Hard Rock Stadium before a Dolphins game. Photo by Gatorfan252525, CC-BY-SA-4.0, resized.Miami at 0-5: how the Dolphins' reset reached the Jets still looking for win No. 1
Starting over
Miami began 2026 by tearing down almost everything. Mike McDaniel was out, Jeff Hafley, the Green Bay Packers’ defensive coordinator for the previous two seasons, was in, and Jon-Eric Sullivan came over from Green Bay as general manager.
Then the club let go of the quarterback who had started for most of five and a half seasons.
- The Dolphins hire Hafley as head coach, the same day as his second interview.
- Miami releases Tua Tagovailoa, its 2020 first-round pick, taking a record dead-money charge of about $99 million spread over two years.
- Malik Willis agrees to a three-year, $67.5 million deal with $45 million fully guaranteed. Hafley and Sullivan had worked with him in Green Bay.
- Willis is introduced in Miami Gardens, in line to become the franchise's 28th different starter since Dan Marino's last season in 1999.
- Week 1 at Las Vegas: a 27-13 loss.
Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins. Photo by Gatorfan252525, CC-BY-SA-4.0, resized.Five losses, one pattern
Miami lost at Las Vegas 27-13 and at San Francisco 35-13, then at home to Kansas City 24-10. It held Minnesota without a touchdown and still lost 15-10, then scored 24 against Cincinnati and lost 31-24.
Only the Bengals game finished with Miami above 13 points.
Margin of each loss (points)
Malik Willis with the Green Bay Packers against Tennessee in 2024. Photo by Tennessee Titans, resized.The quarterback question
Willis arrived with a small, spectacular sample: 2-1 in three starts over two seasons in Green Bay, 79 percent completions, 972 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions.
As Miami’s full-time starter the numbers have gone the other way. His completion rate of 56.2 percent was 31st in the league going into the bye, and he fumbled five times, losing one in each of the last three games.
Willis passing yards by game
“Malik needs to be better, OK? And that's not the headline. The headline is we all need to be better, and I mean that.”— Jeff Hafley, Oct. 12
Hafley ruled out a switch to backup Kyle McCord before the bye. “We’ve played five games and Malik is our quarterback,” he said. On Oct. 19 he said Willis, who did not throw during the off week, was dealing with something minor: “I foresee him being good to go.”
Kenneth Grant at Michigan. Photo by Maize & Blue Nation, CC-BY-2.0, cropped and resized.Tackles, but almost no sacks
Hafley is a defensive coach, and his defense has kept most games close. It has also spent a lot of time on the field: Minnesota held the ball for 39 minutes and 11 seconds in Week 4.
The result shows up in the tackle columns. Rookie linebacker Jacob Rodriguez had 57 tackles in five games, the most in the league going into Miami’s bye, and Jordyn Brooks had 43.
Rodriguez tackles by game
“Sometimes what stops you from playing free is losing, honestly. When one loss carries into another, so you kind of want to play perfect.”— Jordyn Brooks, Oct. 19
Jets and Steelers captains at the coin toss at MetLife Stadium on November 9, 2014. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class William Calohan, resized.Miami has been here before
This is Miami’s first 0-5 start since 2019, when Brian Flores’ first team lost its first seven games. That team’s first win came against the Jets, 26-18, on Nov. 3, and it finished 5-11.
The last two Dolphins teams also started badly and rallied, without reaching the playoffs.
Miami's recent slow starts: wins after the slump
“I'm right there with him. Why not? You know what I mean? It's one week at a time, one play at a time.”— Jordyn Brooks, on talk of a 12-0 finish
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in September 2022. Photo by Thecoolone1223, CC-BY-4.0, resized.Sunday at MetLife
The Jets are 2-4 under Aaron Glenn and come off a 26-19 loss at New England. Their two wins came against Tennessee, 23-10, and Cleveland, 17-12.
Kickoff is 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Oct. 25, which is 8 p.m. in Cairo.
- at New York Jets (2-4)
- vs New England Patriots
- vs Detroit Lions
- Trade deadline. Zach Sieler: "I love it here. I want to win here as a Dolphin."
Help may be coming. Receiver Caleb Douglas, who had seven catches for 113 yards in the first two games before an ankle injury, returned to practice on a limited basis after the bye, and rookie safety Kyle Louis could be designated to return from injured reserve.
A win on Sunday would leave Miami 1-5 with 11 to play, the same record the 2025 team had after six games before it finished 7-10. A loss would make this the club’s longest season-opening losing streak since 2019.
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