Albert Breer’s Notes: Don’t Sleep on Miami’s Rookie Class, Even in a Losing Season

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Miami Dolphins
New York Giants
Minnesota Vikings
Jacksonville Jaguars
Laquon Treadwell
Pittsburgh Steelers
2026 QB class
Cleveland Browns

We’re onto Week 4 of the regular season and I have a few leftovers from Week 3. Let’s dive in.

Miami Dolphins

Here one underrated story from Sunday: the Dolphins’ effort.

Most expected the Chiefs to blow them out on Sunday, and the start of the game certainly reinforced that idea, as Kansas City went 67 yards in four plays to take a 7–0 lead. From there, Miami was right there with Patrick Mahomes & Co. The Dolphins actually outgained Kansas City 329–267 and went into the fourth quarter trailing only 14–10. Midway through the fourth quarter, Malik Willis was driving the offense to tie it.

So, yes, Miami lost. But there was a ton to take from the game, and build off for new coach Jeff Hafley and GM Jon-Eric Sullivan, the architects of a down-to-the-studs overhaul.

Maybe most important was the role of the team’s rookie class. Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez had the green dot on his helmet to lead the defense, and was one of three rookies on that side of the ball, joined by safety Michael Taaffe and corner Chris Johnson, to play every defensive snap of the game. Meanwhile, there have been times when there have been six rookies (left guard Kadyn Proctor, tight end Will Kacmarek, fullback DJ Herman and receivers Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell and Kevin Coleman Jr.) in the huddle with Malik Willis.

This, of course, will take time. But the investment being made in the young guys now, the Dolphins trust, is part of carrying out the organization’s new draft-and-develop focus. If it works, it could be a little like Detroit’s rebuild three years ago. Or even the one in San Francisco that Jeff Hafley was part of, working under Kyle Shanahan—where the 49ers started 2017 at 0–9, but kept getting better and better, and in time broke through.

New York Giants

I already shared a little of my postgame conversation with Giants safety Jevon Holland in my Week 3 takeaways. Because I love this stuff, I figured I’d offer up what Holland told me about his game-winning interception from Sunday, as his Giants put the Titans away.

The detail is pretty astounding and gives you a window into the preparation of an NFL player.

“Well, initially it was a three-by-one [formation]. I saw the backside X out there, so I was shading to that hash,” Holland told me. “He released, and I saw Cam work his eyes front side, so I just wanted to shift that way, middle of the goalpost kind of thing. And then once I saw him break the pocket, as the free player, post player in that situation, I was like, All right, let me go hold him up, run him up, and stop him if he’s running to the end zone. But then I saw him level off. He’s a right-handed quarterback, so scrambling to his left, he has to open his shoulders back if he wants to throw the ball.

“In that situation, I saw him open his shoulders and look as if he was gonna pass, so I stopped. I knew that I was two or three yards into the end zone, and there was still space; if I was to run at him at full speed and he was to run at me, we’d probably meet on the 5-yard line. So I didn't need to go get him immediately. And then I saw him open his shoulders, and he threw—he kind of throws from his hip; that’s his throwing mechanics. Every quarterback’s different. I’d say Aaron Rodgers is kind of similar, using their body to torque, to get more velocity on the ball.

“For me, when I saw that in film, I’m like, O.K., sometimes the ball will sail because he knows it’ll be up or sometimes the ball will float because he’s not trying to throw it as hard. And so, once I saw him open his shoulders and I could tell there was motion, receivers were running toward him because I’m to the scramble side, so I just leveled off, and he just threw it. I think he was trying to go a little higher, but he didn’t really put that much air on it; the elements—it’s raining out there, it’s wet, a stressful play. And then, yeah, I was just able to go get it.”

Holland’s a really sharp player, has been a team captain, and is afforded a lot of responsibility in the Giants’ secondary. And based on that explanation, I’d say you saw all of it on his game-clinching play.

Minnesota Vikings

I wrote a separate piece Tuesday about the Vikings’ decision to trade J.J. McCarthy to the Giants. It’s also worth comparing McCarthy’s 10 starts to those of other quarterbacks as they came into the league—as a reminder that not every young signal-caller was Dan Marino or Patrick Mahomes by Year 2.

McCarthy went 6–4 and had a 72.6 passer rating.

