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Jaelan Phillips Update & the Defensive Front

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If anyone didn't catch the pressers yesterday, you might spend some time watching JP's.

Quite frankly, I found JP's attitude to be a breathe of fresh air in an offseason filled with discussion about risk, uncertainty, etc.
It's just so nice to see an element of the Dolphins that is straight-forward, no-bull and who exudes physicality and dominance.




There were of course MANY questions about JP's injuries and even his being labeled "injury-prone" in the aftermath of 2 straight season-enders.

He made very clear in multiple answers that the most recent ACL was not only far easier to fix & rehab (i.e. walking almost immediately after surgery as opposed to 4 months in the case of his Achilles) but that he's been effectively 'back to normal' for the last couple months. He also made clear that the ACL last year was a friendly-fire incident that had nothing to do with his previous Achilles injury.

If JP is truly back to normal and his recent ACL was really a freak incident (one we can essentially forget now that it's behind us), I fully expect:

(A) Phillips to return in '25 as Miami's primary edge threat.

and

(B) Miami to very likely extend Phillips given a solid year.


If that's the case, I am much more optimistic about Miami's DL. If we truly have both our Edge (JP & Chop) and both interior DL (Seiler & Grant), I think we can start feeling a lot better about going into '26 with the singular focus being on building out what remaining needs exist in the secondary.


What this means for Bradley Chubb, I'm not sure. His contract would appear to lock him in through '25 and '26 unless another team were willing to trade for him. Perhaps a bounce-back year would make that more likely? It's something to root for. A good year not only helps Miami but increases Chubb's trade value.

1749746155758.png

If indeed, Miami plans to keep a 3-man rotation of Chubb, Chop & JP through '26, it raises questions about how Weaver will make use of all the talent he'll have on his DL between what could be a strong rotation of DTs and a trio of edge rushers. Perhaps Miami has something up it's sleeve to make use of this abundance of talent?
 
Phillips is the one guy I have no doubt that can return to his pre injury form, he’s prob the most athletic guy on the team, and if not for the concussion history he would’ve been a top 10 pick. We lucked out getting a guy that talented at 18…not even mentioning his work ethic which is off the charts..if we get the Phillips of 2023 before he got hurt then that guy is a top 10 edge in the league with the potential for top 5.

Really hoping he doesn’t get hurt again, want the kid to get a fair shot at realizing his massive potential
 
Good article on him by Perk:

If all goes well this season Phillips will be one-third of a three-man pass rush that also includes fellow edge rushers Bradley Chubb and Chop Robinson.

Ideally, the Dolphins’ pass-rushing trio becomes as devastating as the famed NASCAR pass rush of Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Mathias Kiwanuka and Jason Pierre-Paul employed by the Super Bowl champion New York Giants back in 2011.

The thought of putting Phillips, Chubb and Robinson on the field together excites coach Mike McDaniel.

“Early returns, my face has recognized it — I feel myself smiling,” he quipped. “I can feel that, so I know it’s true.”

I’m most fascinated by Phillips among that trio.

Back to football, it’ll be interesting to see how Phillips plays this season from a physical and financial point of view.

Phillips, who sustained the Achilles injury against the New York Jets in 2023, and the knee injury, a torn anterior cruciate ligament, last year against Tennessee, said he’s aware some might label him as “injury prone.”

He ignores such sentiment.

“It’s just like any other negative comments that you see on the internet so you just kind of have to ignore it,” he said. “I can’t feed into that. I know for example the knee, it’s friendly fire. Nothing I could do about it.

“How am I injury prone if I get speared in the knee? Even the Achilles, like that’s the first major injury I had in the league.”

Phillips said it’s “night and day” between the ACL and Achilles injuries.

“The ACL is walking basically a week after surgery, and then it was back to like day-to-day life function after like a couple of weeks,” he said.

It was a different story for the Achilles injury.

“The Achilles is brutal because I couldn’t walk for like four months and even coming back off of it, it’s just there’s so much explosion that’s going on through the Achilles,” he said.

By the way, one other thing I admire about Phillips is his attitude.

Phillips was put back in the Tennessee game after sustaining the knee injury. Team medical personnel put a brace on it and Phillips played a bit more before leaving the game for good.

Phillips isn’t looking back at that with regret.

“What’s done was done,” he said. “I don’t think I injured it anymore. And even if I did injure it anymore, I wouldn’t have it any other way, because that’s who I am. I’m a warrior and frankly, it is what it

 
If anyone didn't catch the pressers yesterday, you might spend some time watching JP's.

Quite frankly, I found JP's attitude to be a breathe of fresh air in an offseason filled with discussion about risk, uncertainty, etc.
It's just so nice to see an element of the Dolphins that is straight-forward, no-bull and who exudes physicality and dominance.




There were of course MANY questions about JP's injuries and even his being labeled "injury-prone" in the aftermath of 2 straight season-enders.

He made very clear in multiple answers that the most recent ACL was not only far easier to fix & rehab (i.e. walking almost immediately after surgery as opposed to 4 months in the case of his Achilles) but that he's been effectively 'back to normal' for the last couple months. He also made clear that the ACL last year was a friendly-fire incident that had nothing to do with his previous Achilles injury.

