Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: Coaching Staff, Tua, and More

Part 1 of a Senior Bowl weekend Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From NYCFinFan4Life:

Hello good sir. Rapid fire. First off, what do you think on paper of staff put together. 2nd & it's a doozy but I trust you. If you had to name one player of each position who would be on your radar for either draft or free agents … Always truly appreciate that you do this.

My first impressions of Jeff Hafley are all very positive. I love the way he presents himself. As for the staff, there have been no “wow” additions, but I do like the idea of Bobby Slowik as OC and Nathaniel Hackett (for whatever wants to complain) is overqualified as a QB coach. Second, man, that’s a tough one on short notice. I’ll put together a list at some point and do a full article on this site, but for now I’ll throw out I’m very intrigued by adding a Will Levis or Anthony Richardson at QB. It’s too early in the draft process to nail down too many prospects beyond the first down, though obviously who wouldn’t want a stud like safety Caleb Downs or wide receiver Jordyn Tyson or linebacker Sonny Styles or cornerback LSU Mansoor Delane or either of the Miami defensive linemen, Reuben Bain Jr. or Akheem Mesidor.

From Jorge boyd:

Hi Alain, what do you see as possible candidates in the trenches for Miami from the Senior Bowl?

Hey Jorge, for this question I deferred to Dolphins On SI Deputy Editor Dante Collinelli, who actually was in Mobile this week and saw the practice action up close and personal and he provided this feedback: OT Max Iheanchor, OT Jude Bowery, G Jalen Farmer, IDL Caleb Banks, IDL Garcen Halton, EDGE Zion Young, EDGE Gabe Jacas.

From Bitcoin Riot:

Nathaniel Hackett...WHY?

Because Nathaniel Hackett has a lot of experience as an offensive coordinator, can serve as a good sounding board for offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, and because he’s massively overqualified for a QB coach position. Hope that clarifies it. There is zero wrong with this addition.

From Damian from Pittsburgh:

Had a question that’s Dolphins-adjacent. I'm curious why Darren Rizzi doesn’t get more attention as a HC candidate. He's fantastic at his job, maniac-intense, and super experienced. Every year, I'm convinced some team is gonna find the next John Harbaugh. Yet it never happens. What's he doing wrong to not get more attention?

Hey Damian, that’s an excellent question and I wish I knew the answer. I’m with you, I think Rizzi has everything necessary to become a quality head coach. I’m almost wondering whether maybe he’s too intense perhaps.

From Toby Marmorino:

Hey Alain, do you know if any of the assistant coaches or position coaches have their contracts honored and paid after being fired the same way head coaches do? I hate to see Darrell Bevell go, and I sure hope we hang on to Austin Clark, he's a rock star as a defensive line coach. Now I want you to take a moment to picture the old Dolphins logo where the dolphin has a helmet on with a letter M, I'm sure you remember it well. Now picture that same dolphin with the helmet being replaced by a cheesehead with the letter M on it, that's what we are turning into. The Miami Pack-Fins! Keep up the good work on all your platforms. Thank you.

Hey Toby, assistant coaches generally sign two-year contracts and if they have time remaining on their deals, they get paid that money. The Miami Pack-Fins? Lot of BC connections as well. As for Clark, I like him too and I know the Dolphins have thought highly of him, but I'd say it's less than 50-50 he'll be back in 2026 because it looks like new head coach Jeff Hafley wants to bring in folks with whom he's worked before to coach the defense.

From moose knuckle:

Alain, what’s your opinion on Sawyer Robertson of Baylor?

Have to do more research, but my first impressions are he’s got a lot of physical traits (live arm, can move), but not really a fan of the mechanics or the delivery.

From Mike Marchese:

Bonjour Alain. I see some mocks that have us picking a DB at 11, but I feel the team’s view is to build the trenches. What say you?

Hey Mike, the reality is the Dolphins have needs all over the place, so if there’s a DB at 11 who outclasses any other prospect, I could see making that move. If all things are equal, though, then I say, yes, absolutely build from the inside out, as Jon-Eric Sullivan said during the introductory press conference.

From Thomas Hudson:

So I know everyone wants to blame Tua, and that goes with being the QB. But at some point, don't we need to accept that a big part of the problem with the offense was the issues in the WR room? I know you love to write about how Tua's limitations meant the Dolphins just couldn't do stuff on offense, but...

1 - They signed Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and they did it, as far as I can tell, because they thought he would be a good blocker. You have said he simply could not get open, and we know Tua doesn't like to throw jump balls. So Tua is not without blame here, but why did they sign him in the first place? To help the run game?

2 - When Hill got hurt, they signed Cedric Wilson? The same guy who did not step up in 2023 when Hill and Waddle got hurt? Why? Because he can run block?

When your primary concern for picking wide receivers is their ability to run block, you should expect your passing game to go downhill.

And since the end of the season, we have these two:

1 - Malik Washington was recently quoted as saying sometimes the goal of a route is not to get open. And the Dolphins seem to run a lot of those if Kurt Warner is to be believed.

2 - This gem from Omar Kelly on 1/23: " it doesn’t help that a consistent complaint about last year’s offense was receiver unit’s inability to know their assignments, and run the routes properly."

That seemed to extend to TEs as well as Tua seemed pretty frustrated with Greg Dulcich, who clearly did not know some of the plays (understandably so given his late arrival).

I am not saying Tua is not part of the problem. But it amazes me that so many people seem convinced that replacing him is the answer. The WR unit was seriously broken in 2025. Maybe it would have worked if Hill had stayed healthy, but there was no depth there. Grier and McDaniel hamstrung the passing game trying to build the run game. Tua's regression was because of his biggest weakness. He will only ever be as good as the talent around him. He can make it better, but he can't make up for the lack of it. Making that passing offense work without Hill would have been a heavy lift for any QB, but especially so for a QB like Tua.

Sorry about the lengthy rant, but I get frustrated when I see so many people oversimplifying the issue.

Hey Thomas, I don’t have an issue with anything you wrote, but you particularly nailed it when you said Tua “will only ever be as good as the talent around him,” which is something obviously you can say about most QBs, but to different degrees. The issue with Tua is the Dolphins paid him like a quarterback who shouldn’t be that dependent on the talent around him. So, yes, the Dolphins passing game had a lot of different issues in 2025 beyond Tua, but it doesn’t change the fact that the Dolphins paid top dollar (and cap space) for a QB who needs more help around him than the elite players at his position.

More Miami Dolphins Coverage: