Dolphins Embracing Underdog Mentality Ahead of 2026 Season

Miami Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks said his team needs to embrace their underdog status.

The Dolphins overhauled their entire team in the 2026 offseason and are in the midst of a full-scale rebuild. Most predictors are overlooking the team, if not outright predicting them to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. The veteran linebacker said during his press conference on Tuesday that being overlooked is a great opportunity for both him and the team to rise to the occasion.

“I don’t think [there’s] one outlet on social media, anybody that’s got us picked to win anything. Not that it matters, but it’s just what it is. I don’t think any of our opponents respect us,” he said.

“So 100 percent, underdog mindset, and I think that’s always the best position to be in. We’re going to carry that mindset into the season and have that ‘us against the world’ mentality and do our best to win football games.”

The Dolphins are widely predicted to be one of the worst teams in the NFL this season. According to betting aggregator Vegas Insider, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, and BetRivers set the over/under on Miami’s win total at just 3.5; DraftKings is offering 13-to-1 odds that the Dolphins reach 8.5 wins. NFL Mock Draft Database’s consensus mock draft has them selecting Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith with the second overall pick in the 2027 Draft.

Many major sports news outlets are also predicting an ugly finish for the 2026 campaign. Sports commenter Game Preview Guy set the Dolphins’ ceiling at 7 wins and their floor at 1 in a video for the NFL Network; ESPN predicts the Dolphins will win just 2.5 games; in a bold predictions article, CBS Sports’s Douglas Clawson predicted the ‘Phins would go 0-17; Fox Sports’s Henry McKenna predicted them to go 1-16; and Bleacher Report has them going 4-13.

Miami is in the first season of a full-fledged rebuild. They fired head coach Mike McDaniel and general manager Chris Grier last season. In the offseason, they traded wide receiver Jaylen Waddle to the Denver Broncos; let veteran wideout Tyreek Hill go in free agency after he suffered a devastating knee injury in 2025; and absorbed the single largest dead cap hit in NFL history to let go of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

They replaced Tagovailoa with former Packers backup Malik Willis, but their receiving corps and secondary have no well-known names. And the Dolphins are extremely young and fresh: just 8 Week 1 starters have been with the team since 2024—wide receiver Malik Washington, left tackle Patrick Paul, center Aaron Brewer, right tackle Austin Jackson, running back De’Von Achane, edge rusher Chop Robinson, defensive tackle Zach Sieler, and Brooks. Achane was drafted in 2023, while Sieler was claimed off waivers from the Baltimore Ravens in 2019.

That youth movement puts the onus on Brooks and the other veterans to be leaders in the locker room.

“It’s a great responsibility. What are we, the youngest team now, whatever? A lot of young guys, a lot of inexperienced guys. And so as older vets on the team, that’s a responsibility that we have to be responsible for. And it’s going to be a gauntlet of a season,” he said.

“When you’ve got such young guys, it’s easy for young guys to kind of ride the wave, the highs and lows in the season. So our job is to be somewhere in the middle and help those guys in the best way that we can. We’re up for the challenge and excited for this upcoming season.”

Brooks also sees this challenge as an opportunity to evolve as a leader.

“You never stop evolving, you never stop growing. Each year presents a different challenge. One thing I’ve just learned is that you’ve got to have patience. You’ve got to have patience with the process, and I’m talking individually for myself, patience with the process of us as a team, as a defense,” he said.

“And learn how to stay steady. And like I was saying earlier, not ride the waves, but stay somewhere in the middle. Even when things are great and when things are bad, stay somewhere in the middle. So, that’s something that I’m constantly learning each and every day and trying to grow as a leader.”