{"id":208659,"date":"2025-07-15T09:52:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T09:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/208659\/"},"modified":"2025-07-15T09:52:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T09:52:10","slug":"have-dolphins-finally-solved-backup-qb-issue-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/208659\/","title":{"rendered":"Have Dolphins finally solved backup QB issue?"},"content":{"rendered":"

With the 2025 NFL season fast approaching, the South Florida Sun Sentinel takes a look at 10 storylines to watch for in a 10-part series ahead of the Miami Dolphins\u2019 first day of training camp, which is set for July 22<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Miami Dolphins backup quarterback Zach Wilson<\/a> better be good.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not as much of a demand on Wilson, the 25-year-old No. 2 selection of the 2021 draft by the New York Jets, as it is on Dolphins general manager Chris Grier and coach Mike McDaniel<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Since McDaniel was hired in 2022, the Dolphins<\/a> have had problems with all of their backup quarterbacks \u2014 Nos. 2, 3 and 4. Whether it\u2019s been Skylar Thompson (2022-24), Teddy Bridgewater (2022), Mike White (2023), Tim Boyle (2024), or Tyler \u201cSnoop\u201d Huntley (2024), none has been an adequate fill-in.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wilson, who the Dolphins signed as a free agent in March, is the Dolphins\u2019 handpicked backup. McDaniel called the strong-armed Wilson, who struggles with accuracy, \u201ca direct calculated target.\u201d<\/p>\n

In light of that, it appears rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers<\/a>, the seventh-round pick from Texas, has little chance to surpass Wilson for the No. 2 job.<\/p>\n

The Dolphins hope Wilson can benefit from the same career-salvaging program that helped starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, whose career was floundering before McDaniel took over.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot comparing the players at all \u2014 on the record, not comparing the players \u2014 Tua found that this environment helped him through that process,\u201d McDaniel said.<\/p>\n

Wilson is excited about the opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s not to like, right?\u201d Wilson said. \u201cExtremely explosive offense and I think they do a great job, and it starts from coach McDaniel and goes all the way down. \u2026 You\u2019ve seen how Tua\u2019s development has gone, too, since he\u2019s been there, and I think I\u2019m just excited to be with those guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

The hope is that the Dolphins never have to play Wilson, who was traded to Denver last season, where he spent the year as a third-teamer behind Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham.<\/p>\n

The reality is the Dolphins have had problems with their No. 1 quarterback, Tagovailoa<\/a>. He missed five games in 2022 due to a pair of concussions and missed six games in 2024 due to a concussion and a hip injury.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a decent chance the Dolphins will need Wilson early in the season and late. Tagovailoa has been injured in both September and December in 2022 and \u201924.<\/p>\n

But they\u2019ll need to be sure Wilson is ready. In three years with the Jets, Wilson compiled a 12-21 (.364) record to go along with 23 touchdowns, 25 interceptions and a 73.2 passer rating while completing 57 percent of his passes. After two listless seasons, Wilson was replaced as the Jets\u2019 starter in 2023 by future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers.<\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s best season might have been 2022, when he had a 5-4 record while throwing six touchdowns and seven interceptions with a 72.8 passer rating. In 2023, after Rodgers went down with an Achilles injury in the opener, Wilson had a 4-7 record, eight touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 77.2 passer rating.<\/p>\n

Regardless, Wilson is a player the Dolphins think they can mold and groom.<\/p>\n

Dolphins Deep Dive: Miami\u2019s culture; McDaniel on hot seat? | VIDEO<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just felt that in talking to him and some veterans that he was the right fit and right choice for us because we do think that his skill set really fits what our offense does,\u201d Grier said.<\/p>\n

If Grier is right, it\u2019ll go down among the biggest accomplishments of the Grier-McDaniel era. If he\u2019s wrong, it could cost him and McDaniel, big time.<\/p>\n

After all, the Dolphins could have signed another veteran quarterback such as Jameis Winston (New York Giants) or Jimmy Garoppolo (Los Angeles Rams), neither of which is overly appealing. In fact, on the whole the backup quarterback market might not have been very appealing among players such as Joshua Dobbs (New England), Jacoby Brissett (Arizona) and Mac Jones (San Francisco).<\/p>\n

Wilson should get plenty of work in training camp practices and preseason games because nowadays starters get most of their work in training camp during joint practices with opposing teams.<\/p>\n

The Dolphins haven\u2019t had much success when Tagovailoa has been sidelined. They were 1-4 in games he didn\u2019t start in 2022, and 2-4 in games he didn\u2019t start in 2024.<\/p>\n

It won\u2019t be solely on Wilson, if called upon, to improve on that record. After all, some might argue part of the problem with No. 2 quarterbacks is the Miami offense is tailored specifically for, and perhaps only for, Tagovailoa.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Still, if Wilson doesn\u2019t find a way to get a couple of victories if he has to make a few starts, it might mean the Dolphins still haven\u2019t solved their years-long problem of finding a quality backup quarterback. And in a way, that could reflect poorly on Grier and\/or McDaniel.<\/p>\n

Previously addressed<\/p>\n

Will changes on Dolphins\u2019 O-line lead to pass protection for Tua, better run-blocking?<\/a><\/p>\n

What should we expect from Dolphins\u2019 first-round pick Kenneth Grant in 2025?<\/a><\/p>\n

With questionable Dolphins secondary, can better pass rush make up for the back end?<\/a><\/p>\n

Can Dolphins\u2019 Tua stay out of harm\u2019s way and remain healthy all season?<\/a><\/p>\n

Chris Grier, Mike McDaniel or both? Who\u2019s on Dolphins\u2019 hot seat entering 2025 season?<\/a><\/p>\n

Is this Tyreek Hill\u2019s final season with the Dolphins?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With the 2025 NFL season fast approaching, the South Florida Sun Sentinel takes a look at 10 storylines…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":208591,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2049],"tags":[217,7,216,251,2087,6,1733],"class_list":{"0":"post-208659","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-dolphins","8":"tag-dolphins","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-miami","11":"tag-miami-dolphins","12":"tag-miamidolphins","13":"tag-nfl","14":"tag-zach-wilson"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114856640168323453","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208659","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=208659"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208659\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/208591"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=208659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=208659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=208659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}