With questionable Dolphins secondary, can better pass rush make up for the back end?

With the 2025 NFL season fast approaching, the South Florida Sun Sentinel takes a look at 10 storylines to watch for in a 10-part series ahead of the Miami Dolphins’ first day of training camp, which is set for July 22.

When it comes to defending the pass in football, the coverage in the secondary is always married to the pressure up front.

If a defense has both, that’s a formula for success. With one and not the other, the unit may need the stronger area to uplift the other. If neither, then that defense is likely in for a long season.

The Miami Dolphins, as veterans get set to report to training camp ahead of the 2025 season, probably find themselves in a spot where the pass rush looks strong and secondary could be questionable.

It was evident it could be that way once it was revealed the Dolphins had to trade elite but aging and disgruntled cornerback Jalen Ramsey in April. They had already released fellow veteran starting cornerback Kendall Fuller earlier in the offseason and were going with a new starting safety tandem. Trading Ramsey meant a whole new starting secondary outside of nickel Kader Kohou.

That is now officially the case as Ramsey was dealt, along with tight end Jonnu Smith, to the Pittsburgh Steelers. But the Dolphins also got former All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, once a first-round pick of the Dolphins in 2018, back in the deal.

That was better than many could’ve expected, given Ramsey’s lucrative contract was thought to only net Miami back a late draft pick in the future, possibly with the Dolphins also required to take on some of the remaining money owed.

Fitzpatrick at least gives the Dolphins a versatile piece to use in the secondary, capable of covering ground on the back end, moving down into the box and covering the slot as a nickel cornerback in some three-safety sets defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver may play around with.

But Fitzpatrick does it at the safety position. Weaver likely wouldn’t have him shadow an opponent’s top wide receiver the way he could with Ramsey at cornerback.

With a veteran cornerback signing likely still pending before camp opens, the Dolphins cornerback unit is led by Kohou, while 2023 second-round pick Cam Smith and 2024 undrafted free agent Storm Duck are some of the top contenders for playing time at the other spots.

Any offense with any threat in the passing game can easily find mismatches on the outside. With those kind of questions present among the defensive backs, the Dolphins could use an uptick in pressure applied to opposing quarterbacks.

And the pass rush is expected to be a strength in 2025. Chop Robinson can expand on his six-sack rookie season after coming on strong in the second half. Now, he’ll finally be paired with a healthy Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb. Phillips, coming off an Achilles tear in 2023, only lasted four games in 2024 before tearing an ACL. Chubb’s knee, which suffered an ACL tear and then some at the end of 2023, never allowed him to return to game action last season.

Fierce three-pass-rusher sets can be run onto the field in passing situations with all three playing together for the first time.

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On the defensive line, Zach Sieler has proven consistent with the interior pass rush in recent seasons, putting together back-to-back 10-sack efforts. With Calais Campbell off to where he started his stellar career in Arizona, Sieler is now paired with rookie first-round pick Kenneth Grant. Grant possesses the size of a run-stuffing nose tackle, but his athleticism and quickness at 6 foot 3, 331 pounds also projects him to affect the quarterback up the middle at the next level.

Plus, Weaver is known to be creative with his pressure packages, possibly blitzing inside linebackers like Jordyn Brooks, or Willie Gay Jr. with his athletic traits. The same can be done with the defensive backs, especially Fitzpatrick.

A dark-horse candidate to make some noise in Dolphins cornerback competition is Kendall Sheffield, a 29-year-old veteran who hasn’t started a regular season game since 2020 but showed some promise during organized team activities and minicamp. Miami also signed veteran and former Miami Hurricanes standout Artie Burns to get into the mix. A slew of undrafted prospects from recent years like Ethan Bonner, Jason Maitre, Isaiah Johnson, BJ Adams and Ethan Robinson will also get their shot.

The safety unit should now be led by the return of Fitzpatrick. After parting ways with Jevon Holland and Jordan Poyer, Ifeatu Melifonwu is a free agent addition who possesses positional versatility on the back end, allowing for a lot of movement between him and Fitzpatrick. Miami also signed ballhawker Ashtyn Davis as a free agent, returns special teams ace Elijah Campbell, who can perform when called upon defensively, and has youngsters in Patrick McMorris and rookie Dante Trader Jr. who will vie for playing time.