Miami Dolphins Deep Dive: Storylines to Keep an Eye On

The Miami Dolphins entered the 2025 NFL season with as many big storylines as any team in the league. With new faces on both sides of the ball, optimism was in the air. With injury histories looming, and the AFC being as competitive as ever, there were also reasons to be cautiously optimistic. 

For more details on that, you can read Fan Feed’s Dolphins season preview here. 

Although we are only four weeks into the NFL season, a lot has already happened. From getting blown out of the water the first two weeks, to being surprisingly competitive on Thursday Night Football, to finally getting their first win last night while also losing star receiver Tyreek Hill for the remainder of the season, the season thus far has been quite the roller coaster ride to say the least. Let’s do a deep dive into the different major storylines for the Dolphins' season through the first four weeks.

Tua Tagovailoa’s Spotlight

Almost every NFL team’s focal point is its quarterback, and Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa is no exception. Tua is already entering his 6th season in the NFL as the only left-handed QB in the NFL. 

While he is a veteran now, he has still not been able to shake the same big question that surrounded him six years ago. Will the injuries get to him?

Tua dislocated his hip early on in his senior season at the University of Alabama. This led to questions about his durability in the NFL, but the Dolphins ended up taking him with the fifth pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, despite these concerns. Throughout his NFL career, Tagovailoa has suffered several concussions and a handful of other injuries. However, this season he has been healthy through all four games, knock on wood. 

It is very easy to root for Tua. He is a very humble guy, and while he does have some turnovers that leave Dolphins fans staring blankly at the TV every so often, you want to see him succeed.

Tyreek Hill Injury

As the intro mentioned, star WR Tyreek Hill is out for the rest of the season after tearing multiple ligaments in his left knee. This was absolutely brutal to watch, in the midst of the Dolphins finally looking like a capable football team. 

Hill is widely regarded as one of the fastest players in the NFL. According to Next Gen Stats, Hill recorded the 10th fastest speed of any player on any play with a 47-yard catch against the Patriots in Week 2. He joins Ravens running back Derrick Henry as the only player over 30 to crack the top ten. Tyreek was a player who would always draw double coverage, and he will be severely missed this year. However, Hill’s absence opens the door for some unexpected players to succeed.

Tight End Darren Waller, who had not caught a pass since 2023 and came out of retirement just to play for the Dolphins this year, caught two touchdowns on Monday Night Football. In the 2023 season, he played 12 games for the New York Giants and caught only one touchdown. In just four targets in one game, he surpassed that total, making him one of the best comeback stories in the NFL. 

The Shape of the Season

The Dolphins are now 1-3. When they were 0-2, I wrote this article describing how their record was misleading, and they might actually be better than it shows. 

The win was against the Jets, so the Dolphins still have a lot to prove. But with Hill going down, head coach Mike McDaniel will have to try to shift the identity of the offense to run without their star player. 

McDaniel was hired by the Dolphins in 2022, and he loves speed. His offensive game plans largely revolve around getting players like De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle the ball with room to run. This can make the Dolphins very exciting to watch when it works.

One thing McDaniel has been criticized for is his lack of coaching experience. This is his first head coaching gig, and over the first two weeks, there were questions about whether he had lost the locker room. 

His decision-making has also been brought into question. According to PFR, he has challenged twenty plays in his four years as HC of the Dolphins, and only four of them were overturned.

Overall, the Dolphins have plenty of storylines to follow. From a QB you can’t help but root for, to a major injury allowing underdogs to step up, to a head coach who is coaching for his job right now, there is plenty to keep an eye on for the rest of the season.