The Miami Dolphins received a rave review for their offseason plan — along with one curious criticism
ESPN handed out offseason grades for 2026 and the Miami Dolphins drew some glowing praise— along with one curious criticism.
The Miami Dolphins’ offseason plan in 2026 is one that you make when you’re playing the long game.
The Miami Dolphins’ future outlook is bright, thanks in part to the foundation laid by new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley. Miami offloaded plenty of talent and has stocked up on cap space for the future. Given where the team started in January, everyone seems to agree that this type of approach was a necessary decision. ESPN’s Seth Walder has handed out offseason grades for all 32 franchises this week — and the Dolphins were near the top of the charts. Walder gave the Dolphins an ‘A-‘ for their effort — but that praise also comes with a curious criticism.
The Miami Dolphins received a rave review for their offseason plan — with one curious critique
“One playmaker the Dolphins locked down is running back De’Von Achane, whom Miami signed to an extension. I would have been tempted to trade Achane, but perhaps the offers weren’t there and losing all of their playmakers might have been a bridge too far. But the pairing of Willis and Achane could yield dividends over the next couple of seasons.”
— Seth Walder, ESPN.com on the Miami Dolphins’ offseason plan
That’s fair. I get it. Analytically driven pundits are going to see dollars going to a running back amid a team transition and bristle. But here’s the rub. Walder listed the Dolphins move that he disliked the most as the “roster left a little too bare”.
So did the Dolphins leave the roster too bare or did they erroneously extend Achane instead of trading him? Those two talking points for the Dolphins would seem to be in direct conflict with one another.
But as we outlined yesterday, the recent history of non-traditional quarterback hits has one thing in common: a run game worthy of ranking near the top of the league. And while passing rates and offensive aggression in higher than ever before, the Miami Dolphins are probably right to stay committed to learning to walk (run) before they can proverbially run (pass). Retaining Achane and keeps Miami’s best option in-house, which prevented the cupboards from being completely bare.
Even amid the constructive feedback from Walder, it’s worth noting he only handed out three A’s for the entire offseason. Miami had one of them. It just seems his biggest missed opportunity was in reality helping to avoid his greatest concern from coming to life.
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