The Miami Dolphins have continued to be attached to big-name free agents, but comments from general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan have confirmed that is not the case.
Despite the fact that the Miami Dolphins brought in 13 players in the 2026 NFL Draft, the roster is far from being in a place that many believe will lead to a highly competitive season. In fact, the Dolphins continue to be mocked in the top five picks for the 2027 NFL Draft.
Rebuilding is always a work in progress, and the great aspect of general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan is that he has stuck to his word on trying to rebuild through the draft. Even though the Dolphins have been connected to big-name free agents like wide receiver Jauan Jennings and tight end David Njoku, Sullivan confirmed yet again that the team will not be chasing "big ticket" items.
Sullivan joined "The Joe Rose Show," where he broke down the draft and also admitted that the team is in a good place. However, when asked whether there is a chance to go after some bigger free agents, the Dolphins' general manager shot down the idea for a major reason.
"To be perfectly transparent, no big ticket items. We're just not in a situation where we can do that. After we did Malik, we tried to remain disciplined in how we were going about our business so that we can get back to a healthy spot within the salary cap. We may add a vet here and there, but not anything that jumps out to people. It might be to plug a hole and probably more depth than anything else," Sullivan said.
It is strange that Jennings and Njoku have been linked to the Dolphins, simply due to their current cap situation. Per Spotrac, the team has a little over $1.8 million available, with also needing to sign their rookie players.
Njoku and Jennings are likely to command contracts that would pay them an amount that the Dolphins front office simply cannot afford.
Sullivan has also been building this roster with a ton of low-cost, potentially high-reward players through free agency up until now. Every bloated contract was also released or trader such as quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, and linebacker Bradley Chubb.
The Dolphins are paying big bucks in dead cap money after getting rid of all of their playmakres, but that is to put the team in a much healthier and beneficial cap space in 2027 and beyond.
In fact, Miami is predicted to have $145 million in cap space in 2027, placing them in the top three teams, per Spotrac.
Things may be rough for the Dolphins in 2026, but they could still surprise the league. The draft was seen as a success thus far, but the real success will not come about for another two to three seasons.
If the Dolphins win a decent amount of games in 2026, it will prove the organization is heading in the right direction. However, if they become a consistent playoff contender in the coming years, then the rebuild will have been a major success.
Former Dolphins general manager Chris Grier over spent on free agents and extended players at the wrong times and for the wrong amount, which is what got the team in this terrible position. Now, it is about not repeating the same mistakes, which will be Sullivan's best best moving forward.