The Miami Dolphins had their fair share of players with plenty to prove heading into this year's training camp. With a whole new front office and coaching staff with no ties to many of the players left behind from the previous regime, nothing was guaranteed.
General manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley brought in plenty of new faces, both in the draft and via free agency, to compete for roles on the 2026 roster. Among them was a myriad of bargain-bin veteran edge rushers, most notably Josh Uche and the recently signed Clelin Ferrell. The hopeful star of their pass rush, 2024 first-round pick Chop Robinson, needed to be the player who made the unit viable for Hafley's first season calling the shots.
So far, the explosive rusher has more than lived up to expectations. More importantly than just his strong start to camp, however, is a change to his game that could mean a world of difference in 2026.
Chop Robinson is finally rounding out his game at Miami Dolphins training camp
The reason Robinson was a coveted prospect coming out of Penn State is the same as it was for fellow Nittany Lion standouts like Micah Parsons and Abdul Carter: pure athleticism. His first-step explosiveness and ability to threaten the outside shoulder of opposing offensive tackles made him a nightmare to block in college, and his rookie season featured plenty of dominant pass rush wins using that speed and bend.
However, things changed for Robinson in Year 2 thanks to teams having tape on him from the year prior. Without a reliable secondary pass rush move or enough raw power to bull rush tackles, his efficiency as a rusher cratered in 2025. According to Sports Info Solutions Data Hub, Robinson's pressure percentage dipped from 15.2% in 2024 to 11.7% last season.
According to Dolphins in-house reporter Travis Wingfield, the young pass rusher seems to be working on adding more to his pass rush plan this season.
Chop has a quick win for the sack to close it down – he beat Austin with an inside move. He’s really developed that crossover step after threatning upfield with speed. https://t.co/HBq7Zo47sP
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) August 8, 2026
Adding an inside move like the one Wingfield saw him use is the perfect complement to his speed around the corner. If tackles are going to overset to protect the outside, Robinson can take advantage of that by using his agility and burst to leave them in the dust.
It's too early to tell if he will be able to use it consistently in a real game setting, but the fact that he is comfortable enough using it so far in camp should give the Dolphins hope that a Year 3 breakout could be on the horizon.
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