The Miami Dolphins are in the first year of a massive rebuild under general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley.
After releasing several veterans during the offseason, many believe the Dolphins have one of the worst rosters in the NFL.
However, two low-profile players received praise after making ESPN's Bill Barnwell's fantasy "All-Backup Team." Offensive tackle Jamaree Salyer and kicker Zane Gonzalez are reserve players who could become key contributors for the Dolphins this season.
"The Dolphins are one of the few teams with two veteran kickers on their roster, so Gonzalez is an easy pick for us after hitting 86.4% of his attempts last season in Atlanta," Barnwell wrote. "Salyer is a swing tackle who did a solid job at left tackle as a rookie in 2022 with the Chargers; having a sixth or seventh lineman with real experience on the blind side is a relative luxury."
The rules for Barnwell's exercise required at least one player from every team to be named to the roster. The Dolphins landed two players, which is somewhat surprising given their perceived lack of depth.
Gonzalez will compete with Riley Patterson for the placekicker job this season. In nine games with the Atlanta Falcons last season, Gonzalez converted 19 of 22 field-goal attempts and 17 of 18 extra-point attempts.
Considering the Dolphins will have a new quarterback and a revamped receiving corps, having stability at kicker will be important.
Gonzalez enters a real kicking competition
Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images
Salyer signed a one-year contract with the Dolphins in March. He is expected to be the first offensive lineman off the bench if an injury occurs. During his four seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers, Salyer started 19 games at left tackle and 21 at right guard.
Given Austin Jackson's injury history, Salyer could also see time at right tackle this season. Jackson has missed 20 games over the past two seasons due to injuries. Miami could also slide Salyer to left guard and move rookie Kadyn Proctor to right tackle.
Despite Miami's current roster concerns, Sullivan and Hafley have built quality depth at kicker and along the offensive line.
