Another bye week adjustment for the Miami Dolphins may have been hiding in the snap counts from Week 7 win over Jets
Did the Miami Dolphins change the pecking order of a position on defense during their Week 6 bye?
The Miami Dolphins said several times that they used their Week 6 bye to zoom out and assess their efforts. It was clearly put to good use thanks to a 28-25 victory over the New York Jets in Week 7.
The most obvious changes came on offense, where the Dolphins shortened the target distance for quarterback Malik Willis and encourages him to get the ball out quicker. It led to Willis’ most efficient day at the office in a Dolphins uniform. But there may have been another change over the bye — one that’s only revealed in the snap counts after the fact. Did the Dolphins make a change in their secondary over the bye?
Did the Miami Dolphins raise JuJu Brents over Jason Marshall Jr. in the cornerback room during the bye week?
Cornerback JuJu Brents has never had a physical ability problem. He has had a durability issue, though. Through Brents’ first three years in the NFL, he’s never started more than 8 games in a season. He’s never surpassed 500 total defensive snaps. And while he’s not there for the Dolphins in 2026, he’s on his way. And his push to claim one of the two primary starting jobs in the Dolphins’ secondary reached a new extreme in Week 7.
Brents logged a season high percentage of snaps played on defense against the Jets. He was on the field for 89.8% of the time against New York. Prior to this game, he had just one game at or above 70% on the season (versus Kansas City). Contrast that to Jason Marshall Jr., who has played 44 more snaps than Brents even after Sunday’s win over the Jets.
But Marshall logged under 60% of defensive snaps against New York. He’d played in 75% or more in four of the first five games. Yet the snap percentage in Week 7 was a season-low. It takes more than one data point to create a trend. And given the Dolphins’ nickel package, it’s probably safe to assume both will continue to play often. Health willing, of course. But this subplot is one to watch for Miami. Has the hierarchy of the secondary changed out of the bye week? Or was this a one-off due to matchups? The only way to find out is to see how things shake out in Week 8 against the Patriots.
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