Zach Sieler doesn’t get enough respect, but that isn’t new

Zach Sieler is a favorite among many Dolphins fans, but even most of them aren’t aware just how good he could be. When it comes to the national media, the majority don’t even know who he is-but they should.

His road to Miami

It isn’t surprising that he’s been overlooked, Sieler has been overlooked for the majority of his playing career. In 2013, Seiler graduated from Pinckney High School in Michigan. The zero-star recruit then walked on at Division II Ferris State University-a program that had never had a player drafted into the NFL prior to his enrolment.

To pop up on the NFL’s radar, small school players need to dominate their competition. That is surely not how Sieler began his playing career. As his coach at Ferris State Tony Annese would explain, “people don’t know this but Zach, through his first two years at Ferris, didn’t even step on the field.” That’s right, Sieler took two full seasons to even crack the lineup, partly because he showed up to campus weighing a whopping 220 lbs.

"“What’s great about him is he’s one of the hardest working young men I’ve ever been around. He’s also one of the nicest, kindest persons I’ve ever been around.” -Tony Annese via John Raffel @ The Big Rapids Pioneer."

Once Zach was able to get onto the field though, he made the most of his opportunities. In his final two seasons he racked up 29.5 tackles for loss and 16.5 sacks, earning himself numerous post season awards and distinctions. Sieler did test out fairly well at his pro-day, but at 6’6″ 290 lbs he was a bit of a tweener. Sieler wasn’t given much attention in the draft process-he finished #312 on the consensus big board – but the Baltimore Ravens took a shot on him in the 7th round with pick number 238.

Unfortunately for Baltimore, Sieler never really caught on there. He appeared in two games his rookie season, but would be waived the following year when the team signed center Hronis Grasu to bolster their offensive line for the playoffs. In an interesting twist of fate, Grasu was brought on to bolster the offensive line due to Matt Skura’s (Skura is Miami’s presumptive center for 2021) severe knee injury in 2019.

When Baltimore waived Sieler, the Miami Dolphins quickly put in a claim. Sieler was another addition in a long list of waiver wire pick ups for the 2019 Miami Dolphins. He flashed down the stretch, but it was hard to determine who would stick around from those additions and who would be pushed out by free agent and draft acquisitions.

Coming into his own

It didn’t take much time for coaches and fans to realize that Sieler wasn’t just a flash in the pan. He started off 2020 hot with 21 tackles, 1 sack, 2  TFL’s, and 8 QB hits in the first 8 games. After that hot start, he signed a contract extension on November 16th that would keep him in Miami through 2023.

After signing that extension we started to see just how good Sieler could be. Ferris State didn’t have a strength coach or a nutritionist. Sieler and some of his fellow walk-ons had to put in the work themselves to grow and improve. After two and a half years of NFL coaching and strength training, Sieler had finally started to scratch the surface.

In Sieler’s final 8 games of 2020, he was among the most productive defensive linemen in the NFL against the run. His 9 TFL’s were tied for second in the NFL with Aaron Donald and JJ Watt-and he did it on fewer snaps than either of them. His 0.2 WAR (wins above replacement) was also tied for second during that time span.

Stats are courtesy of SIS Data Hub Pro

Video was captured using NFL Game Pass. Uploaded for educational purposes, not my property. 

Sieler’s ability against the run is where he really shined, but he was also Miami’s best interior pass rusher. He led the team in sacks (3.5), sack rate (1.2%), pressures (22), and pressure rate (7.6%) from the interior. There’s still room to grow in that area, but he is far from being deficient.

His future in Miami

One of Chris Grier’s best moves was extending Sieler when he did. When you consider that Davon Godchaux just signed with the Patriots for 2 years $15 million dollars, the 2 years $7.6 million dollar extension that Sieler agreed to is quite the steal. The 2024 offseason could be an interesting one for Sieler and the Miami Dolphins. He will still be just 28 years of age and if his level of play remains consistent, he should be in for a decent pay day. Whether the Dolphins will be willing to pay-up is the question.

The lack of attention on his accomplishments comes down to perception. He was a late round draft pick from a small Division II program that got cut during his second year in the league. It is going to remain an uphill battle to shift that perception. Make no mistake about it though, he was one of the best defensive lineman in the NFL down the stretch in 2020 and there’s no reason to think it was a fluke.

Zach Sieler is finally coming into his own and I would bet that this perpetual underdog isn’t finished proving people wrong.