Jonah Savaiinaea was one of, if not the worst, graded guards in the NFL last year. His rookie season was full of problems, and even at his best, he barely reached bad. Yes, it was that bad.
Savaiinaea was another one of Chris Grier's offensive line mistakes. One of his Liam Eichenberg-level trade-ups that didn't pan out. The Dolphins were stubborn; they thought they knew better. Dolphins fans had seen enough.
Then something happened. The new regime moved him back to the right side of the line, and he started to get better. Now, as he enters his second NFL season, Aaron Brewer is seeing the changes that no one thought were possible.
"Jonah (Saviianaea) I feel is better in all areas: pass game, run game. IQ of the game," Brewer said. "I feel like he developed a lot."
Jonah Savaiinaea looks to rebound from his poor Miami Dolphins rookie season
The Dolphins must see something good in the sophomore guard. Savaiinaea didn't play much in the preseason as he took the games off alongside most of the other starters. That's a good sign that Miami didn't feel he needed the extra work.
Savaiinaea is playing more physically. That's something he didn't do last season, but under Mike McDaniel, the Dolphins' offensive line wasn't intended to be bullies; they just needed to hold their blocks for a few seconds. That isn't what the Dolphins are preaching now.
The Dolphins' right guard isn't the only one who has impressed Brewer. Rookie Kadyn Proctor entered the NFL with a lot of questions from the media. Mostly directed at the consistency of his work ethic. Brewer said that Proctor has shown a good ability to handle both run and pass protections, but he also said that this is the regular season now and "We will get a better idea of where he is at."
"That's an athletic big dude," Brewer said. "You don't see people that big be able to move how he move."
The Dolphins' offensive line is going to be critical to their success. Patrick Paul anchors the left side with Austin Jackson on the right. Brewer is a proven power at center, so the only two questions are: what will the guards be able to do?
Proctor and Savaiinaea have a lot to prove. The good news is they are both power football players, and that bodes well for them when attacking defenders. Miami's offensive line is going to improve as the season moves along, but the key is to stay healthy.
Regardless of how the season unfolds, the fact that we are hearing that Savaiinaea is improving is something no one thought was possible prior to the start of the offseason practices.
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