Poupart's Final 53-Man Roster Projection

Now that the preseason is over, here's the final best guess at the Miami Dolphins' 2024 opening-day roster.

Miami Dolphins running back Jeff Wilson Jr. (23) runs with the football past Atlanta Falcons safety Lukas Denis (41) during the first quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Dolphins' dress rehearsals — if we can even call preseason games that — are over after Friday night's 24-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and it's time to get down to business.

Specifically, it's time to reduce the 90-man roster to the 53-player limit, which must be done by 4:00 EDT on Tuesday.

Some of the decisions have already been made, including releasing quarterback Mike White and tight end Jody Fortson on Sunday and placing players on injured reserve.

As is usually the case, some positions look pretty clear-cut and others not so much, with the secondary jumping out as being part of the latter.

Here, then, is Miami Dolphins On SI Publisher Alain Poupart's fifth and final 53-man roster projection for 2024.

DOLPHINS QUARTERBACKS (2)

• On the 53: Tua Tagovailoa, Skylar Thompson

• Off: None

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: Mike White out

• Analysis: We discuss in detail the decision to let go of White, who clearly was outplayed by Thompson all summer and now is a free agent eligible to sign with any other team. The Dolphins obviously will bring in another quarterback — at the very least on the practice squad, though it's important to note the proposed bylaw change. This change would have allowed teams to elevate a player on the practice squad an unlimited number of times to serve as the emergency third quarterback, but the NFLPA refused to approve the change. So we're back to the 2023 rule stating the emergency third quarterback must be on the 53-man roster. Continuing the 2023 rule was part of why we thought the Dolphins would stick with Thompson and White.

DOLPHINS RUNNING BACKS (5)

• On the 53: Raheem Mostert, Devon Achane, Jaylen Wright (R), fullback Alec Ingold, Chris Brooks

• Off: Jeff Wilson Jr., Zavon Horvath, Anthony McFarland Jr.

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: This is pretty simple from this end. Wilson will be on the 53-man roster if the Dolphins can't work out a trade for him because Mike McDaniel is a big fan of his game, but he's also clearly fourth on the pecking order, and Miami likely can get at least a draft pick in return.

DOLPHINS WIDE RECEIVERS (6)

• On the 53: Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Braxton Berrios, Malik Washington (R), Erik Ezukanma, Odell Beckham Jr.

• Off: Je'Quan Burton (R), Anthony Schwartz (IR), Braylon Sanders, Mike Harley Jr., Kyric McGowan, River Cracraft (IR), Jadon Janke

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: Beckham out

• Analysis: The big mystery here remains whether Beckham will wind up starting the season on PUP, which would keep him out for at least the first four games. And that's just one of the injury issues here because River Cracraft will likely begin the season on IR, and the same might go for Ezukanma, who was spotted in a walking boot on the sideline before the preseason finale. The wide receiver role is a position where a veteran newcomer could wind up on the 53.

DOLPHINS TIGHT ENDS (3)

• On the 53: Durham Smythe, Julian Hill, Jonnu Smith

• Off: Hayden Rucci (R), Tanner Conner

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: The big question here is whether the Dolphins will keep a fourth tight end on the initial 53. If that happens, we'd give Conner the edge over Rucci, though ultimately, we could easily see both ending up on the practice squad.

DOLPHINS OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (9)

• On the 53: T Terron Armstead, T Austin Jackson, C/G Liam Eichenberg, G Robert Jones, T Patrick Paul (R), C/G Aaron Brewer, T Kendall Lamm, G/T Jack Driscoll, G Lester Cotton

• Off: Andrew Meyer (R), Matthew Jones (R), Ryan Hayes, Bayron Matos (R), G Isaiah Wynn (PUP)

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: Projecting the offensive linemen has become easier because they look more and more like Wynn. Indeed, they will be starting the season on PUP.

DOLPHINS EDGE PLAYERS (5)

• On the 53: Jaelan Phillips, Emmanuel Ogbah, Chop Robinson (R), Mohamed Kamara (R), Quinton Bell

• Off: Cameron Goode (PUP), Bradley Chubb (PUP), Wyatt Ray, David Anenih

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: Nothing has changed here, except that Quinton Bell no longer appears to be the lock he was early in training camp because he was barely noticeable in any of the joint practices or preseason games. Before that, the injury that landed Cam Brown on IR made things pretty clear cut, though the tricky part will come when Chubb is ready to come off PUP, whether it happens at the moves to 53 or after four weeks.

DOLPHINS DEFENSIVE TACKLES (5)

• On the 53: Zach Sieler, Benito Jones, Da'Shawn Hand, Calais Campbell, Brandon Pili

• Off: Isaiah Mack, Mario Kendricks (R), Leonard Payne (R), Jonathan Harris, Neville Gallimore, Robert Cooper

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: This is based on the assumption that Pili's injury from Friday night isn't serious. We should mention that the Dolphins very well might look outside to bring in some reinforcements in this position.

DOLPHINS INSIDE LINEBACKERS (4)

• On the 53: Jordyn Brooks, David Long Jr., Duke Riley, Channing Tindall

• Off: Curtis Bolton, Anthony Walker Jr., Dequan Jackson

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: Walker is more than good enough to belong on the 53, but we think his prolonged absence will likely keep him off the roster, or maybe he'll just wind up starting the season on IR. Bolton actually has had a very good training camp, but we think the Dolphins will be sticking with Tindall in the hope he takes a big leap on defense or, at the very least, can be a core member of the special teams.

DOLPHINS DEFENSIVE BACKS (11)

• On the 53: Jalen Ramsey, Kader Kohou, Ethan Bonner, Kendall Fuller, Siran Neal, Jevon Holland, Jordan Poyer, Marcus Maye, Elijah Campbell, Cam Smith, Storm Duck (R)

• Off: Isaiah Johnson (R), Jason Maitre (R), Nik Needham, Jordan Colbert (R), Mark Perry (R), Patrick McMorris (IR)

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: Smith in

• Analysis: The defensive back remains the position that presents the toughest decisions from this end because of the three good-looking rookie cornerbacks and rookie safety Mark Perry. We've got Cam Smith back on the initial 53, even though IR remains a possibility because of his hamstring injury, but either way, he'll be with the team. And it could be any one of Duck, Johnson, and Maitre who lands that last spot at cornerback. The Dolphins also have tough decisions when it comes to Needham, who's a veteran with position flexibility, and Perry.

​​DOLPHINS SPECIAL TEAMS (3)

• On the 53: K Jason Sanders, P Jake Bailey, LS Blake Ferguson

• Off: None

• Changes from roster projection 4.0: None

• Analysis: As we wrote all summer, while there's an argument to be made that maybe the Dolphins should have brought in competition here, you gotta love it when they make it easy for all of us to make roster projections.