Miami Dolphins Finalize 53-Man Roster, Place Jason Sanders On IR
As the 53-man roster deadline hit on late Tuesday afternoon, the Miami Dolphins had some tough decisions to make. Do they keep a 5th or 6th EDGE rusher? Does Tahj Washington make the team after a stellar preseason? What will the team do with the currently-injured Jason Sanders as they search for his replacement?
You can see the full list of roster cuts down below, including players who were waived yesterday:
- RB Aaron Shampklin
- RB Mike Boone
- WR AJ Henning
- WR Erik Ezukanma
- WR Theo Wease
- WR Andrew Armstrong
- TE Pharaoh Brown
- TE Chris Myarick
- TE Hayden Rucci
- OL Jackson Carman
- OL Jalen McKenzie
- OL Mason Brooks
- OL Addison West
- OL Ryan Hayes
- OL Bayron Matos
- OL Braeden Daniels
- OL Josh Priebe
- DL Ben Stille
- DL Alex Huntley
- DL Matt Dickerson
- EDGE Quinton Bell
- EDGE Grayson Murphy
- EDGE Mohamed Kamara
- EDGE Derrick McLendon
- LB Eugene Asante (Injury Settlement)
- LB Channing Tindall
- LB Dequan Jackson
- CB Mike Hilton
- CB Ethan Robinson
- CB Cameron Dantzler Sr
- CB BJ Adams
- CB Cornell Armstrong
- CB Kendall Sheffield
- S Patrick McMorris
- S John Saunders Jr
- C Andrew Meyer and K Jason Sanders were placed on Injured Reserve (with a designation to return)
- OL Liam Eichenberg has been placed on the PUP list
Our initial 53-man roster is set 🐬 pic.twitter.com/EYIBZ7wW2x
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) August 26, 2025
A New Addition To The CB Room
Not included among the final 53-man roster is newcomer CB Rasul Douglas, who signed with the team earlier today on a 1-year, $3 million deal.
With Storm Duck, Jack Jones, and rookie Jason Marshall Jr seemingly securing their spot on the 53, it’ll be interesting to see what the Miami Dolphins do when it’s time to officially add Douglas to the roster.
Ethan Bonner is battling a hamstring injury suffered during the team’s preseason game against the Detroit Lions. Isaiah Johnson is an intriguing project player with great physical traits. As for Cam Smith, the former South Carolina alum hasn’t panned out so far. But, this team did invest a 2nd round pick back in 2023 to select Smith.
We’ll see what the team does moving forward. Also, keep in mind, there is a new influx of talent hitting free agency right now. Some, like CB Jalyn Armour-Davis (formerly of BAL) and S Tony Jefferson (formerly of LAC), have experience with Miami Dolphins DC Anthony Weaver. So, there is a chance that the team will be making even more changes aside from officially bringing in Douglas.
The Miami Dolphins Have Serious Depth In Some Position Rooms
Moving on to the trenches, the Miami Dolphins have spent a considerable amount of resources this offseason to rebuild the defensive line.
As it stands now, the Dolphins’ DL room currently consists of Zach Sieler, Kenneth Grant, Benito Jones, Jordan Phillips, Zeek Biggers, and Matthew Butler. While half of that room may be rookies, you can’t deny there’s a lot of talent on the DL.
The same could be said for EDGE, LB, and WR.
Chop Robinson, Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and Matt Judon all made the 53. That’s no surprise. But the team had to make several tough cuts today, including Derrick McLendon, Grayson Murphy, and Quinton Bell. All three guys have flashed during the preseason, and it shows how deep this room is. Furthermore, Cameron Goode rounds out the room as the 5th man. He might not be the ideal depth pass rusher. But he does add to Miami’s Special Teams unit, which is trying to make a quick turnaround with new ST coach Craig Aukerman at the helm.
The LB room remains stacked with the likes of Jordyn Brooks, Tyrel Dodson, Willie Gay Jr, and KJ Britt. Brooks and Dodson are looking to build on their excellent 2024 seasons. Willie Gay and KJ Britt, the newcomers in this group, have been earning their keep since camp started. Because of the depth at the position, the team has finally moved on from 2022 3rd-round pick Channing Tindall. Safe to say, with only 16 total tackles across his career, a change in scenery might be best for Tindall’s NFL future.
For a lot of fans, the final spot in the Wide Receiver room came down to Tahj Washington, Theo Wease, and Erik Ezukanma.
Ezukanma was taken in the 4th round of the 2022 draft. But despite the physical traits he showed back at Texas Tech, he’s struggled to get on the field. A lot of that is due to injury, to be fair. But this WR room has too much depth to wait on Ezukanma to develop on the active roster. He’s only 25 years old, and he has multiple seasons of experience around this offensive scheme. So he is a potential Practice Squad candidate… along with Theo Wease.
Although Wease does bring something different to the WR room, Washington’s play this preseason likely made the decision a little easier. You might still be able to get Wease on the Practice Squad. Washington? It’s hard to believe a team wouldn’t scoop him up.
Tahj Washington in preseason week 1:
🔸 90.6 PFF grade
🔸 53 receiving yards
🔸 3 receptions
🔸 0 drops
🔸 2 NASTY ankle breakersHe should be the WR3 in Miami, without question. Should’ve been a day 2 pick last year! Dolphins got a steal. pic.twitter.com/reuHpOFKr5
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) August 13, 2025
Still Room To Improve
There is a lot to like about this Miami Dolphins team going into the regular season. However, there are still ways this team can improve before they take the field on week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts.
Over the next few days, it wouldn’t surprise me if the team looked at various players at Running Back, Tight End, Tackle, and Cornerback. Whether that be due to injuries in a certain position group (RB) or simply to improve the strength of a position group. GM Chris Grier and co are already trying out various kickers as well.
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What are your thoughts on the Miami Dolphins’ 53-man roster? What moves would you like to see the team make before the season starts? Let us know in the comments!