If JP is truly back to normal and his recent ACL was really a freak incident (one we can essentially forget now that it's behind us), I fully expect:

(A) Phillips to return in '25 as Miami's primary edge threat.

and

(B) Miami to very likely extend Phillips given a solid year.


If that's the case, I am much more optimistic about Miami's DL. If we truly have both our Edge (JP & Chop) and both interior DL (Seiler & Grant), I think we can start feeling a lot better about going into '26 with the singular focus being on building out what remaining needs exist in the secondary.


What this means for Bradley Chubb, I'm not sure. His contract would appear to lock him in through '25 and '26 unless another team were willing to trade for him. Perhaps a bounce-back year would make that more likely? It's something to root for. A good year not only helps Miami but increases Chubb's trade value.

View attachment 191495

If indeed, Miami plans to keep a 3-man rotation of Chubb, Chop & JP through '26, it raises questions about how Weaver will make use of all the talent he'll have on his DL between what could be a strong rotation of DTs and a trio of edge rushers. Perhaps Miami has something up it's sleeve to make use of this abundance of talent?


Chubb is an easy post-June 1 cut next year (figures in your screenshot are for a pre-June 1 cut).

$20m savings against $10m dead cap.

But like you I’m hoping Phillips, Chubb and Chop dominate this season and become a strength to build on next year too.
 
Thanks for this.

I will certainly say this: Miami is long overdue for some good luck. For the past few years, it seems like everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.

Over the past couple weeks, I keep asking myself “what if everything goes right?”
I have this sneaky feeling that Miami will overachieve. Like you say, it feels like the team is due. National media is way down on the Dolphins, too, which is always a good motivator.
 
I dare say the season is predicated on the D line as much as Tua

If we have a healthy Tua and no edge D line no pressure an inability to stop the run we will be chasing it on Offense all season

I wonder.

What are the odds that all of the following happen?

- Jaelan Phillips doesn’t produce
- Bradley Chubb doesn’t produce
- Chop Robinson regresses
- Zach Seiler doesn’t produce
- Miami gets nothing out of Grayson Murphy and Mo Kamara
- Kenneth Grant is a bust
- Jordan Phillips is a bust
 
The key is keeping the pass rush healthy. There’s a little depth there, if they all stay healthy. Combine that with an interior with Seiler and Grant, plus better LB play than we’re used to seeing, and we can hope the front is enough to pressure QBs and help protect the secondary. All in all, there’s significant potential in Year 2 under Weaver.

If you combine that with the hope of a healthy Tua, over-achieving is certainly within reason.

Of course, we still need to just make it through training camp and preseason healthy.
 
Thanks for this.

I will certainly say this: Miami is long overdue for some good luck. For the past few years, it seems like everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.

Over the past couple weeks, I keep asking myself “what if everything goes right?”
Shhhh.... the Eeyore Brigade will hear you and they just won't tolerate that type of thinking
 
I wonder.

What are the odds that all of the following happen?

- Jaelan Phillips doesn’t produce
- Bradley Chubb doesn’t produce
- Chop Robinson regresses
- Zach Seiler doesn’t produce
- Miami gets nothing out of Grayson Murphy and Mo Kamara
- Kenneth Grant is a bust
- Jordan Phillips is a bust
Hopefully Dean Wormer has it right

Lslr6wS.gif
 
If anyone didn't catch the pressers yesterday, you might spend some time watching JP's.

Quite frankly, I found JP's attitude to be a breathe of fresh air in an offseason filled with discussion about risk, uncertainty, etc.
It's just so nice to see an element of the Dolphins that is straight-forward, no-bull and who exudes physicality and dominance.




There were of course MANY questions about JP's injuries and even his being labeled "injury-prone" in the aftermath of 2 straight season-enders.

He made very clear in multiple answers that the most recent ACL was not only far easier to fix & rehab (i.e. walking almost immediately after surgery as opposed to 4 months in the case of his Achilles) but that he's been effectively 'back to normal' for the last couple months. He also made clear that the ACL last year was a friendly-fire incident that had nothing to do with his previous Achilles injury.

If JP is truly back to normal and his recent ACL was really a freak incident (one we can essentially forget now that it's behind us), I fully expect:

(A) Phillips to return in '25 as Miami's primary edge threat.

and

(B) Miami to very likely extend Phillips given a solid year.


If that's the case, I am much more optimistic about Miami's DL. If we truly have both our Edge (JP & Chop) and both interior DL (Seiler & Grant), I think we can start feeling a lot better about going into '26 with the singular focus being on building out what remaining needs exist in the secondary.


What this means for Bradley Chubb, I'm not sure. His contract would appear to lock him in through '25 and '26 unless another team were willing to trade for him. Perhaps a bounce-back year would make that more likely? It's something to root for. A good year not only helps Miami but increases Chubb's trade value.

View attachment 191495

If indeed, Miami plans to keep a 3-man rotation of Chubb, Chop & JP through '26, it raises questions about how Weaver will make use of all the talent he'll have on his DL between what could be a strong rotation of DTs and a trio of edge rushers. Perhaps Miami has something up it's sleeve to make use of this abundance of talent?

Love the kid (attitude + personality) and his athleticism is all wOrld.

Obviously - horrible misfortune "bad luck" on the injury front in his career.

Legit possibility if he'd been 100% healthy since draft he'd be a certified dominator.
 
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