The Miami Dolphins are in purgatory. For the most part, they’ve built the team they want. The pieces are in place. But, like many teams, they find themselves wondering if their quarterback Tua Tagovailoa can stay healthy and take them to the level they need to be at. Only one team out of 32 gets to win, so that’s no easy task.

Our goal here today is to look at all of their weapons and predict how the NFL offseason plays out. We’ll look at the depth chart, the contracts, the cap space, and the free agents to make our assessment. Maybe you can even use this information to get an advantage in your dynasty fantasy football leagues or early best ball drafts, if you dabble in those. So, let’s dive in!

*The salary cap numbers referenced in this article come courtesy of our friends over at Spotrac.com*

 

 

 

Miami Dolphins Depth Chart 2025 (Fantasy Football Relevant)

QB

Tua Tagovailoa

Tyler Huntley

  

RB

De'Von Achane

Raheem Mostert

Jaylen Wright

Jeff Wilson

WR

Tyreek Hill

Tahj Washington

River Cracraft

Grant DuBose

WR

Jaylen Waddle

Erik Ezukanma

D'Wayne Eskridge

 

WR

Braxton Berrios

Malik Washington

Anthony Schwartz

 

TE

Jonnu Smith

Julian Hill

Durham Smythe

Jack Stoll

FB

Alec Ingold

   
  • White = unrestricted free agent
  • Green = role is safe
  • Yellow = role in flux
  • Orange = likely a depth piece
  • Red = roster spot not guaranteed

Miami Dolphins Free Agency 2025

  • CURRENT PROJECTED 2025 SALARIES: ~$286M
  • CURRENT ESTIMATED 2025 CAP SPACE: ~-$8M

 

 

 

Dolphins Quarterback Depth Chart

Tua Tagovailoa: Tua got a massive contract this past offseason that locks him in for the long haul. And, like many massive QB contracts, there is an ability to restructure to free up space in the current year. A max restructure for Tua per Spotrac could create $19.1M in cap space though doing that makes it harder to get out of the contract in future years if they want to do that. 

Tyler Huntley: I’m sure they would love to have Tyler Huntley back, especially with Tua’s injury history. But he’s an unrestricted free agent and, given the QB market, he might want to try his hand one more time at competing for a starting job. The Dolphins have to be careful with their cap space so they might have to go for the cheapest viable option. 

  • Reserves/Futures: N/A

DOLPHINS QB FREE AGENCY TAKE: Tyler Huntley is a Florida native. He’s mentioned that he would be interested in coming back. As always though, it boils down to money and opportunity. 

If he’s willing to take a hometown discount, then it’s a no brainer. But other teams might be interested in the service of Snoop. And they may offer both more money and a better shot at playing. Here are the other options that might be cheaper. 

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Teddy Bridgewater, Case Keenum, Cooper Rush, Sam Ehlinger

 

 

 

Dolphins Running Back Depth Chart

De'Von Achane: De'Von Achane has proven fairly quickly that, when healthy, he’s been one of league’s most explosive backs. This year he was able to remain healthy while compiling just shy of 1,500 yards from scrimmage despite not having 1,000 yards rushing.

Guys like Alvin Kamara and Austin Ekeler never had a 1,000-yard rushing season either so we’re not super worried about that for fantasy football in your dynasty leagues. For me, a guy like De'Von Achane belongs right there with Jahmyr Gibbs in the rankings so, if your league-mates don’t view him that way, I’d see if you can pry him away. 

Raheem Mostert: The Dolphins have released Raheem Mostert amid their cap crunch. He had a monster season in 2023 with 21 total touchdowns but injuries derailed his 2024. He’s 32 years old but should be able to catch on somewhere if he plans to play. Maybe he’ll make his way back to San Francisco to serve as depth there. 

Jaylen Wright: The biggest beneficiary of the Raheem Mostert move is easily Jaylen Wright. And it proves why we bet on talent in dynasty leagues over situations. The Dolphins like using multiple backs so they drafted Wright in the third round despite already having Achane and Mostert. Now the super speedster should be in the mix regularly.  

 

 

 

Jeff Wilson: Like Mostert, Wilson was brought over from the 49ers as a vet with experience in Mike McDaniel’s system. He was supposed to be the bruiser back but injuries and the goalline work for Mostert made him obsolete. He’s an unrestricted free agent and could find a spot on the roster in 2025 if he takes the veteran minimum but there’s no urgency to bring him back.

Alec Ingold: Like Kyle Juszczyk in San Francisco, the fullback Alec Ingold is crucial to the scheme. And he’s safely under contract through 2026. Barring a major scheme change, he’ll be there. 

  • Reserves/Futures: N/A

DOLPHINS RB FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Dolphins are pretty set at the top of the depth chart, even with Mostert gone. But they will need depth as you can’t just go into the season with two backs. And the two they have are a bit undersized as is.

The draft is always an option. In free agency, they can go three ways here. They could bring in a complimentary bruiser. They could bring in a similar speedster to Achane/Wright and have three of them. Or they could focus mostly on special teamers. The bruiser would have the most chance to actually contribute on offense so here are the affordable options there. 

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Cam Akers, Elijah Mitchell, Khalil Herbert, AJ Dillon, D'Onta Foreman, Jeff Wilson

 

 

 

Dolphins Wide Receiver Depth Chart

Tyreek Hill: There are some players who never say or do anything off the field. For instance, we rarely hear from a guy like Keenan Allen. Tyreek Hill is quite the opposite. He’s pretty consistently making his way into the newspaper either for doing or saying something. And it’s almost never good. Towards the end of the season, he made these comments.

“I’m out,” Hill said at the time. “It was great playing here but at the end of the day, I have to do what’s best for my career.”

