The 2020 offseason was one of change for the Miami Dolphins. The team will debut a roster comprised of nearly 50% fresh faces by the time the season rolls around — although the team’s rebuilding effort didn’t carry into the pass-catching group to the same degree that some may have expected. And, at least in the eyes of ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, that will hurt them this upcoming season.
Barnwell ranked all 32 supporting casts on offense and the Dolphins checked in 30th out of 32 franchises — a pretty sorry ranking when considering this was supposed to be an offseason of improvement for the Dolphins.
“While the Dolphins made major strides in upgrading just about every other position on their roster this offseason, it was a surprise to see them mostly leave their weapons alone. The only additions they made were at running back, where they formed a new one-two punch with efficient veteran Jordan Howard and big-play option Matt Breida.
I’m not optimistic about either living up to expectations. Howard ranked in the top 10 in both DVOA and success rate in his lone season in Philadelphia, but that was behind one of the league’s best offensive lines and out of line with what he did during his final two season in Chicago. He won’t have that caliber of line in Miami. Breida’s yards-per-carry figures belie middling success-rate marks, as he ranked 30th and 31st over the past two seasons.” – Bill Barnwell, ESPN
The only two teams in the NFL with supporting casts worse than Miami’s — according to Barnwell — are Washington and Jacksonville. The Dolphins’ pass catching group will enter 2020 as status quo, Miami made no additions to their wide receiver room amid the turnover needed elsewhere on the roster. To Barnwell’s point, the Dolphins didn’t upgrade their skill players to the degree that will be needed for the team’s overhaul to be complete.
But Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will the Miami Dolphins be built in a single offseason. Miami invested heavily elsewhere in their efforts to align the roster for developing the offensive line along their new franchise quarterback. That, for at least one offseason, is more than enough — and the incumbent pass catchers are going to have to do.