Addition of Top UFL Safety Shows How Dolphins Keep Looking for Hidden Gems

The Miami Dolphins might be done with their offeason program and six-plus weeks away from the start of training camp, but the quest to find hidden gems never stops.

The Dolphins are making another roster move, this time signing safety Major Burns after his stellar season with the Houston Gamblers in the United Football League, as first reported by UFL writer James Larsen and confirmed by a league source.

The move comes a little less than two weeks after the Dolphins signed former Philadelphia Eagles first-round pick Jalen Reagor. Burns becomes the fifth newcomer added since the signings of undrafted free agents at the start of the rookie minicamp May 8, the others being running back Carlos Washington Jr., tackle Marques Cox and James Ester, who was moved from defensive tackle to guard after the Dolphins claimed him off waivers from the Green Bay Packers.

The trend here is pretty clear: The Dolphins are going to keep taking shots with reclamation projects or unproven players instead of adding high-profile veterans with the salary cap space they got after June 1.

And we should expect this practice to continue until the start of training camp, through training camp and through the regular season.

This is where the Dolphins are as an organization, at the beginning of a rebuilding project where one of the biggest priorities is finding talent to supplement the proven players already in place to push forward the franchise back toward contention.

It's pretty similar to 2019 when the Dolphins were in full rebuild mode after unloading a slew of veterans in the offseason.

Miami kept churning the roster that year, signing free agents throughout the season and making an astounding 20 waivers claims, with that of Zach Sieler in December paying off big dividends.

THE BOOK ON BURNS

Burns earned All-UFL honors this spring when he tied for the league lead with four interceptions.

Burns started his college career at Georgia before transferring to LSU, where he played for four years. Burns amassed 33 starts, 11 TFL’s and two interceptions in his college career.

When Burns’ college career ended, he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Chicago Bears, but he was waived-injured last August after sustaining a knee injury in their preseason opener — ironically against the Dolphins at Soldier Field.

The Safety Status

As was the case with Reagor before him, as well as any unproven player signed in Miami, Burns has to be considered a long shot to make the Dolphins' 53-man roster, but the fact he's joining perhaps the least established position group won't hurt.

The Dolphins' current safety group features second-year player Dante Trader Jr., along with newcomers Lonnie Johnson Jr., Zayne Anderson, rookie fifth-round pick Michael Taaffe, rookie free agent Louis Moore, and Omar Brown, who is listed as a defensive back on the roster.

Because of his strong spring performance and the potential he showed as a rookie, Trader projects as a likely starter, Anderson was brought in from Green Bay by new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and new head coach Jeff Hafley, and Taaffe also basically is a lock given his draft status.

But there is an opportunity here for Burns if he can deliver on the promise he showed in the UFL.

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