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With recurring injury issues rearing its ugly head, almost nothing went right for the Miami Dolphins in 2024. Following an 8-9 season that ended in the regular season, the Dolphins enter free agency in the 2025 NFL offseason with a lot of roster issues to address.
The Dolphins enter free agency with one of the worst cap situations in the league. They are projected to be roughly $5 million in the hole, the sixth-worst in the NFL. However, Miami will have 30 players hit unrestricted free agency in March with most expected to seek a new team.
Jevon Holland, Kendall Fuller, Duke Riley, Emmanuel Ogbah, Robert Jones and Braxton Berrios headline the Dolphins’ list of upcoming free agents. Many of them, most notably Holland, have all but confirmed they will sign elsewhere. General manager Chris Grier added to his growing list of needs by releasing veteran running back Raheem Mostert one month after the end of the season.
While Miami continues to aim for their first Super Bowl since 1974, they have not won a playoff game in over two decades. If the 2024 disaster was a true wake-up call, the Dolphins will be one of the busiest teams in free agency during the 2025 NFL offseason.
Once Holland hits free agency, so too will veteran Jordan Poyer. Holland and Poyer were two of the best players in defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s defense in 2024, leaving a gaping hole to fill in the offseason. Once free agency officially begins, the Dolphins will have just three safeties on their roster, none of whom received significant playing time.
After five years with the Indianapolis Colts, Julian Blackmon will hit unrestricted free agency in March. With the safety market as robust as it will be in 2024, Blackmon, who has never received a Pro Bowl nomination, is likely to get looked over. However, his skill set fits in with the direction Weaver wants to take his defense.
As a John Harbaugh and Mike Macdonald disciple, Weaver’s system emulates a lot of what the Baltimore Ravens — and now Seattle Seahawks — do on defense. Historically, those systems thrive with athletic and diverse safeties in the secondary. Kyle Hamilton currently occupies the role for the Ravens, one that Blackmon could fill for Weaver.
Blackmon is coming off consecutive strong outing with the Colts, racking up 174 total tackles and seven interceptions over the past two seasons. He is due for a pay raise, but in a free agency class that also includes Holland, Justin Simmons, Xavier Woods, Quandre Diggs and others, the Dolphins could sign him at a discounted price.
In Miami’s current Mike McDaniel and Tua Tagovailoa era, it has been no secret that they are constantly one injury away from a total collapse. When the oft-injured Tagovailoa can survive a full season, the Dolphins run one of the most dynamic offenses in the league, but when not, they can quickly become sitting ducks.
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