Miami Dolphins offensive line will be a work in progress

The Miami Dolphins finally decided to make the offensive line a priority, but don’t expect them to be a top NFL line just yet. They have to progress.

Is this the end of the Miami Dolphins constant merry-go-round of offensive lineman. A turnstile that has continued to rotate for the better part of a decade? The last time that the Dolphins had a good offensive line was when Richie Incognito was the starting guard, Mike Pouncey was the starting center, and Jonathan Martin was the starting right tackle. Thanks Martin!

Since then, the Dolphins brass has viewed the line as something they could get by with and not something they needed to fix. It was patchworked. A piece here then a removal there and another mid-round draft pick that wouldn’t pan out. These were the Jamal Douglas, Billy Turner, and Dallas Thomas types. And then there was the horrible line coaching that resulted in turnover at that level as well.

Now, we see that the Dolphins have put an emphasis on fixing the problems that have plagued the team but they need to be coached because there are questions. These guys can be great or simply another in a long line of players walking through that revolving door.

Entering the 2020 off-season, the Dolphins needed to make the line a priority. Last year was more of the same. In free agency, they added Ereck Flowers, a former first-round pick who was drafted to play tackle but performed better as a guard. The Dolphins are hoping he can continue that improvement.

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The team invested a first-round pick in Austin Jackson this year but he is not a walk-on ready NFL tackle. He will need to develop a little more and while it was a mild reach at 18 overall, he was viewed as the best tackle remaining at that time. In round two, the Dolphins went big again with Robert Hunt. Hunt is a big lineman with a mauler mentality but like Jackson, he needs to develop at the next level and good coaching will bring that out. Brian Flores believes the team can do just that.

The Dolphins were not done with offensive lineman. In round four they drafted another big body lineman, Solomon Kindley who played next to first-round pick Andrew Thomas at Alabama. Thomas was drafted 4th overall and was scouted by the Dolphins. Kindley is another physical football player and it shows a shift in ideas within the Dolphins organization. Miami is looking for physical players. It’s why the signed former Patriots center Ted Karras in free agency as well.

Most believe that Miami is ready to improve leaps and bounds over the last few seasons but the reality is all of these players will need to develop but more importantly they will need to learn to play together. The good news is they will get that chance. They are all coming onto the roster at the same time and all share youth on their side.