Welcome to the second part of a thirty-two-part series: Reading the NFL Offseason Tea Leaves. Fantasy football tasseography is deeply rooted in predicting future fantasy fortunes. Some of the team tea cups we'll be looking into may be larger than others. The smallest of cups may have the most alluring blends of offensive weaponry, or be set to bloom after a long steep. This series will aid in your approach to Redraft and Dynasty leagues by bringing you up to date on:

• Free Agency
  • Re-signings, additions, who signed elsewhere, and what it means for fantasy.
• NFL Draft
  • What can we decipher about the direction a team is headed in based on their draft selections?
• Coaching Changes
  • Who's in, who's out, and how do the coaching philosophies translate to fantasy production?
• Fantasy Fortunes
  • What does this all mean for your fantasy football drafts?

Like tasseography, the arrangement of these sections will vary as we digest each team's offseasons and see how the offensive pieces settle. Each article will interpret what the NFL has told us about their future plans based on what they've done since their 2025 season ended. 

Reading the Miami Dolphins' 2026 Offseason

Coaching Changes

Out is Mike McDaniel as Head Coach, being replaced by Jeff Hafley. Hafley is a defensive-minded coach with experience building teams that win in cold weather. But wait, Miami is tropical…

Yes, but Buffalo, Boston, and New York are frigid come November. Hafley has stated that he's building a team that wins games when the snow is falling.

The Dolphins also promoted Senior Passing Game Coordinator Bobby Slowik to their Offensive Coordinator position. Slowik has typically schemed up game plans that lean towards the pass, so it will be interesting to see how the game plan is called for a team that is bitter in flavor at its offensive skill positions. 

Free Agency Additions & The NFL Draft

Let's address the largest decline in Miami's tea quality - the absence of its two top WRs going into 2025. Tyreek Hill was released after suffering a horrific knee injury, and Jaylen Waddle was traded to the Denver Broncos. The loss of these two players will likely prevent fantasy managers from buying Dolphins players by the pound.

Their departures decrease the likelihood that this offense can sustain drives and create TD opportunities. Instead, we will be buying individual satchels in the QB and RB rooms.

Shuffling WR Room

So, what did Miami do to recover from the loss of their top WRs? In free agency, the Dolphins brought in Jalen Tolbert and TuTu Atwell. They went on to draft Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell, and Kevin Coleman. Malik Washington is still on the roster, too. That's a lot of unproven talent, and there is an opportunity for any one of these players to win the WR1 role.

Douglas likely starts in the X role in the offense, with Tolbert, Bell, Washington and Coleman auditioning for the flanker role. The slot duties will likely be split primarily among Washington, Bell, and Coleman.

The WRs are definitely an herbal tea, and not one that will wire you with caffeine to drive your fantasy productivity.

Dolphins' TE Issues

The TE group is as uninspiring as the WRs. The 'Fins added Greg Dulcich in free agency, and went on to draft Will Kacmarek and Seydou Traore. Dulcich projects to be their every-down TE, with Kacmarek operating as the TE2. Kacmarek is a strong blocker with solid hands as a pass catcher, but offers little after the catch. Traore is a developmental prospect who is still new to football, coming from France via the NFL Academy.

Miami's Shiny New QB

Let's not forget that Miami signed Malik Willis to a three-year, $67.5M contract as their starting quarterback. He's lucky that they drafted so many WRs and TEs, or else they'd be picking guys off the street for him to throw to in 2026.

I'd expect Willis' first year on the Dolphins to be a bitter one. For us as fantasy managers, if Willis struggles and has to play from behind, it might be the perfect blend for fantasy value when you consider his rushing floor and the price point to acquire Willis. 

Dependable RB1 & Handcuffs

The Dolphins also extended De'Von Achane on a 4-year $64M contract, making him the third highest-paid RB in the league. Barring injury, Achane will likely be top five in volume amongst RBs in 2026. Should Achane pick up an injury, it will likely be a one-two punch of Ollie Gordon and Jaylen Wright at RB. The ceremonial-grade matcha for this team is De'Von Achane, and he should be treated as such.

Fantasy Fortunes

There's a chance Achane is Miami's leading rusher and ends the year with the most catches and receiving yards if his body can withstand the workload. Willis may be able to generate QB2 numbers with his rushing, occasionally flirting with QB1 weeks.

The WRs and TEs are a total shot in the dark.

The aforementioned Bell has the highest upside, but he is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in November of 2025. One of the pass catchers has to see volume, and I'd guess it'll be between Washington, Dulcich, Douglas, and Coleman in 2026.

I liked what I saw from Douglas and Coleman at the Senior Bowl. I also thought Washington offered more on his college tape than he's been asked to do in the pros thus far (i.e., screens and short-yardage work).

Bet on Achane and hedge your bet with Gordon. Roll the dice on the WRs, and draft Willis late as your QB2 in SuperFlex leagues. Miami will be an offense to avoid in 2026, mostly, but QB2, RB1-2, WR3-5s, and TE2-3 seem within reach for this iteration of the Dolphins. Avoid buying  into the Dolphins' offense in bulk

Cam White is a Senior Analyst & Host at Optimus Fantasy. You can find more of his work on our YouTube channel, and make sure to follow him on Bluesky.