Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: Why Drake Maye Matters When It Comes to Malik Willis

Part 1 of a Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag for the final weekend of June 2026:

From Lu_FromDade:

With the Heat making yet another trade for a superstar, what are your top 5 biggest stars acquired by the Dolphins via trade?

Hey Lu, funny you should mention because I produced a top 10 list of the biggest trade acquisitions when I did a story on the massive NFL trades of the offseason (Myles Garrett and A.J. Brown). Those, however, were listed as much in terms of the trade itself than the player acquired and my top 5 going strictly by the quality of the player acquired would be, in this order, Paul Warfield, Ricky Williams, Tyreek Hill, Jalen Ramsey and Hugh Green. I’m not including Junior Seau on this list because his best days were behind him when the Dolphins traded for him in 2005.

From J Reynolds:

These were the good old days here. When is the team wearing the old uniforms this season? Are they going to retire 54 and 99 this year?

Editor’s note: The question was accompanied by a picture of what looked like the 1980s and/or 1990s. There have been no announcements or leaks as to when the Dolphins will be wearing the throwback uniforms next season, though usually one of those games is late in the season. And I have heard nothing about the Dolphins even thinking about retiring the numbers 54 or 99, which is weird since not one player has worn either in a regular season game since Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor retired.

From Dave Campbell:

Greetings Alain ! No great expectations for this year's season, just a hope that we see (finally) a team with some gritty attitudes & chip on shoulder mentality & let other teams know you may win but you're gonna have a bloody nose afterwards. Anyways, my question after that tirade is, has anyone asked if Offensive/Defensive coordinators are going to be on sidelines or in the booth? I see an advantage in both but a personal preference with sidelines approach & being able to talk directly with players. I'm also glad to see a WR room with size over smurf & super speed. You? My mornings & evenings are always busy with great written content on Miami Dolphins on SI.Com & listening to both All Dolphins and Dolphins Collective podcasts!!!

Thanks as always, Dave. The coordinators have not been asked, but my best guess is that you will see DC Sean Duggan in the booth because Jeff Hafley will have his fingerprints all over the defense. As for Bobby Slowik, I’d just be guessing at this time. I do think you’ll get your wish of a tougher, more physical team in 2026, though the results might not be there immediately.

From JCEsq1982:

If elite quarterbacks are supposed to elevate average supporting casts, then isn't a three- or four-win season the strongest argument for drafting a quarterback early in 2027? Otherwise, aren't we saying the current quarterback needs a loaded roster just to be competitive? How am I wrong?

You’re not wrong, but it’s also not quite as simple. When we say (at least speaking for myself) “elevating the team,” that means being able to produce wins that otherwise wouldn’t be there with an average QB. And the next question is what does Malik Willis look like if the Dolphins indeed go 4-13 or 3-14? For example, the Patriots were 4-13 in 2024, but there should have been zero hesitation whatsoever in believing that they had their quarterback with Drake Maye. So there’s nuance involved there.

TOO MANY SMALL WIDE RECEIVERS?

From UncleBobT1:

Loved your 6/22 article on scheme fit with Willis & Ewers. Do you think Slowik (possibly encouraged by Sullivan and/or Hafley) will alter the offense to better suit Willis’ skills? Or do you think they’ll stick with the Shanahan-style offense that seems a better fit for Ewers?

Hey Bob (or should I say Uncle Bob?), the essence of coaching is maximizing your players’ strengths and minimizing their weaknesses. That said, Slowik absolutely will or at least should tweak some things offensively to play to Willis’ strengths and there’s no reason that can’t be achieved while still maintaining some of the staples of the Shanahan offense. Let’s just go back to Mike McDaniel with Tua Tagovailoa, and don’t think he didn’t tweak a lot of what he wanted to do to suit what Tua did best. That’s pretty standard.

From Jayco:

This new regime wanted more size at wide receiver. How concerning is it that three (Washington, Coleman, Atwell) of the leading contenders for playing time are all undersized?

I see your point and it could be an issue if those three become the three main guys at the positions, and this is where the Dolphins need Caleb Douglas and Jalen Tolbert to deliver, as well as Chris Bell when he’s ready to bounce back from his ACL injury. The goal is to have some balance, unlike last year when the main wide receivers all were on the small side with Hill, Waddle and Malik Washington. Actually, the biggest key is for the unit to perform — at least better than some of the absurdly low expectations of them suggest they will.

From Jon Russell:

Hey Alain, why do you think Brooks hasn’t been offered a new deal yet? Do you think the Fins are in a wait-and-see where we are at the trade deadline or are they open to offers right now? If the Fins have a winning record by the deadline, could they keep him?

Hey Jon, first off, I’m pretty sure a contract offer already has been made, except it wasn’t to Brooks’ liking. And this is the part that often gets left out when a player leaves via free agency — for example, the Dolphins did try to sign Christian Wilkins to an extension before he played out his contract but couldn’t reach an agreement on the terms. So logic right now says the two sides don’t agree on what Brooks’ new deal should look like, and maybe the Dolphins come up a little bit and Brooks’ agent comes down and there’s a deal struck. Or maybe the Dolphins settle in with their position and Brooks just plays out the final year of his contract. In the meantime, if a team makes a great trade offer, I certainly would expect Jon-Eric Sullivan to consider it. And if the Dolphins have a winning record at the trade deadline to where they actually can think playoffs, then maybe they do hang on to him regardless and revisit his contract situation next offseason. But I’d also point out that everything will be done with the long term in mind.

WHAT KIND OF STATS DOES MALIK WILLIS NEED?

From Maybe Next Year:

What would it take stats wise for you to say this was a successful season for Willis and have a bit more confidence going into 2027?

Don’t take this personally, but I don’t like the question because stats depend on factor outside of Willis, factors over which he has no control. For me — and I can assure it’s the same for Jon-Eric Sullivan and Jeff Hafley — it will be about the eye test. And this is where I’m going to go back to Drake Maye and his 2024 season when he had 15 touchdown passes against 10 interceptions, a really poor ratio, and only an 88.1 passer rating, yet looked every bit the part of a franchise quarterback. Since you asked, the one number I’d probably keep an eye on would be interceptions because regardless if he threw something crazy like 22 picks, that would be very worrisome.

From dolphman99:

Hi Alain, after shedding most of their stars and seemingly gearing up for a complete rebuild, the Dolphins won't be expected to win many games this season. Hafley's first year in charge will be about establishing a team culture and developing young players. The final number in the wins column won't be the determining factor in whether the season was successful. This is all that is being said for the 2026 season. Hope they play competitive this year. The game is played to win and motivate the players. Play one game at a time. Miami Dolphins the surprise team in 2026!

Agree with everything you wrote, though I’m not really confident about that very final sentence.

From JohnnyFrostbite:

Hypothetical...Malik gets hurt, Ewers comes in say, week 8-10, balls out and wins a few games. Do we or can we trade him for draft picks ? Because it doesn’t seem like we are keeping him.

Hey Johnny, if Ewers comes in and balls out, then he does exactly the job you want from a backup quarterback. So then why would you trade him — barring an obscene offer, of course — when you always want to have that kind of good backup quarterback, particularly one who’s under team control contractually through the 2028 season?

From Ed Helinski:

How does the World Cup fans compare to Dolphins’ and other fan bases for all of the great sporting events that have occurred in Miami?

Hey Ed, can’t answer that question because I not only haven’t attended the matches in Miami, I haven’t even watched them on television (soccer is just not my thing). It’s also a different event because this is an international competition.

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