MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito and star forward Matthew Tkachuk know a thing or two about winning. They have, after all, helped deliver back-to-back championships in South Florida.
For them, the formula goes beyond talent on the ice. The key is team camaraderie.
That’s the message they gave the Miami Dolphins during an offseason visit, bringing the Stanley Cup along with them. For a Dolphins franchise looking to reach the Panthers’ level of sustained success, the importance of closeness in the locker room stood out most to general manager Chris Grier from the visit.
“Hearing that reiterated everything that we’ve been talking to the players about,” said Grier, who along with coach Mike McDaniel has used this offseason to usher in a culture of accountability that both have acknowledged had been lacking.
That started with bringing in the right players that fit — and buy in — with the culture that the Dolphins are aiming for. Last season, player tardiness and apathy toward accountability in part contributed to Miami’s on-field disjointedness, which resulted in missing the playoffs.
One of the most notable changes the Dolphins made this offseason was trading All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey to Pittsburgh. Grier said Wednesday that he was happy for all departing players, but noted that the trade of Ramsey was about “getting the right group of people for the changes that we wanted to make.”
Grier added that issues with Miami’s culture over the past few seasons were a result of signing various players who despite their on-field dominance, weren’t necessarily the right locker room fit.
“You have your expectations, but you’re winning,” Grier said. “But you look at it and you’re like, ‘Hey, I don’t know if we’re winning the right way.’”
McDaniel fined players who were repeatedly late to practices, but “at times, it didn’t matter to them,” Grier said.
“When you have a year like we did last year — we had gone to the playoffs the two previous years— and at some point you say: ‘OK. All right, enough is enough,’” Grier added. “We just missed the playoffs by a game last year. That’s not good enough. The whole goal was to win a lot more games than we did last year, so this is our time now in terms of doing everything to move forward.”
Grier gives roster updates
Grier said the Dolphins intend to be aggressive on the waiver wire on Wednesday, with plans to at least add a couple of veteran running backs to the practice squad.
De’Von Achane, who has been sidelined with a calf injury, is expected to be available for Miami’s opener at Indianapolis on Sept. 7, but rookie Ollie Gordon II is currently the only healthy running back on the roster.
Another move the Dolphins are open to making is a reunion with standout defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, Miami’s 2019 first-round pick who was the Las Vegas Raiders’ marquee free agent signing ahead of the 2024 season.
The Raiders released Wilkins in July over the recovery plan for his broken foot. Wilkins was injured in Week 5 last season and had a setback that landed him on the physically unable to perform list.
“I don’t think we’d ever close our mind on anything,” Grier said. “Christian, while he was here, did a good job. I don’t know all the things that have gone on and haven’t had any conversations with him, but yeah, we’d be open to it.”
Cam Smith, Miami’s 2023 second-round pick who has yet to blossom into the standout starter the team hoped he would be, is going on the NFL’s non-football injury list. Grier declined to give the specific injury or say when Smith might return but added that the cornerback was coming off “some of his best ball the past two weeks.”
The Dolphins also will re-sign veteran swing tackle Kendall Lamm, who played three seasons in Miami. Lamm signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Eagles but was released on Tuesday. Lamm’s 2024 season ended prematurely because of a back injury, but Grier said there were no concerns about his health.
After placing kicker Jason Sanders on injured reserve Tuesday with a designation to return this season, Grier added that Miami will sign kicker Riley Patterson to the practice squad and elevate him for three games. Sanders will be eligible to return Week 5.
Veteran cornerback Rasul Douglas’s signing official
The Dolphins made official their signing of veteran cornerback Rasul Douglas as they aim to shore up their secondary.
Douglas, who has started 30 games over the last two seasons and turns 31 on Friday, will become Miami’s most experienced cornerback. He has played for four teams over his eight-year career, including the past season-and-a-half with Buffalo.
He had 58 tackles, five tackles for loss and five pass breakups for the Bills last season.
The Dolphins made room for Douglas by waiving safety Jordan Colbert.
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