The Miami Dolphins made headlines after last season when they parted ways with head coach Mike McDaniel, who coached the team from 2022 to 2025, and hired Jeff Hafley.
Even though McDaniel’s record with the team was 35-33, he’s seen as an offense mastermind in the league, so it was a surprise.
Now, Hafley already has his work cut out for him with the Dolphins. That’s especially true when you see the team’s bottom-out power ranking position.
In ESPN’s post-draft power rankings, out this week, the publication ranks the Dolphins as the worst team in the league going into the new season.
“Miami spent first- and sixth-round picks on Kadyn Proctor and DJ Campbell, respectively, adding physicality and depth to an offensive line that needed both,” Marcel Louis-Jacques notes in the piece. “It also signed Jamaree Salyer to compete for a starting job with last year’s second-round pick, Jonah Savaiinaea, at right guard.”
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He adds, “Proctor played tackle at Alabama, so he could be a long-term replacement for Austin Jackson. However, GM Jon-Eric Sullivan said the team plans to play Proctor at left guard in 2026. The Dolphins want to rely on the run next season, and they’ve operated as such through free agency and the draft.”
Why It Matters: The Dolphins Have a Problem
Louis-Jacques is right that the Dolphins’ squad is already looking rough this season. He didn’t mention the team trading star wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, which is also seen as a blow to the lineup.
The Dolphins didn’t get anything out of the deal. In exchange, the Broncos sent a 2026 first-round pick (No. 30), a third-round pick (No. 94), and a fourth-round pick (No. 130) to the team, but what they did with those picks may not add up to losing Waddle.
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