Dolphins Week 2 Power Rankings Roundup: More of the Same

In a pretty twisted kind of way, the Miami Dolphins made some headway in terms of their national perception following their Week 1 loss against the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Dolphins still remain as the lowest-ranked team in the NFL, but four national outlets out of the 10 used in our traditional power rankings survey do not have them at number 32, up from only two heading into Week 1.

The flip side is that no outlet has the Dolphins ranked higher than 30th, though NFL.com did move Miami from 32nd to that 30 spot after their 27-13 loss against the Raiders. The Dolphins are slotted ahead of the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns by NFL.com and ahead of the Browns and Atlanta Falcons by The Sporting News.

The Dolphins' average ranking among these 10 national outlets — Yahoo Sports, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, The Athletic, NFL.com, USA Today, Pro Football Talk, FOX Sports, The Sporting News, CBS Sports — was at 31.4 for a second consecutive week.

The average ranking position for Miami's Week 2 opponents, the San Francisco 49ers, was 5.4. The 49ers were first by The Athletic following their convincing 27-7 victory against the Super Bowl favorite Los Angeles Rams in Australia.

Here's the rundown of the Dolphins placement in the rankings along with the accompanying commentary:

THE DOLPHINS IN WEEK 2 NATIONAL POWER RANKINGS

The Sporting News (Vinnie Iyer)

Rank: 30 Previous: 30

Analysis: The Jeff Hafley era started with a dud in the desert as Malik Willis and the offense got ripped by the Raiders' defense. Hafley doesn't have many defensive playmakers, either. Seeing the 49ers and Chiefs next doesn't inspire confidence for improvement early.

CBS Sports (Pete Prisco)

Rank: 32 Previous: 32

Analysis: The showing against the Raiders is something the Dolphins fans should get used to seeing. It's going to be a long season.

USA Today (Nate Davis)

Rank: 32

Analysis: Piling up tackles isn't necessarily indicative of an elite defender, but rookie LB Jacob Rodriguez's 14 stops − second most league-wide in Week 1 − in his pro debut portend thesmart and active player the second-rounder was projected to be coming out of Texas Tech.

FOX Sports (Ralph Vacchiano)

Rank: 32 Previous: 32

Analysis: The expectations for this team couldn’t have been much lower, and they still couldn’t meet them. It’s going to be a long season in South Florida. Hope the weather is nice, at least.

NFL.com (Nick Shook)

Rank: 30 Previous: 32

Analysis: Yes, Miami began 2026 with a loss, but things could’ve gone worse for the Dolphins in their season opener. If they’re going to win any games this season, however, they’ll need more production from De’Von Achane. It’s not ideal for Malik Willis to outgain the team's top running back on the ground.

The Athletic (Chad Graff and Josh Kendall)

Rank: 32 Previous: 32

Analysis: Miami might have the worst top-to-bottom team in the NFL. This rebuild is going to take some time. But Sunday’s game should’ve been one of the few on the schedule the Dolphins had a reasonable chance to win. Still, they never led, trailing from the end of the first quarter on.

ESPN

Rank: 31 Previous: 32

Analysis (on non-QB newcomer debut, Caleb Douglas): Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez was one of the league's best rookies in Week 1 with 14 tackles, but the Dolphins' passing offense would have been nonexistent without Douglas. The third-round pick established himself as the team's WR1 with five catches on seven targets for 94 receiving yards, including 81 yards in the first half. There were some growing pains, as there likely will be throughout the season, but his debut was a great start in an otherwise disappointing opener for the Dolphins.

Pro Football Talk (Mike Florio)

Rank: 31 Previous: 28

Analysis: They aren’t tanking; they’re just not good.

Sports Illustrated (Conor Orr)

Rank: 32 Previous: 32

Analysis: I’m not sure what is happening on the field, but I am very into the conspiracy that Miami is cleaning out its stockpile of jerseys by sending them to season-ticket holders ahead of a sleek new redesign next year, in which the team may have the No. 1 pick.

Yahoo Sports (Frank Schwab)

Rank: 32 Previous: 32

Analysis: The Dolphins claimed seven players off waivers. The fact that 13% of their roster is made up of players who weren't wanted by other teams and didn't go through training camp with the Dolphins tells you all you need to know about Miami's upcoming season. It's going to be ugly.

THE MIAMI DOLPHINS ON SI WEEK 2 POWER RANKINGS

1. Seattle
2. Buffalo
3. Baltimore
4. San Francisco
5. Kansas City
6. L.A. Rams
7. Chicago
8. Jacksonville
9. Houston
10. Cincinnati
11. Philadelphia
12. Denver
13. Minnesota
14. New England
15. Detroit
16. N.Y. Giants
17. Tampa Bay
18. Arizona
19. Green Bay
20. Dallas
21. Pittsburgh
22. Las Vegas
23. N.Y. Jets
24. Washington
25. Indianapolis
26. Carolina
27. New Orleans
28. L.A. Chargers
29. Atlanta
30. Miami
31. Tennessee
32. Cleveland

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