Greg Dulcich Emerges as Early Target in Miami, But Questions About QB Linger
Greg Dulcich is building early rapport with new Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis during organized team activities, according to Miami Herald reporter Omar Kelly, but the broader picture from Dolphins practice is more complicated than any one connection.
Kelly, one of the primary reporters covering Miami’s OTAs, noted that Dulcich has looked like the primary target for Willis in the early stages of team drills and that slot receiver Malik Washington has also developed a working chemistry with the new signal-caller. Both observations carry a significant caveat: organized team activities are non-contact sessions conducted in shorts and helmets, with no pads, no pass rush, and nowhere near a full defensive scheme installed. In a new offense under first-year head coach Jeff Hafley and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, very little about any depth chart can be taken as settled.
What is clear is that the target competition in Miami is genuinely wide open. The Dolphins’ offseason was among the most aggressive roster overhauls in the league. Tyreek Hill was released after suffering a torn ACL. Jaylen Waddle was traded to the Denver Broncos. The receiving corps is being rebuilt largely from scratch around a quarterback, Malik Willis, who has started just six games in four NFL seasons. Willis signed a three-year, $67.5 million deal in March after spending two seasons as Jordan Love’s backup in Green Bay, where he impressed when pressed into action.
The early reviews on Willis have been uneven. Kelly himself wrote following the Dolphins’ second open OTA that he could not describe Willis’s performance as good quarterback play. Fellow beat reporter Alain Poupart was similarly blunt, noting that accuracy on anything beyond a short throw was “very spotty.” A strong arm and dual-threat mobility have never been in doubt with Willis. Converting those tools into a consistent, accurate distribution in a new system is the project.
For Dulcich, the environment is the most favorable of his career. He signed a one-year, $3.25 million deal to return to Miami in March after catching 26 passes for 335 yards and one touchdown in 10 games last season, the most productive stretch of his injury-riddled career. Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan singled him out at the NFL owners’ meetings as a player he expects to take a meaningful step forward. No returning pass-catcher on Miami’s current roster outside of running back De’Von Achane has ever topped 49 receptions in a single season, leaving the target distribution entirely up for grabs.
Dulcich entered the league as the 80th overall pick in the 2022 draft. A breakout has been on the horizon for most of his career. The situation in Miami finally gives him the conditions to make it happen, provided Willis can find him consistently when it counts.