GM Candidates to Watch for Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins will be on the market for a permanent new GM after the season

Miami Dolphins interim general manager Champ Kelly before a game against the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium. | Jeff Romance-Imagn Images

The Miami Dolphins will be looking for a permanent general manager soon after the conclusion of their 2025 season and it's expected to be a exhaustive search, one helped by Hall of Fame QB and ESPN analyst Troy Aikman.

The focus, according to NFL Network insider Cameron Wolfe, will be on a candidate with a strong scouting background to work in conjunction with cap expert Brandon Shore and the head coach, whether it's Mike McDaniel or a replacement.

As he does annually at this time of year, SI national reporter Albert Breer unveiled his list of names to remember as potential future general managers, and it's entirely possible, maybe even likely, the Dolphins' final choice will be among those candidates.

A FORMER DOLPHINS STAFF MEMBER IN THE GROUP

The list includes a lot of the names we've mentioned before, such as Alec Halaby of the Philadelphia Eagles, Ray Agnew of the Detroit Lions, Josh Williams of the San Francisco 49ers and Jon-Eric Sullivan of the Green Bay Packers.

Another name on Breer's list is Chris Shea, the assistant general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs. What stands out about Shea is he worked for the Dolphins for seven seasons (2008-14) before leaving to join the Philadelphia Eagles.

Shea's last four seasons in Miami were spent as assistant director of pro personnel. In that capacity, he served as the Dolphins' primary advance scout, was a senior evaluator of all pro players and oversaw the daily operations of Miami's pro scouting department. He was promoted in May 2011 after previously serving as the Dolphins player personnel administrator (2010-11) and player personnel coordinator (2008-10). In those roles, he combined scouting, legal, salary cap management, information technology and analytics duties. From 2008-11, he coordinated all aspects of the Dolphins draft efforts.

"His background is fascinating," Breer wrote about Shea. "Early in his career, he toggled back and forth between scouting and cap, and even spent a couple years on the league office’s management council. He had a hybrid role for the Eagles for two years before 2017 when he jumped to Kansas City, where he’s primarily worked on the cap/operations side. And since (Brandt) Tilis left for Carolina two years ago, Shea’s taken Tilis’s old role as the lead guy in roster-building strategy. Bottom line, few have worn as many hats as Shea has."

Champ Kelly has served as Dolphins interim GM since the team parted ways with Chris Grier on October 31, but was not on Breer's list. Grier had served as Dolphins GM since 2016.