The Miami Dolphins sure were proactive when they wanted players, especially toward the end of just-fired general manager Chris Grier's tenure.
But with that aggressiveness in trades for stars like Tyreek Hill and Bradley Chubb came a stubborn negligence of the offensive line. That resulted in numerous injuries for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and a hindrance to head coach Mike McDaniel's exotic, multifaceted rushing schemes.
Unfortunately, Grier got greedy again in the 2025 NFL Draft and overcorrected.
Whether it was in response to outside noise or self-evident on-field results, Grier swung big in the second round to get a hopeful cornerstone at guard. Looks like he missed badly.
Dolphins rookie Jonah Savaiinaea is unplayable at left guard
Chris Grier might've cost himself his job by trading third- and fourth-round picks to move up in the second round and acquire left guard Jonah Savaiinaea with the 37th overall selection.
The Dolphins could've moved up to get someone like, say, Arizona Cardinals cornerback Will Johnson to help out their thin secondary. Instead, they went with a University of Arizona product who looks like he can't hang on an NFL field so far.
Pro Football Focus generates its fair share of controversy for player grades. However, when it comes to Savaiinaea, his shockingly low marks (worst pass blocker, second-worst run blocker) line up with what the all-22 film reveals.
Or at least that was the case again in Week 10's huge win over the Buffalo Bills. On an otherwise glorious afternoon for the Dolphins franchise as they snapped a seven-game losing streak to the AFC East kings, Savaiinaea was horrendous again.
Letting a rookie endure some NFL growing pains is one thing. In Savaiinaea's case, he's one of the worst guards you'll ever see on a professional field. PFF charged him with four pressures allowed, even as Tua averaged a lightning-quick 2.33 seconds to throw per pass attempt.
Sunday marked the sixth time Savaiinaea rated in the single digits (out of a possible 100) in PFF's pass blocking grades.
Dolphins team reporter Travis Wingfield must've watched a different cut-up of the University of Arizona product's plays than I did.
I thought Jonah took some big steps yesterday. Some of those jump sets look more fluid and he's bringing his feet throughout the duration of the block. I think the signs of growth are becoming more apparent each week.
— Travis Wingfield (@WingfieldNFL) November 10, 2025
...Because Savaiinaea was taking quick L's all afternoon in pass protection. Whenever he tried to lay the thunder as a run blocker, it'd be a stalemate at best, and his man would often make the tackle.
On two screen plays to dynamic tailback De'Von Achane, Savaiinaea worked himself out of position and gave his man free rein to blast Achane. Thankfully for first-year blundering blocker, Achane made the Bills defender miss on the second such occasion.
Why isn't Mike McDaniel giving someone else any run at left guard? Swing tackle Kendall Lamm has plenty of experience under his belt and could be at least passable in that role. Whether Lamm slid in, or McDaniel's prized sixth o-lineman/inline tight end Daniel Brunskill got the call, either vet would be a massive upgrade over Savaiinaea and keep Tua out of harm's way.
Given Tua's history of concussions and Savaiinaea's abominable performance, it's organizational malpractice to let the latter continue starting. And trading up to land Savaiinaea looks like one of the biggest draft miscues of any team across the NFL in recent memory.
Will Johnson wasn't the only awesome player available when Miami took Savaiinaea. Two Georgia guards in Tate Ratledge and Dylan Fairchild were still on the board. Ratledge is crushing it for the Lions; Fairchild looks like a solid starter in Cincinnati.
Rather than leaning on Darren Waller's unretirement to fill a need at tight end, perhaps a youngster like Elijah Arroyo or Harold Fannin Jr. could've worked wonders for the Fins, too!
Yowza.