On the first day of Dolphins OTAs in May, Jaylen Waddle made defenders look like extras in his highlight reel. The 1,000-yard machine burned third-year corner Cam Smith for a long touchdown from Tua Tagovailoa. It was a great day to be a wide receiver – and a not-so-subtle warning to Mike McDaniel about the shaky state of his cornerback room.

It wasn’t just one play. But it was a growing realization that the Dolphins’ cornerback unit had quietly gone from strength to soft spot. Gone was veteran Kendall Fuller. Three-time All-Pro Jalen Ramsey? Packed his stuff and left for Pittsburgh. The remaining ‘experience’ consisted of Kader Kohou and two guys – Kendall Sheffield and Artie Burns – who hadn’t been full-time starters since 2017. So, safe to say: There’s bad luck, and then there’s whatever Mike McDaniel’s dealing with at cornerback.

The Dolphins hadn’t even made it through Day 1 of training camp before veteran CB Artie Burns crumpled to the ground during position drills. Slamming his helmet in frustration, he later limped off on crutches. By Thursday, an MRI confirmed every coach’s nightmare: a torn ACL. Burns is done for the season. Mike McDaniel’s response? Adapt. Fast. The team placed Burns on IR and quickly shuffled the roster – signing CB Jack Jones while waiving rookie Ryan Cooper Jr. That comes just one day after they brought back Cornell Armstrong, a 2018 Dolphins draft pick who’s been floating between practice squads. Burns had signed a one-year deal, hoping to fight for a bigger role in Miami. Now, McDaniel has to fight just to keep bodies on the field.

Burns, who had spent the past three seasons with Seattle, was one of the few veteran names McDaniel could lean on in an inexperienced room. “If you have youth at a position that’s developing and you’re developing it and you have confidence in it,” McDaniel told reporters. “You’re going to have confidence in it before the people that haven’t seen it do.” Sure, coach. But confidence alone isn’t locking down AFC receivers. And with a patchwork secondary forming overnight, Mike McDaniel’s next test isn’t just Xs and Os – it’s keeping this unit from unraveling before preseason even starts.

Now, McDaniel is left staring down a CB depth chart full of question marks. Cam Smith, Isaiah Johnson, Jason Marshall Jr., Storm Duck, Ethan Bonner – promising prospects, yes, but with a combined seven years of NFL experience. One more training camp injury, and the Dolphins might be dressing waterboys. McDaniel’s love for mental toughness is being tested early. He wanted to see how these guys respond to getting beaten. Well, the season just beat him to the punch. But to plug the growing hole, the Fins made a move that could either stabilize the ship – or just toss another body into the fire.

After losing Artie Burns, Miami scrambles to patch up its secondary

Miami announced the signing of former Patriots and Raiders cornerback Jack Jones and waived cornerback Ryan Cooper Jr. It was a no-brainer depth move: Jones has 41 career games under his belt, seven picks, and four pick-sixes. Meanwhile, Cooper Jr. became the casualty. Despite a solid college career at Oregon State, his NFL résumé featured just one game played. Miami signed him in February after he bounced through Baltimore and Seattle.

Jones is talented but erratic. His 2024 campaign in Vegas saw him post three INTs, 16 pass breakups, and 69 tackles. The Raiders cut him in April after failing to find a trade partner. He missed curfew with the Patriots and the authorities arrested him in 2023 for trying to bring firearms onto a flight. That wasn’t his first off-field issue. In 2018, police arrested him again, and he served 45 days of house arrest. During his rookie year, the Patriots suspended him for breaking team rules on injury disclosures. He’s talented—no doubt—but he comes with red flags. The Patriots suspended him during his rookie year for violating team rules on injury disclosures. Basically, he’s talented – but comes with warnings.

McDaniel isn’t asking Jones to save the defense – just to stabilize it. That’s a big ask. With Rasul Douglas still not accepting Miami’s standing offer, the team went with who was available. Whether Jack Jones turns into a starter or just a camp placeholder, one thing is clear: Mike McDaniel’s cornerback room is being built in real-time, and there’s no guarantee it holds. So, how are you feeling about it, Dolfans?