The 2026 Miami Dolphins will be a team worth watching, not for how many wins they can come away with, but for what kind of identity and culture they can build under the new leadership of general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley. Could they be more competitive than any of us expect? Of course, any given Sunday and all that.
What fans should be more interested in, however, is which players from this rebuilding roster show enough to be considered a part of the future. With so many new faces and opportunities for playing time, it's almost guaranteed that an unexpected name or two stands out from the crowd and impresses the coaching staff.
With that being said, star players like De'Von Achane, Aaron Brewer, and Jordyn Brooks (if he sticks around) won't be the ones who define the 2026 season for Miami. Instead, it will be players who have plenty to prove to both themselves and the fanbase who determine the success (or failure) of the upcoming campaign.
These 4 Dolphins will determine what kind of season the Miami Dolphins have in 2026
Malik Willis gets his shot as a starting QB
For the vast majority of team's, how their quarterback performs is often what defines their season. The Dolphins are no different, but it's a little bit different in the case of Malik Willis. With just six starts and 1,727 total yards to his name as an NFL QB, Willis faces an uphill battle to become this team's franchise passer.
However, he is being paid well enough ($67.5 million over three years, to be exact) to be given every possible chance to prove he can be the long-term answer that Miami needs. After parting ways with Tua Tagovialoa, it would have been very easy for the front office to justify trotting 2025 seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers out there in 2026 and tank for one of several 2027 QB prospects. Instead, they are putting a decent amount of faith in Willis keep them out of those sweepstakes for now.
Simply put, if Willis plays even relatively well with the lack of weaponry around him in 2026, Miami could be more competitive than any media pundit is willing to predict. That would be a development that would be easy for fans to get excited about.
Jonah Savaiinaea's growth could change everything for the offensive line
Calling Jonah Savaiinaea's rookie season in Miami a disaster would be an insult to disasters. Not only was he one of, if not the worst, offensive linemen in the NFL in 2025, but former GM Chris Grier traded multiple picks to move up and select him at 37th overall in the draft. Things started rough for the young guard and stayed that way for most of the season, making 2026 a potential make-or-break season already.
Why he will be one of the players that defines the 2026 season for Miami is thanks to the way the rest of the front is constructed. Patrick Paul and Aaron Brewer are established players who fans can count on at this point, and Austin Jackson is a solid player when he isn't on the injured list. First-round rookie Kadyn Proctor is an unknown, especially with his move into left guard after playing left tackle at Alabama, but he will be given time to grow thanks to his draft status.
If Savaiinaea can show signs of promise with a move back to his natural position at right guard, this offensive line could finally be a strength after years of struggling to put it together. That would give the offense a fighting chance in 2026, and something to look forward to in 2027 and beyond.
Kenneth Grant has all the talent required to be the star of Jeff Hafley's defense
Like Savaiinaea, Kenneth Grant's rookie season didn't go according to plan. While he wasn't quite as bad as his offensive trenches counterpart, he failed to show consistent signs of being the game wrecker that his talent suggested he could be as the 13th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Many of the same issues that plagued him at Michigan continued to show up during his rookie season. Issues with pad level, trouble consistently shedding blocks, and poor hand usage all led to him being a non-factor against both the run and pass in 2025. He did finish the season strong as a pass rusher, putting up 14 of his 29 pressures over the last five games, according to Pro Football Focus.
If Grant can continue to grow as a pass rusher and hold up better in the run game at over 330 pounds, then Jeff Hafley could have the centerpiece of his defensive line already in place in year one of his tenure.
Dante Trader Jr. will need to grow up fast thanks to a severe lack of talent at safety
So far, I have focused on players at premium positions with a lot of money or draft capital invested in them. Guys like that naturally play a huge role in determining the direction a team's season will go. However, 2025 fifth-round pick Dante Trader Jr. may have more put on his plate than anyone named here aside from Malik Willis.
Trader will be one of the Dolphins' starting safeties this year, but who will play opposite of him? Will it be veterans Lonnie Johnson Jr. or Zane Anderson? Could it be 2026 fifth-round pick Michael Taafe? Perhaps even UDFA Louis Moore, or UFL standout Major Burns?
The fact that I was able to name five options is part of the problem. It's not like any of those names inspire much confidence, and even Trader himself has just three NFL starts under his belt. But he has already been singled out by Hafley as one of the rising leaders of the defense, and that's nothing to sneeze at, given Hafley's reputation as a defensive backs coach.
If Trader fails to live up to expectations, however, the Dolphins' secondary could bring the entire team down with them.
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