The NFL offseason hasn't truly begun quite yet, as we are still a few weeks away from the beginning of the new league year on March 11th. Don't tell that to the Miami Dolphins, however.
New general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan made his first set of huge decisions on Monday, cutting Tyreek Hill, James Daniels, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and Bradley Chubb. Chubb looks like he will be a June 1st release, but his time with the team is over regardless. In the wake of these cuts, one thing has become crystal clear: an entirely new era of Dolphins football is about to begin.
With Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel now long gone, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is the last significant holdover from the previous regime, and when he is eventually shown the door, the book on the last decade of Miami football will be officially closed.
The Miami Dolphins kickoff a new era with the release of the previous regime's star players
When the dust settles on the Dolphins 2026 offseason, many of the players and coaches that defined the Grier/McDaniel era will be gone, and for good reason. Despite pulling off blockbuster trades for the aforementioned Hill and Chubb, not to mention the development and extension of Tagovailoa, the Dolphins accomplished nothing of note over the past half-decade.
Instead of division titles and playoff victories, they are left with mostly what if's and what could have been's. Perhaps the most notable victory under the previous power structure was their 70-20 victory over the Broncos in 2023, a game that is now more of a meme than it is something to be proud of.
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Missed opportunities, poor drafting, and bad contracts ultimately doomed what could have been the most exciting era of Dolphins football since Dan Marino was still guiding the offense. Grier may have managed to add serious talent to the team via trades and free agency, but he could never get the right combination of players together to go on a serious playoff run. The hope now is that Sullivan and new head coach Jeff Hafley can rebuild this roster and do what Grier and McDaniel could not.
It's rare to see a team truly blow it all up the way Miami seems determined to do. It will be interesting to see if even more moves beyond the incoming Tagovailoa decision are coming, such as a trade of Jaylen Waddle or De'Von Achane. It would sting to lose their most impactful remaining players, but it may be for the best in the long run.
Regardless, one thing has already been proven true. The Grier/McDaniel started with a bang, but went out with a whimper, just like the seasons they spent together in South Beach often did.