Why Melifonwu Could Take Big Step with Dolphins

DB Ifeatu Melifonwu is hoping to become a full-time starter after being reunited with a former Detroit Lions coach

Detroit Lions safety Ifeatu Melifonwu (6) during the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory last season. / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

New Miami Dolphins safety Ifeatu Melifonwu has an opportunity to become a full-time, Week 1 starter for the first time in his career in 2025.

“I know I’m still going to have to go out and compete and earn a starting spot, and I’ve never really had anything handed to me ever since Syracuse days,” Melifonwu told reporters Monday. “So I’m excited for that opportunity, but I definitely feel like, as a starter, there are things that I can bring to this defense and have an impact on it.”

Melifonwu has started more than five games just once in his career (six in 2023) and has taken a winding path to landing with the Dolphins, which included a position change and several injuries.

Melifonwu’s Journey to Playing Safety

Through most of those ups and downs, Melifonwu could lean on now-Dolphins pass game coordinator/secondary coach Brian Duker. Duker was with the Detroit Lions, who selected Melifonwu in the third round of the 2021 NFL draft, from 2021 through 2023.

Duker started as a defensive assistant but was quickly promoted to safeties coach in 2022. That same year, Melifonwu, who played cornerback in college at Syracuse and during his rookie season, was asked to transition to safety.

Melifonwu played only 98 snaps in 2022 as he transitioned from playing primarily cornerback to safety. It was a big transition for the Syracuse product.

“My second year was when I got switched to safety,” Melifonwu said. “So it wasn’t like necessary slowed down because now I’m learning a new position, so really like 2022 was my first year at safety, but I wasn’t even fully a safety — I was both kind of.”

“So my first full year at safety was 2023, and the whole time, Coach Duker is the one that’s teaching me how to play safety. So that’s from Year 2 to 3 for me. That’s when it really slowed down because that was technically my Year 1 to 2. And obviously, we all saw what happened in 2023 when I was full time at safety.”

As Melinfonwu alluded to, 2023 was a breakout season for him. He played in all 17 games and stuffed the stat sheet with 33 tackles, three sacks, eight pass breakups, and two interceptions.

The Lions used Melifonwu all over the defense, leveraging his unique size (6-3, 210 pounds) and coverage instincts to fill several responsibilities.

In 2023, Melifonwu took 233 snaps at free safety, 168 in the box, and 113 at slot cornerback. Those 168 reps in the box can also be broken down into k reps as a weakside linebacker and in a robber role.

Melifonwu’s strong play helped the Lions finish 12-5 that season, tying their franchise record for wins. He also contributed to the team’s NFC Championship run before losing to the San Francisco 49ers.

Unfortunately, Melifonwu couldn’t carry that momentum into the 2024 season. He suffered a preseason ankle injury that kept him out until Week 16. Still, the Dolphins are betting on the player they saw in 2023.

How Melifonwu Fits The Dolphins

Betting on Melifonwu makes a lot of sense for the Dolphins since they lost both starting safeties to free agency. Jevon Holland signed with the New York Giants, and Jordan Poyer remains unsigned as of this writing.

Although Melifonwu’s one-year, $4 million deal doesn’t guarantee him a starting spot, he’s an excellent fit for the team’s strong safety spot in defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s system.

“I just feel like from seeing me play in Detroit, I just feel like my size and speed and coverage ability and being able to tackle and blitz can really help anyone’s defense in general,” Melifonwu said about his fit in Weaver’s defense.

“So I’m just excited to see where I’ll play and how they’ll use me. Haven’t really got the opportunity to fully talk about that in depth, so I’m just excited, and anywhere they decide to put me, I’ll be happy. Like I said, I’m just ready to go out there and compete.”

Given the snap distribution we mentioned earlier, it’s easy to believe Melifonwu will be happy wherever he lines up. But even beyond that, he’s proven to be a player who can handle all types of responsibilities.

He has experience playing man and zone coverage from the slot. He’s got the size to match tight ends and enough speed to handle more traditional receivers. As a safety, Melifonwu can line up in deep halves or drop into the middle of the field as a robber.

His reps in the box have shown him to be a strong run defender with good tackling skills and physicality — two things the Dolphins’ safety room from last season sorely lacked.

Melifonwu is also a strong blitzer in a small sample size. On 19 pass rush snaps across the last two seasons, he generated 12 pressures and four sacks. That conversion rate is unsustainable, but Weaver likes to get creative with who rushes the passer, and Melifonwu is another option.

The only real question about whether Melifonwu will be an upgrade for the Dolphins is centered around his injury history.

Besides last season’s ankle injury, he spent most of his rookie season on injured reserve with a quad injury and had a separate ankle injury in 2022.

Although his injuries weigh on Melifonwu, he feels he’s in a better position to prevent them from happening again.

“I think early on I didn’t do as much as I should have been, like just being young,” Melifonwu said. “But there’s definitely – sometimes it’s luck, to be honest. Some stuff I had, like tackle, and I got rolled up on with my ankle facing up. Sometimes it’s just pure luck, but there’s definitely stuff I’ve approached this offseason with my trainer, nutrition-wise, and different stuff like that to help prevent injuries going forward.”

The Dolphins have had rough luck with injury-prone players in recent seasons, but if they’re going to make it back to the postseason in 2025, Melifonwu likely will play a significant role on defense.

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