Through two rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins have filled major holes with two massive football players. However, they are replacements for general manager Chris Grier's past errors.
The Dolphins GM and head coach Mike McDaniel spoke with the media about the players they have taken so far through two rounds, focusing on their physical toughness and aggressiveness. Neither will confirm that talk of the Dolphins being soft played a part, but these players are far from soft.
Both are hard-working athletes whose size isn't diminished by slow play. They are tough, they are athletic, and they love football. Miami is drafting the right mindsets for what the team needs to change most: the culture.
The Dolphins have been called soft, and their play on the field has shown that they are. Miami's offensive line doesn't play physically enough. You could make the same argument for most of the players on defense, too.
The Miami Dolphins' draft picks are replacements for previous Chris Grier mistakes
In 2024, Grier thought letting Christian Wilkins and Robert Hunt leave in free agency was a good idea. A year later, he is drafting both of their replacements.
Wilkins, a 2019 first-round pick, is being replaced by another first-round defensive tackle, while Jonah Savaiinaea was taken in the second round to replace Hunt, a 2020 second-rounder.
The real mistake was not letting them go. It was not getting them signed a year earlier for far less than they received in 2024. Grier opted to not pay Hunt or Wilkins in 2023, instead allowing them to play a final season without an extension. Both got more money than Miami could afford.
If the Dolphins are going to change their culture, it is going to start in the trenches, and both Savaiinaea and Grant have the mental makeup to start that change.