Ranking Miami Dolphins Top 25 Players: A Returning Star
The Miami Dolphins are entering a critical season in 2025. After missing the playoffs last season and not making any blockbuster moves this offseason, the team is under a lot of pressure to finally get over the hump in the playoffs.
With that in mind, it seems like an excellent time to rank the Dolphins’ top 25 players heading into the 2025 season. This list was voted on by site publisher Alain Poupart (@PoupartNFL), deputy editor Dante Collinelli (@DanteCollinelli) and contributor Jake Mendel (@JMendel94).
The rankings were compiled separately based on a points system. That system awarded 25 points to the first player in each writer’s top 25, 24 to the second player, 23 to the third player, and so on.
When we started writing this article series, Minkah Fitzpatrick was still on the Steelers, and the thought of him returning to Miami felt laughable.
After all, he forced his way to Pittsburgh in 2019 because of a dispute with then-Dolphins coach Brian Flores about where he should play.
Well, here we are. Fitzpatrick comes in at No. 3 after the Dolphins acquired him in the trade that sent Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith to the Steelers. Regardless of how you feel about the overall trade, the Dolphins desperately needed a safety of Fitzpatrick’s caliber this season.
Before the trade, the Dolphins were set to rely on Ifeatu Melifonwu (talent but injury prone) and Ashtyn Davis (fine player but hasn’t been a major contributor in years), along with a slew of unproven players.
As for Fitzpatrick, he is a three-time All-Pro and five-time All-Pro selection with unmatched versatility and football intelligence. He’ll slot in perfectly to defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s scheme, which focuses on disguising coverage schemes.
However, it should be noted that Fitzpatrick’s tape from the past two seasons isn’t ideal. He’s struggled to make plays on the ball consistently and has given up more big plays than usual. He had just one interception and seven pass breakups in the last two seasons.
In 2022 alone, Fitzpatrick had six interceptions and 11 pass breakups. In fact, the last two years are the only seasons that he hasn’t had at least two interceptions. When it comes to passer rating allowed, Minkah allowed a career-high 127.6 rate when targeted this past season, almost 50 points higher than his career average of 80.6.
Some of that was on him, and some of that was on Pittsburgh’s lack of proper communication in the secondary.
Setting the numbers aside, Fitzpatrick’s film is still quite good. He can move around the defense at will, although his best spot is undoubtedly in deep zones, and he hasn’t lost a step athletically. Fitzpatrick’s football IQ will be vital for a Dolphins’ secondary that will likely be relying on unproven players at cornerback, too.
Overall, Minkah might not be the dominant All-Pro player he was a few years ago, but he’s still quite good and a perfect fit for where the Dolphins are at right now.
No. 25:Malik Washington| No. 24:Willie Gay Jr.| No.23:Benito Jones| No. 22:Patrick Paul| No. 21:Jonah Savaiinaea| No. 20:Nick Westbrook-Ikhine| No. 19:Ifeatu Melifonwu| No. 18:Tyrel Dodson| No. 17Kenneth Grant| No. 16: Alec Ingold| No. 15:Kader Kohou| No. 14:Austin Jackson | No. 13:Jason Sanders| No. 12:Chop Robinson| No. 11:Aaron Brewer | No. 10:James Daniels | No. 9:Bradley Chubb| No. 8:Jaelan Phillips| No. 7:Jordyn Brooks| No. 6:De’Von Achane | No. 5: Jaylen Waddle | No. 3: Tua Tagovailoa
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