Culture-Changing Prospects At Each Position For The Miami Dolphins 2025 NFL Draft

The Dolphins are attempting to reset the culture within the locker room. They'll need a few special personalities to make it happen...

I suppose the only thing worse than losing your voice the week before the NFL Draft is losing your voice the week of the NFL Draft. For that, I’m thankful.

But the tickle in the back of my throat, amid probably a good three hours of talking into a microphone for the last three days, has finally finished the job. I am currently toast! It’s not great. But fear not — this gives me the perfect chance to introduce a new concept to you all.

Welcome to the Blue Dot Club. I was first exposed to this concept at the Senior Bowl offices in Mobile, Alabama a few years back. I was there in December with my former gig, The Draft Network, exploring a series of venues and destinations amid plans for the coverage of that year’s event. While we were there, we’d connected with then-Senior Bowl Director Jim Nagy at his offices. Nagy, now the General Manager of the Oklahoma Sooners football program, has always been gracious with his time as we looked to improve coverage of his event and I consider him to be a friend.

That afternoon, as we sat in his office, I couldn’t help but marvel at the far wall across the way. It had the Senior Bowl’s “draft board” of college prospects on display. And when I tell you the entire wall was the board, I mean the entire wall was the board. I’m 6-foot-1 and couldn’t reach the top nameplates while standing on the floor. And the whole thing must have been 10 feet across. It was constructed in horizontal draft board fashion: columns for positions and rows for round grades and ranges.

Midway through our chat, Nagy’s phone rang. It was Dabo Swinney. He asked to be excused, stood up and stepped out to take the call and as he did, he looked to the board, then to me and nodded his head as he swung the door closed behind him. It was the invitation I needed to inspect it closely.

Seeing the grades was fascinating. The order and tiering of the players was a blend of the league’s own evaluation and foiling against league consensus.

Each of the several hundred nameplates on display had a picture, a previously vetted weigh-in and measurement series, and a slew of coded letters. Some were upside down (I managed to put together that those were players who had declined their invites). The coded language was meant to indicate medical history, size restrictions, character concerns from off-field conduct and more.

And then there were a handful — no more than a dozen — that also had a blue dot. There was no rhyme or reason for who they were or what it designated. So as I perused the rest of the board and explored their rankings while trying to anticipate what their final roster for the next month would look like, I kept trying to solve the riddle of the blue dots.

When Nagy returned to his office, I jettisoned back to my seat to finish our chat. When we concluded, I couldn’t help but ask about the blue dots. Jim flashed a big smile.

“Oh yeah, man. Those are the CULTURE guys.”

Nagy would go on to explain that those were the few, proud players who garnered the right amount of excessive praise for their work in the weight room, in the community, on the field, in the classroom and more from coaches, teammates, and support staff alike. They were the guys who were bred to be successful NFL pros from the jump because they “got it”.

If we’re being honest, the Dolphins need a few blue dot guys.

The passive leadership style of Mike McDaniel puts a lot of trust into the players to be self-sufficient and self-driven while being accountable to one another. And it feels like too much of last year’s group took the leash and exploited it amid a trying season. The team’s most established and reliable leaders are out the door via retirement (Terron Armstead), free agency (Calais Campbell), or trade request (Jalen Ramsey…yes, that trade was requested. Don’t let them lie to you) this offseason.

The team’s highest paid player, Tua Tagovailoa, was the player who I was told held the group together at the seams last year. It was described to me as a “substitute teacher” vibe when Tagovailoa was away for his concussion recovery. When he was back, he was among the most driven player in the locker room. It shouldn’t be surprising to hear, given Tagovailoa’s readiness to say out loud that he’s “willing to die” on the field to play the game he loves. Please don’t mistake this for a love letter for all things Tagovailoa. But amid the litany of culture and talent issues the Dolphins suffered last season, neither has the quarterback as a root cause. And it would be far more accurate to say Tagovailoa last year was everything you want from your quarterback amid adversity behind the scenes — even if a fair bit of the adversity was self-inflicted by said quarterback in the first place.

This team is apparently seeking to rebuild the culture of the locker room. And to do that, some of the young hotshots in place will need a reality check. And the team needs more blue dot players in the locker room to take this team into the future. Players with multiple years of control on the roster are attractive for this objective, as a frequently changing leadership dynamic can create additional hardship. It apparently did last season from what I was told.

The unfortunate reality of playing in South Florida: there are more distractions in town than you’ll find in Pittsburgh, Detroit, Buffalo, Kansas City, and Indianapolis combined.

Guys who are branded “culture” guys should be considered a must next week. But who are THE culture guys in the 2025 NFL Draft? I’ve researched the players and done my own legwork to identify my own Blue Dot Club for Miami’s 2025 Draft Board — and I’ve got one for each position.

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Quarterback: Will Howard, Ohio State

Howard was able to step in as a transfer and lead Ohio State to the National Championship — that is a testament in and of itself. He carries himself with a confidence and bravado that is easy to like. But he does so with self-awareness and was credited by the coaching staff for all the work he did to assume that weight and responsibility as a new face in the room.

“I think he understands that his job is to be the number one leader on the team and on the field, and that the team is going to take on his personality, but in terms of the football on the field, I think he’s done a great job off the field of grasping the concepts. He’s put a lot of work in with Chip Kelly and with Billy Fessler. You know, when you know the first couple words come out of a play, he could finish it for you. And that’s when you know he knows exactly what’s going on. He makes sure everybody’s on the same page.” - Ohio State head coach Ryan Day

Howard is also a piece of the single best quarterback content I’ve assumed this draft cycle. His appearance with Jon Gruden dives headfirst into Howard the leader and culture builder across the first 12 minutes or so of the program. It’s easy to see why he gets the blue dot here.

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Running Back: Devin Neal, Kansas