The Miami Dolphins are in the middle of exploding a roster that, not many moons ago, was esteemed as one of the best in the NFL. Or at least a collection of star power that was good enough to get to the Super Bowl.
Things didn't quite pan out that way. Ill-timed execution problems, bad performances against quality opponents, and above all else, brutal injuries derailed the 2023 Dolphins' Lombardi Trophy aspirations.
It's easy to lose sight of just how good Miami was during the season in which Tua Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards and earned his infamous second contract. A cap casualty of the new Dolphins regime's roster clean-out, Bradley Chubb, is here to make sure the people don't forget what could've been.
Bradley Chubb weighs in on the 2023 Miami Dolphins team that had Super Bowl trajectory
In an interview with retired Miami left tackle Terron Armstead on his The Set podcast, Chubb reflected on the "special" 2023 season that saw the Dolphins start 9-3, only to decline down the stretch and lose on Wild Card Weekend (h/t FinsXtra on X):
"With the talent we had the buy-in we had the mindset we had […] we just couldn't stay healthy, bro. It was just like devastating injury after devastating injury after devastating injury. It was boom-boom-boom-boom-boom. So it's hard to get the mojo back. But bro I'm telling you, Week 3, when we played Denver? We put up 70. I said bro, we're winning the Super Bowl by 50 points. It doesn't matter who we play. One thing I wish we did that season, though, was finish out those tough games that got us to the label of, 'Oh they can't play the hard game. They can't win the hard game.'"
A stunning collapse at home in Week 14 was the beginning of the downfall. The Fins' soft coverage on defense couldn't hold a 27-13 lead with four and a half minutes left. That 28-27 defeat was made worse by the loss of center Connor Williams to a torn ACL. Williams was arguably the best center in the sport at the time.
Jerome Baker, the team's best coverage linebacker, suffered an MCL sprain in the previous game, staggered back for Week 18, and then missed the playoffs. Stud pass rusher Jaelan Phillips tore his Achilles on the garbage field of MetLife Stadium versus the Jets in Week 12. Left guard Isaiah Wynn went on injured reserve after Week 8 with a quad injury. Right guard Robert Hunt had recurring hamstring issues that sidelined him for six games, including Weeks 14 through 17.
Miami nevertheless entered Week 17 that year with a crack at the No. 1 seed. Alas, Murphy's law played out in real time (again) in a 56-19 loss to the Ravens that fateful Sunday in Baltimore.
Cornerback Xavien Howard played four snaps before suffering a Lisfranc injury. Tyreek Hill was questionable the two games prior with a nagging ankle ailment, and dropped a wide-open TD that would've put the Dolphins up 13-7 early on before they settled for a field goal.
Chubb was hurt most of all against the Ravens, tearing his ACL and thus missing the regular-season finale and playoff matchup in Kansas City.
As if that wasn't all bad enough, Andrew Van Ginkel was injured in Week 18's 21-14 loss to Buffalo and couldn't suit up on Wild Card Weekend. The Dolphins were figuratively signing guys off the street to play on the edge of their defensive line sans Phillips, Chubb, and Van Ginkel.
So to recap: Miami's three top edge defenders were gone. Two interior offensive line starters down, plus a hobbled Robert Hunt. A cornerback who made the Pro Bowl the previous year had only a series worth of plays in the most important regular-season game. And not having Jerome Baker in that Ravens matchup was a pretty big deal, considering Baltimore tailback Justice Hill, and tight ends Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar, accounted for four of Lamar Jackson's five TD passes.
It seems the Dolphins fanbase is eager to move past the Mike McDaniel era and dismiss it as a whole lot of nothing. As Chubb alluded to, that team didn't succeed at beating the top competition, but cluster injuries at many critical positions are as much to blame as anything else.
And yes, Miami teams have an understandable reputation of not faring well in cold-weather environments. However, the way Tua and the Dolphins as a whole were put on blast for their 26-7 playoff loss to the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium was way too extreme. Certainly in real time; indubitably in hindsight.
That game in Kansas City was at historic levels of freezing. To the point where many fans ended up in the hospital with frostbite. Plus, the Chiefs did go on to repeat as Super Bowl champions in that postseason.
Interesting to note, too, Chubb's point on the Dolphins' collective buy-in. McDaniel's leadership abilities are criticized into oblivion. Maybe he's not the traditional "disciplinarian" type, but you can't argue that he doesn't earn the respect of his players. Nor can you argue that he did what he could with what GM Chris Grier gave him to work with.
Injuries happen. It's the NFL. But Chubb isn't off-base to suggest that, with maybe just a tad better luck in that department — never mind the snakebitten hand Miami was dealt — the 2023 Dolphins could've easily pushed for a Super Bowl.