The waiting game is over. The Miami Dolphins have finally released their initial depth chart for their Week 1 contest against the New England Patriots. The Dolphins, who are expected to be multiple on both sides of the football and will look to attack the weaknesses of each opposing team, listed their base defense as a 3-4. Who is listed as the “first team” players?
You can find the depth chart below:
There is, of course, a little bit of gamesmanship that takes place on depth charts — especially this season when teams have such little exposure to the opposition entering the season. Brian Flores must hope for a better first experience than what the team endured last year when they were caught off guard by an overhauled Baltimore Ravens passing offense and were shellacked 59-10 in the season opener at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Dolphins certainly shouldn’t be expecting those kinds of results for themselves, but it isn’t unreasonable to believe Miami can’t deviate from the standard “depth chart” and get players in new looks or generate new personnel groupings that allow the team to create something that the media release doesn’t tip off. The Dolphins will need to be aggressive and hit the ground running this year — much like how they finished the 2019 season.
One thing is clear: the Dolphins’ roster is much more talented than last year’s group. But now is the time for execution — and we’ll get a feel for just how capable Miami is of doing that when they step onto the field on Sunday afternoon in New England.