Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan is running back the same playbook from his past — and based on the results it’s kind of hard to blame him
The Miami Dolphins’ pass catching situation offers a lot of youth. It’s a similar play to what GM Jon-Eric Sullivan’s team did the last time they changed quarterbacks.
There are no shortage of candidates to catch the football for the Miami Dolphins in 2026.
The big question with the group is, instead, if anyone is going to separate themselves from the pack and become a preferred option for quarterback Malik Willis this season. Willis is finally getting his chance to be a starting quarterback after two years with the Green Bay Packers and two dysfunctional seasons in Tennessee. The lack of a proven pass catcher may feel like a hindrance for the young quarterback — but what if I told you this was familiar territory for general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan?
Miami Dolphins’ 2026 skill group offers shades of 2023 Green Bay Packers
The last time Sullivan was part of a team onboarding a new quarterback was in 2023, when the Packers were transitioning from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love. Love was a former first-round pick who had several seasons of grooming before stepping into the role. Rodgers, along with wide receiver Davante Adams, were shown the door after an 8-9 campaign and the Packers rolled out Love alongside a slew of inexperienced receivers.
Tell me if this sounds familiar.
Green Bay’s opening day 53-man roster in 2023 fielded three second-year wide receivers and three rookies. The second year players were Christian Watson (second round, 2022), Romeo Dobbs (fourth round, 2022), and Samouri Toure (seventh round, 2022). Green Bay would draft Jayden Reed (second round), Dontayvion Wicks (fifth round), and sign Malik Heath as an undrafted rookie. That was it! That was the wide receiver room in it’s entirety.
But it didn’t stop there. Tight ends? The Packers double-dipped on rookies that season, drafting Luke Musgrave (second round) and Tucker Kraft (third round) to pair with the three rookie wide receivers. And the team also signed Ben Sims in free agency.
The only place the roster held experience was at running back, where veteran Aaron Jones returned as the featured player in the offense. Jones had posted over 1,500 yards from scrimmage the previous season and was playing out a four-year, $48 million extension.
The 2026 Miami Dolphins parallels are obvious
It’s the same playbook, gang.
Miami, in their first year under Sullivan while onboarding a new quarterback, has three rookie wide receivers primed to make the roster. They’ve double-dipped at tight end, as well. Heck, they’ve even signed Ben Sims! And the cherry on top is Miami’s handling of running back De’Von Achane, who this team hopes becomes their version of Aaron Jones amid the rebuild and the youth. There are youngsters everywhere. That, technically, also includes Achane.
But Jones was perceived as the offensive glue and a centerpiece while the young pass catches learned the game. Achane looks to be given the same role here.
That Packers team started 2-5 before ripping off a 7-3 finish, making the playoffs, blowing out the Dallas Cowboys (in Dallas) in the Wild Card round and coming up just short of an appearance in the Conference Championship. I’d caution against the same expectations for Miami in 2026, given the youth and questions on the defensive side of the ball as well.
But it serves as evidence that this playbook of youth in the skill room does not have to be a detriment. Three players on that Packers team logged north of 580 receiving yards. Six posted north of 300. And nine surpassed 200 receiving yards. The ball was spread around plenty. And Love went north of 4,100 passing yards on the season.
Based on those numbers, it’s kind of hard to blame Sullivan for running back the playbook for his first attempt in Miami.
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