The Miami Dolphins entered the 2025 season with suspect depth in their defensive backfield, and while they did make enough moves to be respectable, it's not some transcendent area of the roster.
Things must be moving fast for interim GM Champ Kelly as he tries to prove himself in the seat Chris Grier held for so long before his in-season dismissal. Although Kelly's arrival has coincided with Miami's recent resurgence, JuJu Brents' injury in Madrid just before the bye exposed the Dolphins' known weakness once again.
Kelly had a crack at claiming a six-time Pro Bowl cornerback on waivers this week. Instead, he punted and watched an AFC East adversary swoop in for the splashy acquisition.
Dolphins watch as Bills claim six-time Pro Bowler to bolster NFL's No. 1 pass defense
ESPN's Adam Schefter broke the news that the Buffalo Bills claimed Darius Slay off waivers on Wednesday. Funnily enough, Slay was a healthy scratch for the Pittsburgh Steelers this past Sunday against the very team he just joined.
Going from Pittsburgh to Buffalo looks like a pretty awesome move for Slay at the moment. His Steelers were reeling after their 26-7 Week 13 loss, whereas the Bills are two full games ahead at 8-4 for the AFC's final Wild Card spot.
From a Dolphins perspective, though, it's frustrating to see Slay don the rival Bills' royal blue, red, and white on many levels.
It'd be easy for Buffalo to be complacent about its secondary. The Bills boast the league's best pass defense, allowing just 163.2 yards per game through the air. Nevertheless, they decided to bolster their strength on the back end by signing a savvy veteran in Slay.
On the other hand, Miami is content to roll with a paper-thin group led by mercurial, frequent boom-or-bust guesser Jack Jones and veteran Rasul Douglas. The latter just returned this past weekend for the Fins' win over the lowly Saints after missing a month of action due to injury.
The Dolphins are ahead of the Bills in the waiver claim hierarchy because they have an inferior record. They had first dibs on Slay and passed.
Not that expectations are sky-high for the 34-year-old Slay in Buffalo. He didn't play last week for the Steelers' bottom-five pass defense. Not like they have a bunch of world beaters at cornerback. Their corresponding move to waiving Slay was signing Asante Samuel Jr. off the practice squad to the active roster. Samuel wasn't in the league until Pittsburgh got him on Nov. 12, as he was recovering from spinal fusion surgery.
When it comes to Slay joining the Bills, it's more the principle of the thing for Miami. Douglas is a valuable mentor, yet as the team tries to keep rallying into the playoff picture, having a Super Bowl champion like Slay in the Dolphins locker room sure wouldn't have hurt.