He’s since backtracked on that. But it’s not the first comment he’s made in recent years about retiring in the near future or wanting more money or whatever else. Whether he wants a trade or not, the Dolphins may have to start considering it given their cap situation and his looming ~$50 million cap hit next year. 

In your dynasty leagues, just holding onto a guy with as many off field issues as Hill is a risk in itself. Just like Antonio Brown, when he’s playing he’s incredible but antics have me a little concerned about how things might end for the 30 year old.

Jaylen Waddle: Jaylen Waddle is an interesting player because, on paper, he’s having a good career. I mean, 4,129 yards through his first four seasons is top 30 all time for a wide receiver. His 66.6 yards per game is more than Keyshaun Johnson (66.3), Cooper Kipp (66.1), Brandon Marshall (65.9), Andre Rison (65.4), Andre Johnson (64.8). 

We are talking about Hall of Fame caliber players here. Yet because of the lack of success for the Dolphins paired with a lack of consistency for Waddle (partially due to injuries to himself and Tua Tagovailoa), we don’t view him as a high end player. 

Well, the industry at large doesn’t at least. This is the exact kind of player I personally look to buy in dynasty as he’s smack in the middle of the age apex for wide receivers at 26 years old. And Tyreek Hill isn’t getting any younger.

Braxton Berrios: Berrios was operating in his typical role of special teams with a little slot work before tearing his ACL. He’s now an unrestricted free agent and the work done by Malik Washington in his place combined with the injury could see the Dolphins move on in 2025.

Malik Washington: The problem you run into with an offense like Miami is that they use a fullback. That limits them to a lot of two WR sets. As long as Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are there, everyone else is capped out. 

Washington is a sixth round pick so he may just end up being a special teams ace anyway. He returns both kicks and punts which can keep you employed in this league for a long time. 

 

 

 

Tahj Washington: The 7th round rookie was placed on season-ending IR before the year even started, effectively giving him a red-shirt season. Like many Day Three picks, he can be released for very little dead cap so his roster spot is not guaranteed. 

Erik Ezukanma: Injuries have derailed the career of Ezukanma to the point where he has one one reception in four seasons. He can be released with zero dead cap and $1.1M in savings so he basically needs to make the roster from scratch here. 

River Cracraft: Cracraft is an unrestricted free agent. If he’s going to be back, it would need to be on a very cheap contract with plans of using him primarily on special teams, as he’s been utilized in the past. 

D'Wayne Eskridge: The Dolphins gave Dee Eskridge a shot after he flamed out in Seattle. He was already an older prospect as it was, so he turns 28 next month. He’s an unrestricted free agent and I don’t expect him back. 

Anthony Schwartz: Another failed draft prospect that they gave a shot to, this time from the Cleveland Browns. The speedy field stretcher is an unrestricted free agent so will likely test the market. 

Grant DuBose: The Dolphins claimed Grant DuBose from the Packers practice squad. He appeared in two games early in the season but ended up on the IR. He returned later in the year and suffered a very serious head injury that saw him briefly in a coma. He returned home after a brief hospital stay. He’s an unrestricted free agent so will be battling to return with a lot of the other options here.

DOLPHINS WR FREE AGENCY TAKE: The truth about this scheme is that the WR3 is not pivotal. As we mentioned above, they use a lot of fullback and multiple RB sets which limits the usefulness of that role. Barring a Tyreek Hill trade, there isn’t much need to bring in productive free agents. 

They don’t really have the money for it anyway. If anything they might want to take a stab in the draft on a player to develop for the future. Most likely they just bring a few of their own guys back on cheap deals to serve as depth and help on special teams. 

 

 

 

Dolphins Tight End Depth Chart

Jonnu Smith: This was one of the best signings of the 2024 off-season. Not only because of how productive Jonnu Smith was but because of the impressive roster maneuvering in adding him.

The Dolphins had multiple high-end free agents leave in 2024, like Robert Hunt and Christian Wilkins, that they wanted to collect compensatory picks for. Signing incoming free agents can cancel out those picks. 

Because Jonnu Smith was technically released by the Falcons, however, he doesn’t count against that comp pick formula. He was one of the few tight ends they could sign that wouldn’t have a shot at canceling out the 3rd or 4th round comp picks they are set to get back. Just a masterclass by Chris Grier.  

The question is not whether Jonnu Smith will be back to play in the “George Kittle” role for this scheme as he’s under contract for 2025. The question is whether they should sign him to an additional extension to lock him up for multiple years. 

Julian Hill: The Dolphins want a two-way tight end that can both block and catch passes. And the blocking is very important. That’s why Durham Smythe surpassed Mike Gesicki previously. But the pass-catching is likely why Julian Hill surpassed Durham Smythe. He’s likely to remain the TE2 behind Jonnu. 

Durham Smythe: Durham Smythe was released by the Dolphins after seven seasons as part of their attempt to save cap space. He’ll try to catch on as a blocking tight end elsewhere.

Tanner Conner: Converted WRs are typically interesting to us in the fantasy football world when they get TE eligibility. But this scheme simply doesn't have a role for that kind of player. He could be released with zero dead cap and $1.1M in saving. 

Jack Stoll: Stoll was released by the Eagles in November, so the Dolphins gave him a shot. Like everyone else who is an unrestricted free agent, he’ll need to take a super team-friendly deal if he wants to hang around.

 

DOLPHINS TE FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Dolphins are likely happy with Jonnu Smith and Julian Hill at the top of the depth chart. They will need to fill in-depth behind them, likely with guys that also play special teams. If they want a blocking tight end to replace Durham Smythe, here are the affordable options.