The Miami Dolphins are back to their old tricks. The Dolphins have had some strong success tapping into the pipeline to the north with the Canadian Football League — especially when you consider pass rusher Cameron Wake, who terrorized quarterbacks for a decade in Miami, came from the CFL. More recently, the Dolphins added linebacker Sam Eguavoen, who enjoyed a respectable season for the Dolphins in 2019.
Miami is hoping to once again nail down a hit, as they announced yesterday that they have signed defender Nate Holley of the Calgary Stampeders. Holley, who has spent time briefly with the Rams and Vikings but has never played in an NFL game, appears to be a late bloomer — he was honored as the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie following last year after logging 100 total tackles, one sack and one interception over 18 games.
Checking in at 210 pounds, Holley is likely to get a look both on special teams and as a hybrid defender for the Dolphins. Miami currently has Brandon Jones, Clayton Fejedelem and Kavon Frazier poised to share safety duties in sub-packages and special teams reps, so Holley will have about two weeks to leave a lasting impression before the start of the season rolls around and the Dolphins have to make some tough calls on their roster.
There are a few things you can be certain of — the Dolphins will continue to look anywhere and everywhere to nail down talent, they’re going to continue to churn the bottom of their roster and defensive backs will continue to be added to the puzzle no matter what. The Dolphins have churned through a plethora of defensive backs already, including another safety in Jeremiah Dinson who is still on the roster. But based on the success we saw Brian Flores have in 2019 with so many fresh faces, we should be confident that whoever wins out in the competition will be ready to play.