MIAMI GARDENS — There was a moment in the second quarter of the Miami Dolphins’ crushing 45-21 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals when outside linebacker Chop Robinson and defensive tackle Kenneth Grant combined on a sack of Joe Burrow.

It may not have been much in the grand scheme of the game. The Bengals settled for a field goal while the score was still tight, but they ended up running away from the Dolphins in the second half.

But, as that game and the final two to come for Miami (6-9) are less about the effect on the standings and more about finding what the team has for the future, could the play serve as a symbol for the Dolphins’ past two first-round picks becoming building blocks for the franchise?

“I think they’re very good building blocks,” Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver said Tuesday. “I know their best football is in front of them. … Both those guys, I think, are foundational pieces for what we’re trying to build here on defense.”

Both Robinson and Grant were off to slow starts in 2025.

Robinson has come along of late with greater opportunity since Jaelan Phillips was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. He has three of his four sacks on the season in the past four games.

“I think if Chop was playing the amount of reps he’s playing now at the beginning of the season, his stats would be much better,” Waver said. “As we go into Year 3, cementing him as a starter at that spot, I only see his production rising.”

Grant has gone through his rookie obstacles.

“Kind of struggled early, put a lot of pressure on himself, but you see his growth and maturation,” Weaver said. “He’s starting to get some production now on the field.”

The youngsters appreciated having that in-game moment together.

“It meant a lot just being out there being on the field with him,” Robinson said this week. “We played against each other in college and stuff like that and of course we ended up on the same team both being first-round picks, so honestly it was just a fun moment for the both of us because we’ve been waiting for a moment like that, getting it together. It was a good thing to have.”

The critical penalty

Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith offered his reaction to the pivotal penalty that sent the Dolphins in a downward spiral in the third quarter Sunday against the Bengals.

Undrafted rookie wide receiver Theo Wease was running a crossing route when he was called for offensive pass interference against a defender who wasn’t near running back De’Von Achane, named to the Pro Bowl on Tuesday, on a play where Achane went for a big gain.

“He was trying to avoid him,” Smith said. “As he changed his angle, they kind of made contact. So it’s one of those where we’re just working on trying to keep our angles to avoid defenders, so we’re not setting picks.”

Coach Mike McDaniel was visibly irate on the sideline when the penalty was called and said, after the game, he did not agree with it.

Wease was also the receiver targeted on Ewers’ first interception. A Cincinnati defender came across his body to deflect the pass into the air for a teammate to come down with it. Smith identified what the rookie in his first game could’ve done better.

“It’s just one of those situations, with close-quarters catches, you want to really, if you can, go attack the ball,” Smith said. “Sometimes, when you’re getting in there, your first (opportunities), you see the ball in the air, you think about just coming down with the catch as opposed to your relative position to the defender or your depth, timing, stuff like that. So ultimately, as a receiver, you see the ball in the air, the best thing you can do is come back to it to protect the ball from wherever the defender is, and I think he learned from that.”

Wease was playing for veteran Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, who was a healthy inactive Sunday.

While Westbrook-Ikhine’s playing time down the final stretch of the season may or may not impact Miami’s compensatory draft pick formula in the offseason, he said that was not a reason communicated to him and it was about getting the younger Wease some reps.

Gifts from Tua

All around the Dolphins’ locker room at the practice facility Tuesday were large speakers — or sound towers — gifted to players from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

His offensive linemen got an additional present for the holiday season, large body recovery mats. There were also gift bags by their lockers with smaller presents inside.

“Appreciate the work you put in throughout the year,” Tagovailoa wrote in large personalized cards to the linemen “None of this is possible without you guys holding it down up front. Grateful to have the best unit in the league. Wishing you and your families a merry Christmas and a blessed new year.”