Chris Perkins: Dolphins' Zach Sieler is in a precarious position in the rebuild

Chris Perkins, South Florida Sun Sentinel on Apr 8, 2026

Published in Football

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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Zach Sieler has become the forgotten man of this rebuild. He’s practically an in-between guy in the sense that at 30 years old, he’s too old to be a foundational piece of the rebuild overseen by general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley. But Sieler is still good enough and young enough to have genuine value to the 2026 Dolphins.

After that, who knows?

We’re reminded of Sieler’s one-foot-in, one-foot-out spot in the rebuild as Dolphins players reported for work on Tuesday, the first day of the offseason program.

Almost all of the 30-somethings from previous seasons — wide receiver Tyreek Hill, cornerback Jalen Ramsey, defensive tackle Calais Campbell, left tackle Terron Armstead, tight end Darren Waller, guard Daniel Brunskill, the list goes on — are gone for one reason or another. The Dolphins want to get much younger.

My hope is that Sieler, a class act, a team captain for the past three years, and the longest-tenured player on the roster, sticks around for a few more years. After all, Sieler fits pretty well with Sullivan and Hafley saying they want to build the trenches.

But Sieler, who produced just 5 1/2 sacks last season after back-to-back 10-sack seasons, might not fit in with a multi-year rebuild.

Reality, in the form of age and favoritism, says Sieler, the 2024 team MVP, is a bit of an outsider.

Sieler, who will be 31 years old on Sept. 7, was a hero of the last regime, a diamond-in-the-rough that Miami discovered, polished and paid.

However, the new regime didn’t select Sieler. He’s not one of “their” guys. They didn’t draft him and they didn’t sign him a contract extension.

Hafley said that doesn’t matter.

“I just want the best players,” he said Tuesday. “I don’t care whose guy it is. We’ve all made mistakes in evaluating players. It is what it is. Whoever we have, our job as coaches is to develop whoever is here to be the best players that they can be. I (couldn’t) care less who drafted them, where they were drafted, when they were drafted, when they were signed.”

The good thing is that Sieler got his well-deserved payday last year when he signed a three-year, $67 million contract extension with $44 million guaranteed.

The reality is that Sieler, who counts a manageable $11.4 million against the salary cap this season, has no guaranteed money after this year so the Dolphins could cut him in 2027 and suffer no financial issues.

Even better for the rebuild, the Dolphins could trade Sieler at the trade deadline and get a Day 3 draft pick for him.

It’s a rough spot for Sieler, and an understandable spot for the franchise.

It seems a longshot that he’s back with the Dolphins in 2027, when he’s scheduled to count $20.7 million against the salary cap. And when you’re in the midst of a rebuild you don’t want to renegotiate the contract of a 30-something to make it more financially palatable by adding years.

That’s the shame of a pro sports rebuild.

Good guys such as Sieler, a self-made 2018 seventh-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens who found a home in Miami, get the squeeze.

We’ll see what ultimately happens with Sieler, the Dolphins’ only defensive tackle with skins on the wall.

And make no mistake, the Dolphins could use a pass-rushing defensive tackle. Their pass rush right now is almost non-existent among edge rushers such as Chop Robinson, Josh Uche, David Ojabo and Derrick McLendon. Beyond that, there’s no pass rush from the inside except for Sieler.

If Sieler’s performance falls off in 2026, there’s almost certainly no spot available for him on the 2027 Dolphins.

The argument for keeping Sieler beyond this season is that he’s a quality player who is also a quality locker room guy. If he regains the form that allowed him to record those 10-sack seasons, the Dolphins can’t do without him.

Hafley, who has been a straight shooter, spoke highly of Sieler on Tuesday.

“I’ve enjoyed getting to know him,” Hafley said. “He’s got a cool way about him that I’m excited to get to know more.”

I believe Hafley. But I believe in the nature of NFL rebuilds even more. And the cruel reality is that Sieler is on the wrong side of 30 and the Dolphins are undergoing a rebuild, which means Sieler needs to have a darn good season to extend his Miami career.

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