The Miami Dolphins finished 9-8, the first time they have had back-to-back winning seasons since 2003. However, this was not enough to keep Brian Flores as the head coach.

Flores did an excellent job and was harshly fired by owner Stephen Ross, pointing towards a power struggle behind the scenes between Flores and Grier.

During his three-season tenure, the defense and special teams often showed up. The one area that was lacking was the offense. Miami has not had a good running back since Jay Ajayi ran for 1,272 yards in 2016.

Duke Johnson impressed when he arrived late in the season, but over the course of the season, the run game was not good enough. Part of the issue was Miami having the worst offensive line in the league. The unit could not run block to allow Gaskin to succeed early on in the season and say what you want about Tua, whether you are pro or anti-Tua, he was not given anywhere near the protection that many other quarterbacks in the league are afforded.

Miami’s struggled in blocking the run game, ranked 22nd in the percentage of runs where the running back is tackled at or behind the line of scrimmage, a stuffed percentage of 18%. Only the Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints had worse yards per carry from their running backs than Miami, who also had the third worst total rushing yards in the 2021 regular season.

In terms of pass blocking, they ranked 19th according to FootballOutsiders.com and were tied for the 20th most sacks allowed this season. PFF ranked the Dolphins offensive line as the worst in the league, reporting that they led the NFL in pressures allowed (235) and the worst pass-blocking efficiency score.

Something needs to change as it is hard to remember the last time Miami had a good offensive line. Here is one Free Agency target that Miami should go out and get for each of the five offensive line positions.

Left Tackle- Terron Armstead (New Orleans Saints)

Liam Eichenberg earned a 50.7 PFF ranking for his rookie season. He was not as advertised. However, Terron Armstead represents a massive upgrade. He would be the most expensive Free Agent signing, earning $10,967 in 2021 with the Saints.

Armstead went to three straight Pro Bowls between the years of 2018 and 2020, with a 76.6 grade from PFF in 2021. He conceded three penalties this season, seven less than the 10 given away by Eichenberg.

Left Guard- Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (New York Jets)

Austin Jackson was taken 18th overall by the Dolphins in 2020 but has been nothing short of a turnstile for the Dolphins. He had the worst grade of all the Miami starting offensive linemen from PFF, earning a lowly 49.9. Duvernay-Tardif won the Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2019 campaign and sat out last season in order to help out with the COVID-19 pandemic as a doctor. He joined the Jets in 2021 and only gave away two penalties in 2021. Jackson, meanwhile, gave up 12.

Centre- Ryan Jensen (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

Jensen won a Super Bowl last season snapping the ball to Tom Brady, and may well do so again this season. He conceded five penalties, which is actually more than current Dolphins center Michael Dieter. Jensen also allowed one more sack this season than Dieter, but Jensen played 1,151 offensive snaps as opposed to Dieter’s 546. PFF gave Michael Dieter a ranking of 60.6 whereas Jensen earned 70.8 as well as being selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career this year. He would be an excellent offseason addition from the Dolphins front office.

Right Guard- Brandon Scherff (Washington Football Team)

Robert Hunt is the best of a bad bunch and is the one offensive lineman that has shown potential in 2021. He was given a 67.4 ranking by PFF. However, Scherff represents a much more complete lineman, with Hunt still of use in the roster should either Scherff or Duvernay-Tardif get hurt next season. Scherff was named into the Pro Bowl for his efforts in the 2021 campaign, his fourth selection in the last six seasons.

Right Tackle- Eric Fisher (Indianapolis Colts)

Fisher is normally a left tackle, but he can be moved to the right-hand side due to Armstead’s talent.

He may have not lived up to expectations for the Colts in 2021, but the 2013 first overall pick would bring a tremendous amount of experience to this Miami offensive line.

Jesse Davis was given a 52.5 ranking by PFF as he continues to be the weakest of links to this line. Fisher would represent an upgrade.

Miami needs to finally address their offensive line issue, and Free Agency should present them with the chance to get at least two or three of these. Scherff, Armstead, and Jensen should be the three biggest priorities on this list.

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