Bleacher Report ranks Miami Dolphins 7th in brightest future standings

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 26: Myles Gaskin #37 of the Miami Dolphins reacts to missed chance during a 26-25 Dolphins win over the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on December 26, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 26: Myles Gaskin #37 of the Miami Dolphins reacts to missed chance during a 26-25 Dolphins win over the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on December 26, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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A recent article from Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox pegged the Miami Dolphins at number seven in the rankings of franchises best set up for the future, and I have a few gripes.

At first glance, the ranking seems about right. The roster is young and there is a multitude of assets from which to build, but there are question marks that remain. Is Tua Tagovailoa the long-term answer at quarterback? Is the offensive line being built the correct way? Is Brian Flores destined to stumble like many other Bill Belichick understudies have done before?

But in reading the rest of the article and the reasons why certain teams’ futures were ranked higher than the Dolphins, things didn’t add up as much.

The Miami Dolphins are set up well for the future. Are they outside the top-5 compared to other franchises? One Bleacher Report writer thinks so.

The Cardinals, for instance, are ranked just ahead of Miami at number 6. Knox’s reasoning for placing Arizona ahead is the already established presence of Kyler Murray. This makes sense, but ignores the fact that the Dolphins are currently projected to have the 6th most cap space of any team next off-season, while the Cardinals come in at number 22. If Tagovailoa is even 75% of what Murray ends up being, then the Dolphins’ future is easily ranked higher than seventh.

The fifth ranked team is the Cleveland Browns. They are certainly talented across the board and should be contenders this coming season, but their 27th ranking in projected cap space for 2022 is concerning. There will likely be drastic changes made to the roster should the Browns try to free up some cash, which Knox alludes to by mentioning the potential departures of Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry.

The San Francisco 49ers, the fourth ranked team, will have a good amount of money to spend next off-season, but they also mortgaged much of their immediate draft future (to the Dolphins) when trading up for Trey Lance in the 2021 Draft. They will be without their own first round pick for the next two seasons, and will be back to square one if Lance doesn’t pan out. While the 49ers certainly do have young, proven talent, they have one of the oldest rosters in the league according to Andrew Walker.

The top three teams on the list, in ascending order, are the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, and Kansas City Chiefs. There aren’t a lot of gripes about these, as these teams feature three of the best up-and-coming quarterbacks that the league has to offer.

So where should the Dolphins rank? Homer-ism wants to put them at number four, but the fifth slot is the more likely landing spot for Miami. Much of this rest of the development of Tagovailoa, as Knox’s article tends to be quarterback-centric. If Tua can make a big leap this season, don’t be surprised to see the Miami Dolphins near the top of these lists by this time next year.