How Ogbah Went from Unwanted to Valuable

Behind Miami Dolphins edge defender Emmanuel Ogbah's improbable resurgence on defense

Miami Dolphins linebacker Emmanuel Ogbah (91) celebrates after sacking Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (not pictured) during the fourth quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Emmanuel Ogbah is one of the most important players on the Miami Dolphins roster right now.

Think about it for a second and ask yourself just how unlikely that would have been a few months ago, you know when he wasn't even on the team.

And yet here we are.

The Dolphins have had their share of bad luck so far in 2024, but what happened with Ogbah was just the opposite.

Remember, he wasn't even on the roster until late July when offseason free agent acquisition Shaquil Barrett decided he didn't want to continue his NFL career and the Dolphins had to go find a replacement. Lucky for them, Ogbah still was available after the Dolphins released him in the offseason because he was making too much money.

That no team picked up Ogbah all offseason certainly seemed surprising because of his NFL resume, and the Dolphins sure are lucky he still was on the market as an obvious replacement for his retired replacement.

HOW OGBAH HAS STEPPED UP

In the first four weeks of the 2024 season, Ogbah was the Dolphins' most productive edge defender, standing out in a group that included Jaelan Phillips, rookie first-round pick Chop Robinson, rookie fifth-round pick Mohamed Kamara and early training camp sensation Quinton Bell.

Ogbah leads the Dolphins with four quarterback hits; he's got one of the team's three interceptions and one of the team's seven sacks; he's third on the team in tackles for loss with three behind only Calais Campbell and Jalen Ramsey, who have four apiece. Ogbah's snap count is the sixth-highest among all Dolphins defensive players and tops among edge defenders.

And now the Dolphins have lost Phillips for the season with a knee injury, which means that Ogbah becomes even more important to the defense.

Besides being the one proven pass rusher among the edge defenders — as Bradley Chubb continues to stay on PUP recovering from his 2023 ACL injury — he continues to serve as a mentor for the young teammates at his position.

"When you look at him, he's a towering guy," OLB coach Ryan Crow said. "Some of our younger players are a little bit different in size and stature. So the game and the way it's played between them, very similar. We gotta accomplish the same thing, whether you're 6-6 or you're 6-2. But I would say that the way that Og is taking all those guys under the wing, and that's really everyone in the room, Jaelan, Bradley, Cam Goode, all the vets that have done that, just helping them to understand what they gotta do and how to do it with their gifts and their skill set."

Defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver specifically pointed to Kamara as somebody who could learn a lot from Ogbah because they have a similar skill set.

"The thing that the thing I love about Og is just his approach to work; he's the same guy every day and he's like essentially what you hope Mohamed grows into right right now for us,, that he is an enforcerWeaver said. "And you saw multiple times in games. He sets a firm edge, right? He can intimidate you with just his sheer size and will and his abilities like stick his face in the fan. And then as a rusher, right? He's not just a power guy. There's a little bit of finesse aspect and great hand usage to it too. So to me he's a perfect guy for Mohamed to watch and kind of see what he can take from him and then add to his game."

The Dolphins obviously would benefit from Kamara contributing on defense, but Ogbah who remains the new leader of this position group.

And, again, who would have thought that at the start of July?