Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: Wilson, Ewers, O-line, and More

Part 2 of a Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Eric:

Between Wilson/Ewers showing in the first preseason game, do you think there’s competition for QB2? If so, who do you think wins that battle?

Hey Eric, there is no competition. Zach Wilson will be the No. 2 quarterback. The Dolphins didn’t give him $6 million this season to be third string. Besides, he’s probably outperformed Ewers overall in training camp.

From Brian ‘Wray Epps’ Mitchell:

In Vegas. $1000 on Over 7.5, or no?

Hey Brian, I do not give out gambling advice here or anywhere else. All I’ll say is the Dolphins were 6-5 with Tua as the starting quarterback last season and they also haven’t won fewer than seven games since 2019 when they were rebuilding (or tanking).

From Keith Michael:

OL Depth vs CB? Which is the bigger need for this team?

Hey Keith, the answer is yes. How’s that for taking the wimpy way out.

From Phinsverso:

Do you feel the Dolphins will address the CB room before the season with what we saw in the joint practices?

I touched on this in the Friday mailbag, but I’m thinking the Dolphins will at least start the regular season with the group they currently have. Could be wrong, though. Been wrong before. Will be wrong again.

From SFL Commissioner:

Take on training camp environments in Detroit and Chicago vs. Miami?

There are two striking differences if I’m going to be honest. The first is from a media perspective, we have it really, really good at the Baptist Health Training Complex being able to sit in stands with a great view of both fields. There also was much more enthusiasm from the crowd, but this is where the obvious point needs to be made that we’re talking about joint practices as opposed to intrasquad work so far in South Florida. The question now is whether the Dolphins fans can match the enthusiasm the Bears and Lions fans demonstrated during the joint practices.

From NYCFinFan4Life:

So realistically without all the drama and hype others have, how do you see the progression of secondary and depth on the O-Line? Also with the injuries are we cursed or do we need a new conditioning staff? Appreciate you as always. It's preseason. I'm not in panic mode yet.

I like your last part. Nobody should be in panic mode yet. That said, I can’t say there’s a ton of reason right now to feel great about either the depth on the offensive line or the secondary because it’s a bit shaky. The secondary got exposed in the joint practices against the Lions, though we’re talking about a top 5 offense in the NFL, if not higher.

From James:

Why are there two punters, and is there a battle for the position?

From Michael LaVigne:

Can you give an update on the battle at punter. Not sure I can do another year of Bailey. Updates seem to be few & far between on this one.

Hey James and Michael, there are two punters on the roster because the Dolphins saw Ryan Stonehouse become available and decided to bring him in to give him a look because of his big leg. Now, there clearly is a battle, otherwise the Dolphins would have made their choice already. There’s a slight cap benefit to choosing Stonehouse over Bailey, but so far they have been pretty even in the punting sessions they have had. And you might not like Bailey, but he was effective as the holder for Jason Sanders last year and Sanders had a great season.

From CT:

Do we know enough yet to confirm if the CB position is going to be a big problem for this defense? … And, any insight as to why a coaching genius wouldn’t have the TE position play a more meaningful role in this offense?

It's still too early for any definitive conclusions on the CB position, though I do like Storm Duck but I’m not sure there’s another clear answer there. As for “coaching genius” and the tight position, guess you forgot that Jonnu Smith set franchise records for the position last year. Or did I dream that? And then there are many, including me, who would tell you that wasn’t necessarily a good thing for the offense.

From Marc:

Why do you think Miami has not brought in Jedrick Wills for a look, protected Tua’s Blindside (RT) @ Bama and drafted several picks in front of Jackson? Has starts at LT, but should be playing RT.

Hey Marc, last I heard on Wills is he was planning on sitting out all or most of the 2025 season to take care of a problematic knee and fully recover. So that would be your answer right there.

From Ryanmathewsmiami:

How will the Dolphins navigate the paper thin depth at corner and offensive line?

Hmm, very carefully? There is no navigating anything. They’ll use the guys they think give them the best chance to win and then adjust accordingly if the results are lacking. There’s no magic formula here.

From Bick Whitener:

What are the 2025 Injured Reserve rules. Last year, a player put on IR before the cut down was out for the year. What has changed?

Hey Bick, nothing has changed. Anybody put on injured reserve prior to the cuts to 53 is done for the season (barring getting released with an injury settlement and then other rules apply). Teams can designate two players on cutdown day to be eligible to return from IR during the season and then have eight more designations past the cuts to 53.

From Todd Leno:

Hi Alain, I really enjoy your work, being a lifelong Phin fan for 50-plus years. First off, I was a longtime subscriber of Dolphin Digest, at least 10 years. In fact, I had at least 3 questions or comments you or the esteemed Andy Cohen chose to publish of mine and it was a thrill each and every time. I think my use of alliteration seemed to catch your guys attention, perhaps, but regardless, I loved Dolphin Digest. I miss those days of eagerly awaiting the next edition of the Digest, and not Reader’s. OK Alain, for the current crew, can you envision that the weakness of our CB roster can be overcome by a strong front 7 and our safeties? Keep up the good work.

Hey Todd, first off thanks for the trip down memory lane. Yes, the cornerback concerns could be alleviated to a certain degree by the front seven, more specifically the pass rush. But it’s impossible to expect the pass rush to affect the quarterback on every drop-back, so the cornerbacks will have to pull their weight at some point.

From Vett:

Hey Alain, from what you’ve seen so far in camp who’s the biggest surprise that’s gonna make the 53-man roster?

Hey Vett, this is an interesting variation of the question I answer Friday about my training camp surprises. I mentioned then that my two camp surprises would be Dee Eskridge and Derrick McLendon, and of those two I think Eskridge is much more likely to make the 53-man roster.

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