Phase Three of the 2025 NFL offseason is here! The Miami Dolphins will take another step closer to the start of training camp with the start of Organized Team Activities (OTAs) today. OTAs will carry on for the next several weeks and allow the Dolphins to start to apply their technique and fundamentals from the early workouts into a more simulated football environment. The Dolphins are in the midst of an offseason of change in 2025, with departures of a number of veteran players as Miami tries to re-align their roster for their next competitive window moving forward. 

Who is up to the task? Where do the Dolphins have the biggest questions? Where are the Dolphins' biggest position battles as the offseason program advances into a new phase? Here are four looming questions for the Miami Dolphins as they start OTAs today along with most of the rest of the NFL.

How improved is second-year offensive tackle Patrick Paul? 

Few units have been more maligned in recent years than the Miami Dolphins' offensive line. Miami had a good unit assembled for 2023 but injuries pushed back-ups into more snaps than the starter at four out of the five positions on the line. The 2024 collection was a disaster with all three bets the team placed at offensive guard — neither Robert Jones or Liam Eichenberg took the needed step forward and Isaiah Wynn suffered an injury setback after missing the final two-thirds of 2023. 

One spot Miami has been good? Left tackle. Veteran star Terron Armstead has had some troubles staying healthy and made the decision to retire this offseason, leaving 2024 second-round draft choice Patrick Paul as the heir apparent to Miami's best offensive lineman. 

Paul got a smattering of opportunities as a rookie and played his best against a tough Houston Texans front late in the year — but was horribly out of place while playing right tackle in Week 18 against the Jets. Make no mistake, Paul is a left tackle. He'll need to be ready to roll to help Miami's front five raise the floor of the entire unit. It isn't fair to expect him to be as good as Armstead, but if he can be a quality option, the upgrades on the interior can help Miami's front be better overall. 

Can Tyrel Dodson stave off all of the linebacker reinforcements? 

The Dolphins seemed to find a waiver-wire gem last season when they added Dodson from Seattle. Dodson immediately came in to the fray and make a number of impact plays. His transition was surely aided by playing for Mike MacDonald in Seattle to start the season, which is roughly the same system Miami runs under Anthony Weaver. 

Dodson finished out his season strong before testing free agency in 2025, only to re-sign in Miami on a two-year contract. But the Dolphins have been busy shaking up the linebacker room as a whole, tacking on veterans KJ Britt (Tampa Bay) and Willie Gay Jr. (Kansas City & New Orleans) to add a robust variety of skills to the room. Dodson should feel good about securing his two-year contract but he was guaranteed just $2.6 million at signing — that figure won't guarantee him an unquestioned starting role. 

How exactly is this secondary going to shake out when it's all said and done? 

Oh boy. Jalen Ramsey's saga with the team appears to be nearing an end, mercifully. He's expected to be traded. Jevon Holland left for the New York Giants in free agency. Jordan Poyer, who was a disastrous free agent signing, made a point to make sure the world knew he didn't think the team was very good in 2024 while stating that he wouldn't have put his body on the line for the Dolphins last year like he would have for his former Bills teammates. Poyer, by the way, was signed to be that guy for Miami and bring leadership to the secondary. Whoops. 

Click here to accept Marketing cookies and load this content

Kendall Fuller, last year's other outside cornerback? He was cut at the start of the offseason. Tell us what you really think about your secondary, Miami! 

The Dolphins did bring back Kader Kohou as a restricted free agent, he's a young talent who is finally getting the chance to play in the same defensive system in consecutive seasons. It's Kohou's fourth season in the NFL. Miami seems to be hoping that former second-round draft choice Cam Smith takes a much-needed leap. Their investment in him was significant — he was the face of their 2023 NFL Draft class. 

Aside of Kohou and Cam Smith, the Dolphins coaches seem to be optimistic about veteran cornerback Artie Burns, who is experienced in the system while playing in Seattle last season but has not played 300 or more snaps in a season since 2018. 2024 rookie Storm Duck got some significant run as an undrafted player but was very erratic, particularly against better competition. His performance against Green Bay yielded a number of mistakes that led to points. 

The Dolphins have made a pass at at least one free agent cornerback after the draft, so expect to see them secure at least one veteran to potentially jump the line and start. 

At safety, Miami has three young players who are competing with free agent signing Ashtyn Davis. Ifeatu Melifonwu is a hybrid defender who should be expected to be the big-play catalyst as a diverse weapon. But fifth-round rookie Dante Trader, 2024 sixth-round pick Patrick McMorris and veteran Elijah Campbell all can't be dismissed as emerging to fill a third (or second) safety role. The competition should be healthy here. The Dolphins are banking on it. 

Did the Dolphins finally get the back-up quarterback spot right? 

The durability of Tua Tagovailoa puts the back-up position in Miami in a bigger spotlight than most any other non-starter in the league. Tagovailoa's performance, when on the field, has been productive. But the 2023 season that saw Tagovailoa stay on the field for all 17 games appears to be an outlier to this point, so Miami should be prepared to see at least some time with their new back-up behind center. 

This year's choice is Zach Wilson, a former top-five overall pick. Back-up quarterback has been, frankly, a disaster under Mike McDaniel. Teddy Bridgewater, Mike White, Skylar Thompson, Tyler Huntley, and Tim Boyle have all had a crack at it since 2022. Head coach Mike McDaniel stated at the beginning of the offseason that Wilson was a very deliberate target. 

Do the Dolphins envision him as the next talented quarterback who becomes a reclamation project? They probably hope not to find out in 2025, but that will require Tagovailoa to be as judicious with contact as he was in 2023. But the back-up quarterback position was essentially the final nail in the 2024 Dolphins' coffin. It needs to be better in 2025 and Miami is paying Wilson like they believe he's the right choice. 

Jalen Ramsey trade rumors intensify as new report names three potential trade partners engaged in talks with Miami Dolphins

Jalen Ramsey trade rumors intensify as new report names three potential trade partners engaged in talks with Miami Dolphins