In the wake of a report detailing that the Miami Dolphins don’t plan to punt their 2025 season away at the trade deadline, a new rumor indicates there’s “cautious optimism” within the team about this campaign.
It seems like some of that optimism has to do with the franchise’s incredible turnaround back in the 2021 season, as Miami won eight of its last nine games in that campaign after starting out 1-7. There are multiple standout players from that 2021 Miami team still in the fold today.
“Rumors have circled on social media about Dolphins players being available at the trade deadline, particularly wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, and linebackers Bradley Chubb and Jaelan Phillips,” ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques wrote. “A team source told ESPN the Dolphins aren’t looking to offload players, and [Mike] McDaniel publicly disregarded trade rumors as ‘baseless.’
“There’s cautious optimism inside the Dolphins’ building.
“Players who were on the team in 2021 point to their 1-7 start to that season before finishing 9-8, albeit against the second-easiest schedule in the NFL. The Week 8 win against Atlanta was impressive but celebrations were muted by this upcoming game against the [Baltimore] Ravens on a short week.”
Among the current Dolphins who played a key role in that turnaround in the 2021 season is quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The passer has had a rough 2025 season in totality, but he finally had a bounce-back game against the Atlanta Falcons this past weekend.
He completed all but six of his 26 passing attempts and also threw for four touchdowns without logging a single interception. Tagovailoa will need to put together some similar showings in the weeks to come in order for Miami to get back to a respectable record.
There’s also plenty for the Dolphins to be optimistic about on defense after their game against Atlanta. Miami’s unit limited the Falcons to just 10 points on the day, and late in the fourth quarter, it was a 34-3 game with the Dolphins simply dominating on both ends.
It’s encouraging that the team has optimism, even if it’s cautious, but all that optimism could fade quickly if it doesn’t take care of business against the Ravens on Thursday.
For Baltimore, star quarterback Lamar Jackson is expected to make his return to the field for that contest after a hamstring injury sidelined him for over a month. If he has a big game and looks like his usual dominant self, the Dolphins could be in a world of trouble.
Conversely, if the Dolphins were to pick up their second win in a row, that would likely only add fuel to the level of optimism inside the team.
