The Miami Dolphins could have a pass rushing problem on their hands. After finishing third in the NFL in sacks last season with 56, the Dolphins will, at least for now, be without three of their top five rushers from the 2023 season.
Christian Wilkins and Andrew Van Ginkel left in free agency, and Bradley Chubb will begin the year on the PUP list. Miami’s best hope at generating pressure off the edge early in the year may be Jaelan Phillips, who is facing the tall task of being productive less than a year after an Achilles tear.
“I just want to be disruptive and be productive,” Phillips said Thursday. “I know that I’m a 10-plus sack guy. I know that I can go out there and disrupt the quarterback, stop the run, do anything I need to do to for this team.”
Sure, the Dolphins have other options at outside linebacker. The team drafted Chop Robinson and Mohamed Kamara in the first and fifth rounds of the 2024 NFL draft, respectively, and Miami brought back Emmanuel Ogbah in July, five months after releasing him earlier this year. There’s also Quinton Bell, a sixth-year veteran who has spent the majority of his career on practice squads and special teams.
It all adds up to an awkward situation for the Dolphins.
Can the team afford to bring Phillips along slowly if it means extended snaps for Bell or the rookies opposite Ogbah?
“We’ll be very smart with Jaelan, just because he’s even back earlier than some people thought,” Dolphins general manager Chris Grier said earlier this week. “You’ve got to put a governor on him because he wants to go 100 miles an hour, and it’s like, ‘Dude, you just came back from a serious injury faster because you’re a freak healer, but let’s be smart about this.’ … It is about long term; it’s not just about right now.”
A couple weeks ago, new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver said the team didn’t plan on setting a snap count for Phillips and would “listen to his body.” That’ll be a tricky balance, because — according to Phillips — he’s ready for action.
“I’ve felt great. It’s been amazing,” Phillips said. “I’m here to do whatever they need me to do. Obviously, I’m going to be pushing to play as much as I can, but I’ve got to be smart at the end of the day. It’s a long season, so we’ll see how it goes.”
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