Dolphins Rookie Stock Report After Week 8: On the Rise

For the second straight week, the Miami Dolphins’ rookies were a positive influence on the team. It’s been a slow start for the group, and it’s still not the most impactful bunch, but there has been clear improvement across the last two games.

Dante Trader Jr. returned to the lineup, Ollie Gordon II set career highs, and the interior defensive line duo held their ground. Here’s the report on how each rookie performed against the Atlanta Falcons.

Kenneth Grant

Week 7: Stock Up

Week 8: Slight Stock Up

Grant wasn’t quite as impactful as last week, but this creates a trend of him playing better in recent weeks. He had two pressures in this game, the more impressive of which featured him driving an offensive lineman five yards into the pocket.

His run defense was pretty stout for the most part, and he made a nice play to force holding when Bijan Robinson fumbled in the third quarter. The most important thing for Grant is just finding consistency.

He was a negative for most of the season, but has become mostly just a solid presence the past two weeks — that’s an essential step before he can live up to his first-round billing.

It might be time to buy some more Grant stock; he’s close to a true breakout.

Jonah Savaiianaea

Week 7: Slight Stock Down

Week 8: No Movement

This was a tough one because Savaiianea did show some progress. He made a few impact blocks in the running game, and even some of his lowlights were courtesy of getting tripped by his own teammates.

That said, he gave up two more pressures against Atlanta, and both were pretty rough reps. He got beat by an arm-over move right off the snap for the first one, and then got bull rushed into the pocket on the second.

If you’re interested in giving yourself nightmare fuel, just think about the number of sacks Savaiinaea would be responsible for if Miami didn’t get the ball out as quickly as it does.

Again, this was far from Savaiinaea’s worst game, and given the high volume of reps he played, he was more of a neutral factor than anything else. But there are still too many struggles and negative plays to give him a stock-up designation.

Jordan Phillips

Week 7: Slight Stock Up

Week 8: No Movement

Phillips played only 15 defensive reps against Atlanta, but that had more to do with the Falcons than anything he was doing. Atlanta didn’t commit to the run much and fell behind by multiple scores pretty early.

The Dolphins like to cycle out Phillips when the other team is passing a lot, so it makes sense his snap count dropped. Also, it’s not like Miami’s defense was on the field a ton in general.

As for his play, Phillips showed the same strength and effort that have made him the most consistent rookie performer this season. He had two tackles in the game and forced the RB to adjust on a few other plays.

He still needs to shed blocks a little quicker and develop some type of pass-rush plan, but he already looks like a solid role player and someone who should stick in the NFL.

Dante Trader Jr.

Week 7: DNP (on defense)

Week 8: Stock Up

The last time we saw Trader on defense, he was missing a tackle against Ladd McConkey that led to a game-winning field goal. He didn’t play against the Browns, but man, did he respond wonderfully against Atlanta.

The safety posted his highest defensive snap count of the season (37) and had some solid plays. His PBU near the sideline was a good play, although a QB with a younger arm probably beats him to the spot.

Still, you can only play the team that’s in front of you, and it was a great breakup at the catch point. Trader also had several solid reps in man coverage and helped stuff a bubble screen by working through a block.

Projecting him as a future starter still feels rich, but he’s a versatile backup who clearly has the right mentality to contribute long-term. Miami should continue giving him looks, even when Minkah Fitzpatrick gets out of his slot responsibilities.

Ollie Gordon II

Week 7: Slight Stock Up

Week 8: Stock Up

Week 8 was Gordon’s best performance of the season, and that was largely due to Miami actually giving him a shot. He had a career-high 10 carries and 48 yards, while adding a touchdown catch on a well-blocked screen.

Gordon’s value is centered around his ability to win through contact, but he also received some better blocking in front of him. He got three yards before contact per carry Sunday, and he used that runway to pick up solid yards.

The rookie from Oklahoma State picked up six first downs on the ground, including several in short-yardage situations. The Dolphins got him a bunch of runs from under center, something we’ve asked for in previous weeks.

Gordon is still a small part of the offense, but that’s fine. He’s a changeup, another pitch the Dolphins can throw at defenses. Getting him to somewhere between eight to 10 carries per game should be the goal.

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