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Chris Perkins: Snapshots on Willis, Proctor, Grant and others from a promising Dolphins minicamp

· Yahoo Sports

MIAMI GARDENS — If you glimpsed Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Kenneth Grant at minicamp this past week, you noticed he was often at the head of the line during individual drills.

And you couldn’t help but notice how smoothly and confidently Grant, the 2025 first-round pick who had a shaky rookie season, went through drills against blocking sleds, tackling dummies and teammates, displaying good hands, good feet, good technique, and the required level of violence. It was impressive.

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Grant’s enthusiasm and apparent improvement was just one of many noteworthy memories from a three-day minicamp session (without pads, it should be noted) that was open to the media.

This coming week the the Dolphins conclude their offseason workout program with organized team activities; the Tuesday session is open to the media.

But before looking ahead, let’s look back at some other snapshots from what was a promising minicamp overall: 

Proctor appears athletic and fit

Left guard Kadyn Proctor, the 6-foot-7, 352-pound rookie first-round pick, looked in shape, athletic and agile during minicamp. It’s impossible to judge physicality and aggression in the trenches when players aren’t in pads.  

But watching Proctor go through drills, he looks like the real deal. He’s not overweight, he’s not hesitant at a new position (he was a left tackle at Alabama), and he doesn’t seem overwhelmed.

Johnson progressing well

Cornerback Chris Johnson, the versatile first-round pick from San Diego State, is starting to make plays, a sign that he’s getting a bit more comfortable. His coverage has been consistently good, but now we see him with pass breakups every now and then.

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Johnson, who coach Jeff Hafley said would play inside and outside, would be considered a starter, likely at nickel/slot, if the Dolphins took the field Sunday.

Willis seems to learn quickly

Quarterback Malik Willis, a four-year veteran but a first-year starter, had a rough day at Tuesday’s minicamp, which is fine. No one is perfect. 

The key is Willis bounced back Wednesday and Thursday and had good days, a sign that he’s a fast learner.

Willis’ strong arm has been apparent every day but on Tuesday he was inaccurate and appeared uncertain at times. It’s unclear whether that was Willis’ fault or the fault of his unproven receivers.

The main takeaway is that those miscues got corrected later in the week.

Chop, Jonah undetermined

Defensive end Chop Robinson, the 2024 first-round pick, and right guard Jonah Savaiinaea, the 2025 second-round pick, were low key at minicamp. I didn’t notice much about either, good or bad. But keep in mind that their development is a key to the rebuild.

Robinson said he’s added seven pounds of muscle and now weighs 265 pounds, which is where he wants to stay all season, after ending last year at 258. 

For what it’s worth, Savaiinaea appears comfortable on the right side, where he played in college, as opposed to the left side, where he played last season as a rookie.

Dolphins Deep Dive: Wrapping up minicamp, final observations | VIDEO

Gordon: Hafley’s film sessions produce on-field results

Hafley told us he has film sessions with the team every morning, during which he shows 30 to 40 clips, both good and not so good. Running back Ollie Gordon II said the film sessions are effective.

“I feel like they’re great just because you don’t really want to be on the not-so-good side,” he said with his typical smile and upbeat attitude. “So I feel like when you’re out there in practice you’re definitely thinking about it, going through, trying to be the best you can be. And when everybody’s doing the best they can be, you’re doing something right.”

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Quality is lacking but arrow points upward

Let’s be honest, the 2026 Dolphins will likely struggle. The problem lies mostly with the quality of their “average starter” and the team’s depth, both of which appear below the NFL average.

That’s not a surprise, and it’s almost by design considering the Dolphins opted to take somewhere around a $179 million dead cap hit this year. That’s more than half the salary cap of $301.2 million. 

There’s good talent at the very top of the roster with All-Pros and Pro Bowlers such as running back De’Von Achane, center Aaron Brewer and linebacker Jordyn Brooks. And there’s another tier of reliable players such as left tackle Patrick Paul and defensive tackle Zach Sieler.

After that are developing players such as Willis, Proctor, Grant, Savaiinaea, Robinson, Johnson, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, safety Dante Trader Jr. and others.

If we’re looking at a 53-man roster the top five spots are strong, but spot Nos. 6-53 could go either way. That’s the reality of the 2026 Dolphins.

Again, the main points of season is making sure the top spots — general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan, Hafley, Willis, Achane, Proctor, etc — are occupied by the right people, and making sure the players have the right mindset.

The things that we saw during minicamp indicate that, at this very early stage, this rebuild is still headed in a good direction.

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