Defensively, Chop Robinson is projected to lead the team with 7.5 sacks, which would be a new career-high for him. Previously, Bradley Chubb led the team with 8.5 sacks last season, but has since signed with the Buffalo Bills.