The Las Vegas Raiders offense vs the Miami Dolphins
defense is a chess match between two superior former coordinators turned first-year head coaches. Whereas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak is coming off a Super Bowl win, Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley is bringing his 4-3 scheme from the Packers. What’s interesting is that for all intents and purposes the Dolphins are running a scheme similar to Raiders defensive coordinator Rob Leonard’s.Linebackers
“On paper,” a phrase ridiculously overused, the
Dolphins’ strength is their linebacking corps. Jordyn Brooks led the league in tackles with 183 total tackles, adding 3.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Brooks recorded 20.5 run stuffs, according to ESPN.com. His play earned him a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2025 and he was rewarded with a three-year 51.3 million extension in the offseason.
Brooks’ tackling ability, paired with the experience and playing wisdom of former Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay Jr., will set the tone for the defense in 2026. Adding Jacob Rodriguez, the 2025 Dick Butkus Award winner, is the makings of a very impressive linebacking group. Providing run stuffing, good tackling, sideline-to-sideline speed, some blitzing capabilities and good pass coverage in the middle of the field.
Blocking the second level of the defense will be paramount for any hope of success the Raiders may have in the run game. It will also test Kubiak’s mettle in devising ways for his short-to-intermediate passing attack to get guys open.
Defensive backs
Hafley’s specialty is developing young defensive backs and making them into quality players. A point of contention requiring emphasis because the secondary is composed of 2026 first-round pick Chris Johnson, former second-round pick JuJu Brents and multiple late-round picks. All that to say, the secondary is a work in progress, not very good and the first place the Raiders should look to attack.
Jason Marshall Jr. was a 2025 fifth-round pick, producing an interception and 4 pass deflections in 12 games. Juju Brents is a big boundary corner on his second career stop and has played in 18 games over the course of three years. Amassing a career total of 1 interception and seven pass breakups. Dante Trader Jr., a 2025 fifth-round pick, is a smaller strong safety who Brock Bowers should pray lines up against him in man coverage. Michael Taaffe, the rookie from Texas, was also drafted in the fifth round and is expected to make moves and be a Swiss Army knife for the defense.
The defensive backs are all uniform in size, roughly six feet tall, give or take an inch and within 3-5 pounds of 200 pounds overall. From their first preseason game against the Washington Commanders, Hafley and his defensive coordinator, Sean Duggan, have shown the scheme is all about the attempt to disguise coverages, blitz from multiple levels and confuse quarterbacks. Why? If Cousins is protected properly he should absolutely pick them apart.
Defensive line
There is a toss-up between which unit is worse, the secondary or the defensive front. Chop Robinson is a young, ascending edge player who is a former first-round draft pick in his third year, still looking at 2026 as his breakout year. Looking to build on the 15 games played in 2025 and the pedestrian 21 total tackles, four sacks, with a forced fumble. Josh Uche is a 226-pound rotational edge who tallied 23 tackles and a sack for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2025. Now as an undersized speed rusher, he is expected to start as the weak-side edge.
Zach Sieler and Kenneth Grant are the two monsters in the middle and currently the best defensive linemen on the team. Sieler is the seasoned vet of the bunch with a good mixture of awareness, technique and ability. His counterpart, Grant, should be the nose tackle since he weighs 330 lbs and is tasked with clogging the middle and tying up blockers who would attempt to get to the second level to block the linebackers.
As luck would have it, the Raiders will get to dodge him, as he was placed on the IR-designated return list. In his place is the Dolphins’ former draftee Jordan Phillips. Phillips is at a crossroads in his career. When looking at statistics, he either is going to stay healthy and rebound, or this is most likely going to be the last meaningful starting stop of his career. As it stands he is listed as questionable on the injury report heading into game week. Whether or not he will play is still undecided.
Bottom Line
The Dolphins defense is like looking into a mirror for the Las Vegas Raiders. Up front, they are even more undersized than the Raiders are; the pass-rushing abilities of the guys on the line are limited, to say the least. In the run game, their job is to funnel the ball carriers into the linebackers while allowing them to flow freely to the ball. Once again, the linebackers are going to be the heartbeat of the team. The Raiders receiving corps drew an easy assignment in week 1, it’s up to them to go out Sunday afternoon and take care of business against this inexperience group of defensive backs.