Likewise, in their first 10 starts, Peyton Manning went 2–8 and had a 64.6 rating, Troy Aikman went 0–10 and had a 60.0 rating, Steve Young went 2–8 and had a 65.1 rating, John Elway went 4–6 and had a 62.8 rating, Matthew Stafford went 2–8 and had a 61.0 rating, Josh Allen went 4–6 and 65.5 rating, and Eli Manning went 2–8 and had a 55.4 rating.

That, in no way, is an indicator that McCarthy’s going to make it as any of those guys did. But it is a reminder that patience matters, and that the climate around the position has changed.

One other lesson before we move on: The Vikings’ biggest mistake might have been predetermining they were going to take a quarterback in 2024. It was a really good class (six quarterbacks were selected in the first 12 picks), and they tried to get the third guy in it, Drake Maye. When that failed, they wound up with the fifth quarterback taken. Interestingly enough, O’Connell was the fifth quarterback taken in 2008, and he went 84 spots lower than McCarthy did.

Jacksonville Jaguars

There are a lot of questions about Travis Hunter’s usage as the Jaguars’ season wears on, and I figured it’d be worth a conversation here.

So here is his playing time in Jacksonville, by percentage of defensive snaps played, along with the rest of the Jaguars’ corners:

Week 1: Montaric Brown 75%, Jarrian Jones 73%, Hunter 57%, Jourdan Lewis 55%

Week 2: Brown 76%, Jones 67%, Hunter 58%, Lewis 53%

Week 3: Jones 73%, Hunter 71%, Lewis 63%, Brown 48%

Meanwhile, Hunter’s played four, six and five snaps on offense over the past three weeks.

The explanation, as I’ve heard, is twofold. First, Hunter’s coming off a major knee injury, so there is a little bit of pacing him here. Second, the team wants a rotation at corner to get the guys to December, January and (they hope) February at full speed, and the Jaguars do have the depth at the position to do that.

And, offensively, they put more in for Hunter last week than the first two weeks, but the Patriots game turned into a rout, meaning there was no need to put all that on tape.

Patience, everyone.

Laquon Treadwell

Laquon Treadwell’s 20-yard catch on an in-cut down the stretch Sunday set up the Colts’ game-winning field goal, and that Treadwell’s even in the NFL to make the play is remarkable.

A first-round pick by the Vikings in 2016, Treadwell’s been on the fringes of the league for the past five years. He last had more than six catches in a season for the Jags in 2021. And before that, he last had more than 10 in a season in 2018. Most draft busts like him vanish quickly, but Treadwell’s kept working and finding ways to stick around, and I love his story because it’s one of a guy who truly loves the game, evidenced by his desire to keep at it into his 30s.

“Treadwell’s story is incredible, being on a practice squad for I don’t know how many years, and then to make the active roster and then make the plays he’s been making, obviously, with Alec [Pierce] being down?” Colts coach Shane Steichen said to me. “The biggest thing that you can put in there is that he’s accepted his role; he made it on special teams. Like he got elevated on special teams, and then he had a really good camp because of special teams, and then made plays on offense, too.

“So it’s like, O.K., cool, yeah, you’re on the 53 this year; you keep proving it over again. He never bitches, never complains. He just crushes his role.”

Pretty cool, all the way around.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers first-round pick Max Iheanachor, who unseated veteran Dylan Cook, will likely keep the right tackle job for a while. He was a difference-maker for Pittsburgh on Sunday, and his upside is huge. The 22-year-old, who moved to California from Nigeria at 13, never played high school football—starring in basketball as a teenager—but was convinced to go to junior college to try the sport in 2021. He progressed fast, transferred to Arizona State, and became one of last year’s most intriguing prospects.

And already, he’s becoming a really good player.

2026 QB class

On Sunday, undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels will become the first quarterback from his draft class to start a game, doing so before first-rounders Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson, and the other eight guys who were drafted in April—which is interesting. But a UDFA rookie quarterback starting isn’t as uncommon as you might think—Brady Cook did it last year for the Jets, and Tommy DeVito and Tyson Bagent did the same for the Giants and Bears in 2023.

Cleveland Browns

The Browns’ home game is on national TV on Thursday, with Deshaun Watson starting for a 2–1 team—just like everyone drew it up.

But while you’re watching, keep an eye on all the young talent Cleveland’s putting on the field. Their 2025 and ’26 draft classes could give the franchise an incredibly solid foundation to build on. And then, if you add that to the surplus of picks the team has over the next three drafts due to the Myles Garrett trade, you might wind up having something.

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