Tyreek Hill, Terron Armstead, and More

Part 1 of a Super Bowl weekend Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Mike Jones:

I feel Miami has no choice but to move on from either Hill, Armstead, or Chubb … for salary cap purposes alone, not even mentioning Hill and his off-field drama, which is nonstop. Maybe even 2 of them. Thoughts?

Hey Mike, first off, let’s start with Tyreek, who I have said from the beginning almost assuredly will be back in 2025 because he’s just too important to the offense. Now, as for the other two, I can’t see either coming back at their scheduled 2025 cap numbers ($29 million for Chubb, $22 million for Armstead), but the Dolphins will (almost certainly) have discussions with both about restructuring their contracts or taking a pay cut, and understand Armstead did that last offseason. With the cap, understand there’s usually a way to make it work if you’re willing to push money and cap commitments down the road. Having said all that, I’d be surprised if both Armstead and Chubb were gone, but it’s fair to predict it’s 50-50 that both will be back.

From Jason Kirkland:

Hi Alain, I personally see the Dolphins continuing in the same direction. I see 2025 being the same as 2024. Nothing about management inspires promise. Do you see a scenario where Grier & McDaniel are gone mid-season? It’s a shame that 1 more draft is left up to him. Wasted.

Hey Jason, things would have to be going really, really poorly with no hope in sight for Stephen Ross to make a move in the middle of the season like he did after four games in 2015 when it was clear the team wasn’t going anywhere with Joe Philbin after he had gotten a vote of confidence the previous year. I’ll never say never, but I’d expect Grier and McDaniel to last the whole season unless things get really and they likely will be back again in 2026 if there’s a rebound.

From Jayco:

How can the folks most responsible for assembling this soft and underachieving (record vs. winning teams) team be left in charge of changing its course?

Hey Jayco, it’s a combination of Stephen Ross having made a commitment to the Grier-McDaniel team before the 2024 season (that included the core of Tua, Tyreek, Waddle and Ramsey) and not wanting to give up on it after a bad season, and the idea that this team can compete if they can avoid injuries.

From Bob Windle:

Do you think the Dolphins will add a power running back in the upcoming draft?

Hey Bob, because the Dolphins used a third-round pick on De’Von Achane in 2023 and traded a 2025 third-round pick to get a fourth last year to pick Jaylen Wright, I have a hard time seeing them use yet another pick on a running back this year. They do have a lot of picks, but at some point you have to maximize the picks you made.

From Dave (Fin Fan in VA):

Alain, couldn’t I argue that you going back through the draft misses saying what the Dolphins SHOULD have done 3, 4, 5, 10 years later is kinda easy?  It isn’t as easy to actually hit on all of these picks… when the draft is similar to a crap shoot. You could probably do same dissection with every team in the league and they would all have tons of misses too. And I am not saying I disagree with your disappointment in some of the picks. But it is much easier to “Monday Morning QB” after the fact. Shouldn’t the real research be comparing the Dolphins miss % to other teams’ miss %?

Hey Dave, for those not aware, you’re referring to conversations we’ve had on the All Dolphins Podcast, and you’re absolutely right that every team has hits and misses — and obviously it’s easier to Monday Morning QB after the fact because otherwise it’s not Monday Morning QB’ing. But I get your point. But you cannot argue is that the good team have a higher hit percentage, and I’m talking big impact as opposed to drafting a solid player. And is it really Monday Morning QB’ing with Jaylen Waddle, for example, to suggest taking a speedy wide receiver (but not generational) at 6 instead of a franchise-type tackle like Penei Sewell or a foundational cornerback Patrick Surtain II was a bad move? And is it really Monday Morning QB’ing to question taking Noah Igbinoghene at 30 in 2020 when he was a converted wide receiver with very little experience at cornerback when the Dolphins could have had Tee Higgins or Jonathan Taylor?

From RobYZ:

Which is more annoying on social media: Tua haters, Miami trading for every player, Mock drafts 2.0 from people nobody knowns, Keyboard GMs?

Hey Rob, it all comes with the territory, so you learn to deal with it. I would add two things to your list, the first being Tua apologists who jump on you for any they perceive as a personal attack on QB1. It’s just as bad as those who want to dump on Tua at every turn and have decided he’s a scrub when he’s clearly not. The other is fans who can’t disagree with a point without throwing insults in there. Again, though, it’s part of journalism in 2025.

From Charles Boyd:

Alain, why do you think the Dolphins seem to find talent that can play right away from undrafted free agents, but has such a hard time drafting NFL-ready players?

Hey Charles, first off, I think both notions are overblown because players like Holland and Achane and Malik Washington were pretty close to being NFL-ready, to name three. As for UDFAs, every team hits on those and it’s also not like the Dolphins have unearthed stars there. Kader Kohou is a rare example of a player who’s become a good contributor as a UDFA.

From shawn:

Who do you think wins? Easy I know, BUT let’s get it started.

Hey Shawn, I have stated on a couple of podcasts I have the Eagles winning 30-28. I think they have an advantage on both lines of scrimmage and could wear down the Chiefs defense. That said, I never, ever would discount the possibility of Kansas City winning.

From Ed Helinski:

Is 10 picks this year too much, just enough or gives Miami creative license to draft even more players? In the past 30-40 years, what’s the most players drafted by the Dolphins?

Hey Ed, the more picks always is better because it does give you possibility. If the Dolphins wanted to establish a supply of young players, they should use every pick and maybe even trade down in certain rounds for more picks. They also could package deals to move up or trade for a veteran, which I would not advocate but could see happening considering Grier and McDaniel are in a bit of a win-or-else mode.

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