It’s been just over two weeks since the Xavien Howard windfall of cap space became available to Chris Grier and the Dolphins. Without going into the accusations around Howard, it seems like releasing him was the right move, swerving the storm building around him while freeing up space to improve the rest of the roster.

In the two weeks since that $18m became spendable to the Dolphins, Chris Grier has moved to sign his draft class while adding two veterans who seem to be genuine contributors.

While the fanbase pounded the table for Justin Simmons, Grier saw an opportunity to sign Marcus Maye, an experienced veteran, at what could be a much lower price. He also found space to boost a defensive line with plenty of numbers but perhaps missing standout players.

Legend of the U, Calais Campbell returns to Miami to contribute and provide leadership to Anthony Weaver’s new-look defense.

So now that brings the question: could more players be in Chris Grier’s crosshairs?

 

Greg Van Roten

An easy place to start, with many members of the Dolphins fan base calling for Grier to bring this man to the Hard Rock. Despite having Terron Armstead, giving Austin Jackson a new deal, and drafting Patrick Paul, the Offensive Line in Miami seems to be the unit in need of the most work still to be done. Specifically, the interior of the line provides more questions than answers. Connor Williams is a free agent who had a nasty knee injury late in 2023, and his future is in doubt; Robert Hunt left the team, Isiah Wynn looked good but has never stayed healthy for an extended period of time, and Liam Eichenberg’s start to NFL life has been far from ideal.

Van Roten has played in 17 games in two of the last three seasons and 16 games in the third, demonstrating a durability that could be useful to this Dolphins position group. All 17 games last year in Vegas were starts, and he has also appeared for the Bills and the Jets, which gives him a good understanding of the situation in the AFC East as Miami bids to topple the Bills this year.

A man who knows the division can stay fit and who can start at guard or fit into a rotation means I can understand the voices asking for him to appear in Aqua this coming season.

Connor McGovern

A second Offensive Lineman who is on the older side of 30 and a second Offensive Lineman who has plenty of AFC East experience. Typically a center in recent times in New York for the Jets, McGovern also has NFL experience at Right Guard in his earlier days with the Broncos.

Having McGovern, new signing Aaron Brewer, and Liam Eichenberg all with experience taking snaps at both guard and center could prove to be useful depth for Coach McDaniel. McGovern’s experience of both could still be useful for Eichenberg if he is to develop into a reliable option. Plenty of experience, almost exclusively as a starter, starting 16/16 games in 2020, 15/15 games in 2021, 17/17 games in 2022, and 7/7 in 2023 before falling onto injured reserve.

While he may be looking for a spot to continue his streak of starting roles, joining this Miami group after his injury could also be a tempting offer to work with a team looking to push on, win the division, and break their playoff drought.

 

Trai Turner

A name mentioned less than Van Roten is Trai Turner, who could bring a similar effect to Calais Campbell on the other side of the ball.

Now 31, Turner would bring a lot of experience and leadership. A very capable starter, Turner is a 5-time pro-bowler from his time in Carolina, at both the right and left guard positions. Having missed last season with a torn quad, he would represent a risk and have to prove his durability. But before that injury, he started 12 out of 16 games in Washington in 2022 and all 17 games in Pittsburgh the year before. The quad injury, seeming to be a one-off rather than an indication of him being injury-prone, means that should he prove he is over that and fit again, he could bring valuable, pro-bowl level, NFL starter experience to a weaker position group.

Tyler Matakevich

Who? Yeah OK. An inside linebacker if you google his name. But really, Matakevich is a special teamer who was brought back year after year by Coach McDermott and the Bills staff. A man they trusted, a man who played occasional snaps on defense, and a man who played hard on special teams and was high-performing again and again. Playing 322 Special Teams snaps in 2022 and 344 Special Teams snaps in 2023, this move would bring real experience and know-how to our underperforming group.

Miami has had poor Special Teams production in the Mike McDaniel era, and they have moved to sign players already this year, which they hope will address this issue. Add into the equation that Special Teams will look a bit different this season with the new kick off rule, some real special team experience could be an under rated move, that could prove shrewd in key moments.

 

Emmanuel Ogbah

This may be a reach, and the bridge may well be burned for the Dolphins in a “been there, done that” kind of way for both parties. But right now, ahead of the Calais Campbell addition, Miami needed to improve its pass rush after losing some experienced players, one of which was Ogbah.

While this is an unlikely move, it would make some logical sense. Since being released, Ogbah’s name has not been mentioned much on the NFL rumor circuits, and he remains unsigned. As of now, Bradley Chubb and Jaelen Phillips remain injured, and we are still unsure if they will return soon.

Ogbah was well liked as a individual within the offices and the dressing room, he was a key contributor in the era before the big name players started to arrive and a constant source of positivity within the roster. Someone who understands Miami, understands our Head Coach, who has relationships with many of our defensive starters, and who could plug in the absence of Chubb and Phillips if our two new rookies are not yet ready to start, Ogbah could yet return, even as a short term fix.

I don’t expect this to happen, but stranger things have, and there is a logic behind it.

There are plenty of other names out there for the Dolphins to sign. Even after the Marcus Maye signing, we still see Justin Simmons linked. Heck, I even saw Ryan Tannehill linked back to Miami. So, I fully expect further tinkering from Chris Grier. Once roster cuts start to happen, I’m sure there will be even more players that catch his eye. But these are just a few names, maybe left field in some cases, that could happen… in theory.