The Miami Dolphins substantially upgraded their offense the past couple of weeks. They are now one of the fastest teams in the NFL and have plenty of reasons to believe they will be able to score more points this season.
The running back additions of Chase Edmonds and Raheem Mostert clearly show the Dolphins were looking to add speed to their backfield that goes well with their zone blocking scheme.
For the zone blocking scheme to work, an improvement to the offensive line was obvious. The Dolphins added a top 3 left tackle in Terron Armstead and a significant upgrade at left guard in Connor Williams. Both of those guys should excel in the zone blocking scheme. There may still be more added to the offensive line, potentially at center and right tackle, but if not, Miami should have great pieces already on the roster to do good in the new scheme.
At the wide receiver position, they added the fastest wide receiver in the NFL in Tyreek Hill to pair with Jaylen Waddle and Cedrick Wilson. The speed on the offensive side of the ball is elite, and if Mike McDaniel can maximize it and run plays that can exploit the opposing defenses with this speed, the sky is the limit for this offense.
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There is much to be excited about when it comes to the fantasy football outlook for the Miami Dolphins. At the running back spot, the additions of Edmonds and Mostert add home run speed the running back room has sorely missed. Edmonds and Mosterst should likely be the top two backs in what will likely be a running back by committee approach. Neither Edmonds nor Mostert has shown in the past that they can handle a full three-down workload for an entire season, and I doubt Mike McDaniel deploys one of them in that role.
If it becomes evident that one of those backs will garner most of the touches, then that back should have top 12 fantasy production and demand an early-round pick. If it is indeed a committee approach, you will be able to wait and get either or both Edmonds and Mostert in the mid to late rounds of your draft. After those two, I feel that Salvon Ahmed could be in line to be the third back in the rotation because of his familiarity with the zone blocking scheme the team will run. The San Francisco 49ers originally signed him as an undrafted free agent in May of 2020.
Wide receiver is a much different story. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle could both produce top 12 wide receiver numbers. Hill is a sure-fire top 5 fantasy wide receiver and will likely cost you at minimum a second-round selection. McDaniel is going to use him and use him a lot. He has the same ability out of the backfield as a running back, and I trust McDaniel to get him the ball running and receiving. Jaylen Waddle was already a top fantasy producer in PPR (point per reception) formats, setting the NFL rookie record for receptions with 104.
He should benefit tremendously playing opposite Hill, more than he did playing opposite Parker or Ford. Hill will demand double or bracketed coverage, which could free up Waddle and his speed. He could see touches out of the backfield in this offense. Before the trade, Waddle would have been drafted as a top 12 wide receiver in most leagues; now, I think he may slide down a little but stay in the top 24, with upside to produce in the top 12. Cedrick Wilson and DeVante Parker should be viewed as wide receiver 4’s for now, but that could change if Parker is traded to another team and inherits a more significant role.
Tight End is a tough one to figure out. Miami put the tag on Mike Gesicki, who has already signed it. He is a very good receiving tight end but has lacked in blocking and breaking tackles. It is very tough to know exactly how he will be utilized and exactly how much. There is only one football to go around, and his touches are likely to take a hit with the additions the team made this offseason. He is still likely to produce as a top 10 fantasy tight end, but his points may not be consistent each week. Aside from Gesicki, Miami doesn’t have much as far as fantasy relevance at the tight end spot.
Now we get to the quarterback position and Tua Tagovailoa. He should move into the top 14 fantasy quarterbacks in this offense with these weapons, with the upside of being top 12. If he can stay healthy and play all 17 games, he will likely finish with over 4,200 yards passing with 25 or more touchdowns. Those numbers should put him in the middle of fantasy scorers at the quarterback position. He can throw for more touchdowns, but I believe with the emphasis this offense puts on the running game, his numbers may not reach their ceiling in year one with McDaniel. But still, if a quarterback is throwing to Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Cedrick Wilson, DeVante Parker, Lynn Bowden, Mike Gesicki, and Edmonds and Mostert out of the backfield, that quarterback should be able to produce at a high level. There are still moves in free agency that could be made and the draft that could change things for the Dolphins. As of right now, this offense should be one of the most explosive in the NFL; something Dolphin fans are indeed excited about.
