Dolphins Saturday Mailbag: What Are the Chances Miami Runs It Back in 2026?

Part 1 of a Thanksgiving weekend Miami Dolphins on SI mailbag:

From Ignacio vidal:

Hope you had a good thanksgiving. What are the chances Ross just stays with Champ Kelly and McD at the end of the season?

Hey Ignacio, obviously a lot will depend on how the Dolphins finish the season, but at this time I’d put those chances are slightly better than 50-50. I think if the Dolphins finish 8-9 without any embarrassing losses down the stretch, the percentage goes up. Likewise, if the Dolphins don’t do better than 7-10 or there’s a bad loss along the way, then it falls below the 50 percent mark.

From spasq1383:

The AFC looks pretty “meh” this year. How do you think the 2023 Dolphins would have fared in the AFC of 2025?

That’s an interesting question because the 2023 Dolphins were pretty talented, but they also failed to deliver against the quality opponents on their schedule. So I have a hard time suggesting the Dolphins would have done any better against this AFC field than the one of 2023, even it clearly was much better two years ago.

From Ricky Watson:

When do you think we'll see Darren Waller on the field in a game again now that he's off of IR?

Hey Ricky, I’ll maintain my prediction that he’ll be back for the game against the New York Jets next Sunday, though head coach Mike McDaniel said Friday he was “in play” for the game the New Orleans Saints.

From Jorge boyd:

Hi Alain, do you think the Dolphins having so much time off is going to affect their play. I hear the Saints defense has some good players but hasn't been so good recently, especially on run defense. Do you think we can run on the Saints; also, I don't know if Alvin Kamara plays.

Hey Jorge, the Saints defense does have some good players, like Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis and Justin Reid, and it’s overall not been a terrible unit, though they did get gashed on the ground by the Chicago Bears. Alvin Kamara indeed will not play against the Dolphins, and it’s on offense where the Saints really are deficient.

From Dennis Pacheco:

Do you think that the team performance got better after Grier was fired? If so, is that any relation with that? If not, could a GM being fired change the performance of the players on the field?

Hey Dennis, well, the Dolphins are 2-0 since the firing with their wins against Buffalo and Washington, though it’s not an exaggeration that they easily could have lost and maybe even should have lost against the Commanders in Spain. So I’m not sure about the notion of them having played better since the firing, and a change of GM during a season to me would have at best a microscopic effect on the team’s overall performance.

From Dave Campbell:

Greetings Alain! Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. This season I always get queasy (sorry, folks) when Miami plays a team they should beat fairly easily (like Washington). Does Bengals winning on Thanksgiving give them a little more incentive as well as K.C. losing? Tyler Shough seems to be getting more comfortable to NFL speed. Any threats that can exploit Miami? Pass rush that makes Tua see ghosts? Looking forward to both All Dolphins and Dolphins Collective.

Hey Dave, the Dolphins are 4-7 … have there been many games they have won “fairly easily,” and I’ll include Cleveland here because the Browns have a very good defense and the conditions weren’t great that day. The results of Thanksgiving were very good for the Dolphins, but their record says they never should have needed any extra incentive for any game. Lastly, while Shough is showing progress, but the Saints offense is severely lacking in playmakers. Chris Olave is a good wide receiver, but he’s a question mark with a back injury, and tight end Juwan Johnson does have some ability. The Saints don’t have a A-type pass rusher, but Cameron Jordan, Carl Granderson and Chase Young all can get to the quarterback.

From Randy Millard:

Do the Phins have another player on the roster that could fill in for Brunskill in the “Heavy Package” if Brunskill got hurt? Also, how many more games you think before other teams figure out to counter it?

Hey Randy, it’s not like the Dolphins are catching teams by surprise, it’s all about execution and making your blocks. And there are games where it will work and others where it won’t work so much. And to who else could fill that role, I’m not convinced it’s that hard of an ask and I’m thinking somebody like Kendall Lamm could do it as well.

From SubScatter:

Thoughts on this graphic shown yesterday during KC-DAL

Updated AFC Playoff picture after the Cowboys beat the Chiefs pic.twitter.com/GGnovnYfAn
— Houston Stressans (@TexansCommenter) November 28, 2025

I have two thoughts … on one hand, it’s ridiculous to include a team’s that 4-7, but on the other the Dolphins are only two games behind the Chiefs and now also the Baltimore Ravens in the loss column with five-plus weeks left in the regular season.

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