UPDATE: Dolphins Management Seeks to Fix Past Mistake by Signing an Underrated Star Free Agent!
In the NFL, it’s rare for teams to get a second chance at signing a player they previously passed on, but the Miami Dolphins find themselves in that exact situation. Just like in 2023, 2022, and now in 2024, the Dolphins are once again looking to strengthen their offensive line.
General Manager Chris Grier has repeatedly chosen to overlook the team’s offensive line struggles, banking on injury-prone players to stay healthy. In 2024, Miami showed interest in Dalton Risner. According to Barry Jackson, the Dolphins considered signing the interior lineman but ultimately decided to stick with their existing roster.
That decision turned out to be a mistake. Liam Eichenberg struggled, Isaiah Wynn spent the season on the sidelines with injuries, and Robert Jones was inconsistent. Meanwhile, in Minnesota, Risner played in 10 games and started 8. In 2023, he started 11 of 15 games, and in the four seasons prior, he missed only a handful of games.
Now, the Dolphins are in the same predicament—desperately needing offensive line reinforcements—while Risner is available as a free agent. However, Chris Grier still seems hesitant to address both guard positions at once. Risner isn’t an expensive veteran; in his second year with the Vikings, he earned a $1.2 million base salary with a total cap hit of $2.4 million.
A similar deal is likely in 2025. Signing Dalton Risner would give the Dolphins a chance to correct their 2024 misstep. While he may not be the top guard on the market—options like Zach Scherff or Kevin Zeitler may be more appealing—he would still be an upgrade over Eichenberg and Larry Borom.
Risner is versatile enough to play both guard positions, though he spent his first four years at left guard, where James Daniels is expected to start. Considering Daniels is recovering from an Achilles tear, bringing in Risner would be a smart, low-cost, high-reward move that would at the very least improve Miami’s depth.
