First part of a Miami Dolphins On SI wild card weekend:
From TJ:
What do these playoff teams (especially the AFC) have that the Dolphins didn’t have this year? Training? Players? Culture? Play while calling? My personal answer is a healthy QB1 for all or most of the season.
Hey TJ, having your QB stay healthy is absolutely a factor, but it’s not the only reason the Dolphins failed to make the playoffs. Let’s not forget that the Dolphins were 6-5 with Tua as the starter, they were 1-5 against teams with winning records and 1-8 against teams that won more than six games. That’s not exactly the sign of a great team. I made a list of my top five reasons why the Dolphins didn’t make the playoffs and the backup QB disappointment was there, of course.
From Jorge Boyd:
I’m sorry Alain for me the season is over, the frustration continues after 50 years.
Hey Jorge, is a Super Bowl victory the only way to stop the frustration? If that’s the case, there are a lot of frustrated fans all over the country.
From Ed Helinski:
Who do you prefer as winners of this weekend’s games? And what is your choice for the best game?
Hey Ed, as I was going through the All Dolphins Podcast, episode 449, I like the LA Chargers over Houston, Baltimore over Pittsburgh, Buffalo over Denver, Philadelphia over Green Bay, Tampa Bay over Washington, Rams over Minnesota. I think Minnesota/Rams seems like the better matchup.
From the activist prince-bishop Aardvark:
For some time now, Miami has been drafting poorly. Is it time to review the recon service and make changes before handing Grier the ritual letter opener for his long-delayed seppuku? How much did others help Grier on the path to mediocrity?
Hey PBMA, the Dolphins drafts may not have been great, but is “bad” the right word? For example, the Dolphins got Jaylen Waddle, Jaelan Phillips and Jevon Holland among their first three picks in 2021; is this a bad draft? Sure, there were misses, but every team missed some. And yes, Grier gets a lot of help, just like every general manager who gets reports from his scouts before arriving at a draft decision.
From Davesgold:
Is the league-wide perception of Tua’s health the reason he was on IR for a concussion for 4 weeks while other players typically only miss 1 or 2 weeks?
Hey Dave, no, I don’t believe it. Rather, it was a case of doctors wanting to err on the side of caution to ensure Tua was properly healed following his third diagnosed concussion in the last three seasons. Would fans have preferred him to return too soon? I don’t buy this idea of something nefarious at play here. Sorry.
From Sicilian Italian:
How far do you hope the Bills go in the playoffs, Alain?
That’s a great question, and I think I would tell you that I could see the Bills going very far, maybe even winning the Super Bowl, but I think right now Baltimore is the team to beat in the AFC (yes, ahead of KC, maybe wishful thinking because I’m sick of the Chiefs) and Buffalo has to face Baltimore in the second round. I didn’t like Buffalo’s end to the season very much, but if I had to give a Super Bowl probability score to the AFC’s best teams, I’d go with Baltimore at 34 percent, Buffalo at 33 percent. and in Kansas City at 33 percent.
From Chris Bustin:
Hello, Alan. The only thing that irritates me about discussing Tua’s missing games is that it assumes he’s good enough when healthy, which I take issue with due to his record against good teams. I also don’t think a healthy Tua would have deserved a huge contract. Thoughts?
Hey Chris, I wrote about this very topic before the Dolphins gave him the extension and asked him the very question of exactly what the ceiling was with Tua. Although he played well in Buffalo in his second game back, he had a rough outing against the Bills in Miami, wasn’t good against Green Bay until going 27-3 and was had a poor performance against Houston. Your concerns are exactly the same as mine and, no, I would not have signed him to a long-term extension, even without the health issues, which made the decision even more egregious for me.
From Lloyd Heilbrunn:
Which Dolphins staff member is responsible for watching the video and advising McDaniel on the challenges? Because 4 for 19 is terrible.
Hi Lloyd, We have asked Mike McDaniel this same question several times and he strives to provide a clear answer each time. It’s someone in the coaching booth, which eliminates Anthony Weaver because he’s on the field. Other than that, I couldn’t really tell you.
From Matt DePeri:
What do you think about Chubb returning and perhaps a restructuring to reduce his cap hit? A healthy Chubb, Chop and Phillips is quite intriguing.
Hi Matt, Chubb has three years left on the extension he signed after the Dolphins acquired him in that trade with Denver, but his cap hit jumps to nearly $29 million in 2025 and I have a hard time seeing the Dolphins are okay with that. Restructuring his contract to reduce his cap hit makes perfect sense, but Chubb has to be OK with it. The Dolphins could save nearly $20 million in cap space if they give him a cut after June 1, which would be a real possibility if the sides can’t reach an agreement.
From Charles Boyd:
Alain, if you remember, I was concerned very early in the season about our lack of a plan to win games in cold weather. Do you think Mike McDaniel will come up with a plan for this or will he and Chris Grier be fired this time next year?
Hey Charles, I’ll be honest with you, I don’t agree with this whole “you can’t win in cold weather” narrative. To me, the Dolphins’ biggest problem is their lack of success against quality opponents, cold weather or not. If you look at this season, the only cold games were Green Bay and the Jets, and the latter was a strange game because the Dolphins knew their playoff hopes were dashed while they were playing. And if this isn’t fixed, soon, yes, Grier and McDaniel will end up being fired.
From Richard J. Leonard:
Hi Alain, I still love the podcast. If Anthony Weaver leaves the head coaching position, do you think his successor is already with the Dolphins? Is anyone ready to step in or will they have to look elsewhere?
Hi Richard, thank you very much. Programming note here, we will continue the All Dolphins podcast on a regular basis throughout the offseason. If Weaver were to leave, the Dolphins would have an assistant who was DC last season, and that is LB coach Joe Barry (with the Packers). D-line coach Austin Clark has always received a lot of feedback about his bright coaching future, but he may not have enough experience yet. My best guess is that the Dolphins would go outside the organization to replace Weaver if they had to find one.
From Mike Jones:
Did anyone see Tyreek get hurt in the scrimmage against Washington? If it was broken like Drew Rosenhaus claimed, Reek would obviously have shown signs of injury?
Hi Mike, I don’t remember any of us noticing anything. Understand that there’s a lot going on in joint practices in both areas, so it’s possible that Hill showed signs of pain at some point, but I don’t think anyone in the media noticed. or wrote about it.
From Andy Bunting:
Twelve months ago, Frank Smith was interviewed for an HC. This year, that is not the case. How much is the offense, how much is McD? Given that he is unlikely to be given play calling duties, would it be beneficial for him to go elsewhere to be a play caller and get himself back into the running for HC.
Hey Andy, yes, Smith’s name hasn’t been mentioned among the many head coaching positions this cycle. I think almost anyone who covers the Dolphins would tell you the offense is McDaniel’s baby and Smith’s role as the right-hand man. And you rightly make the point that if becoming a head coach is Smith’s end goal, it could help his career to get an OC job with a bigger footprint on the offense.
