MIAMI GARDENS — What you like about talking to Miami Dolphins coach Jeff Hafley, the 47-year-old former defensive coordinator and first-time NFL head coach, is that there’s a conviction and purpose for everything that he does and says. He stays on message and doesn’t deviate, and his enduring message is that there are no shortcuts to the task of getting the the Dolphins atop the NFL, that it’s all about the big picture and the daily grind, not the quick fix.
To that end, I asked Hafley on Wednesday what’s the most important thing he’s done since being hired in January and he answered without hesitation.
Visit sweetbonanza-app.com for more information.
“Setting our culture and developing a standard,” he said. “Those are the most important things.”
I like that answer because it’s real, and it’s a recurring theme with Hafley. That answer also encompasses the entire team, not just, say, the quarterback or some statistic or analytic.
Granted, I made a huge mistake while talking to Hafley. I used the term “rebuild” in the midst of asking a question about when the Dolphins expect to make the playoffs. I was swiftly corrected.
Hafley doesn’t use the term “rebuild.” And he’s not putting a date on a return to the playoffs, a place this franchise hasn’t been since 2023. More on that later.
The promising thing about Hafley, who has a good sense of humor but is also very direct and has little use for hyperbole, is he values what you want a head coach to value in this situation — the grassroots level stuff that helps build a solid foundation for the future.
These are qualities shared by another coach that I once covered — Pat Riley of the Miami Heat.
Related Articles
- Day 2 of Miami Dolphins mandatory minicamp | PHOTOS
- Chargers’ Justin Herbert adjusting to Mike McDaniel’s emphasis on quick throws
- Dolphins’ Jamaree Salyer leaves minicamp on cart; stock up, stock down
- Dolphins coach Hafley says Chop Robinson ‘needs to become a complete football player’
- Dolphins Deep Dive: Perkins, Furones talk minicamp and answer viewers’ questions Friday at noon
To be crystal clear, this isn’t meant to say that Hafley will have similar success to Riley, a Hall of Famer. It’s only pointing out similarities in how they view team-building and express their thoughts.
Hafley, such as Riley, believes in having a strong defense.
“You’re talking to a defensive guy,” he said. “I think defense wins championships in a league that is built on scoring a lot of points.”
I pointed out to Hafley that in the past three Super Bowls, each team has been in the league’s top 10 in total defense, and the league’s top four in scoring defense.
I also pointed out that I like how the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles have advanced to recent Super Bowls with understated quarterbacks Colin Kaepernick, Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy in the 49ers’ case, and Nick Foles and Jalen Hurts with the Eagles.
And perhaps only one of those quarterbacks — Hurts — might possibly be on a Hall of Fame path at this point. And that might be a longshot.
Hafley, a hardhat and lunch pail type of coach, said he doesn’t pay too much attention to such trends.
“I’m not going to go and say, ‘This quarterback vs. that quarterback,’ ” he said. “I still think that ultimately you’ve got to have a quarterback in this league, and I think you need to play great defense. I think you’ve got to keep points down. All the teams you mentioned were able to keep points down.”
This is my sixth rebuild as a sports writer, my fifth in the pros. I saw three with the Heat (2003, 2008, 2010), one with the Dolphins (2019-2025) and one with University of Miami football (1997-99).
Three of the rebuilds worked out well (the Heat won titles after the 2003 and 2010 rebuilds, and UM won a title in 2001) and two of them failed (Heat and Dolphins).
The successful rebuilds worked because of a combination of players, coach and system. The unsuccessful rebuilds, for the most part, failed because they lacked such harmony.
I didn’t get a chance to expound on that with Hafley, however.
“First of all, I’m not going to use the word ‘rebuild,’ ” Hafley began. “I’m not built on looking ahead that way. I’m built on doing everything we possibly can do today to maximize the ability of our players, get our team closer together and become a better football team. Then I’m going to do that again tomorrow, I’m going to do it the next day, I’m going to do it every single day in training camp and then when we look up we’ll see where we are, and then we’ll adjust.”
Relative to predicting when the Dolphins will make the playoffs, Hafley went on to say, “I can’t get into a month, two months, three years, four years. I don’t know how anyone can do that. You’re talking about a lot of variables that play into what we do, so I can control what I can control every day and we’ll see where we wind up.”
Hafley will tell you that this is a meticulous process that has many tentacles.
“It’s everything that you just said,” Hafley. “It’s culture. It’s belief. It’s the players. It’s the coaches. It’s all those things. And then it’s not trying to be somebody else or do it the way somebody else did. Do what fits your team to have success.”
Along those lines, I asked Hafley whether there’s anything that must happen for his team in the next two or three months. He didn’t deviate from his original thought.
“It’s finding answers,” he said. “Like I said, it’s going to be sticking to our process of giving our best every day, getting better, figuring out where to put these players within the scheme, and when the pads come on to see who does what best, and continued development of these players throughout the year.”
Yes, there’s clearly a new culture and a new standard in Dolphinsland. It’s a welcome change.
Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan talks with James Ester during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley jokes with Kenneth Grant during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins cornerback JuJu Brents works out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley talks with former coach Dave Wannstedt during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins tight end Greg Dulcich participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins guard Jalen Reagor works out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins quarterback Quinn Ewers participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Austin Jackson works out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley observes practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins Zeke Biggers works out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins wide receivers Jalen Reagor and Jalen Tolbert work out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins guard Jonah Savaiinaea works out during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins wide receiver Donaven McCulley goes up against cornerback JuJu Brents during practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tutu Atwell participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Austin Jackson participates in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins safety Zayne Anderson answers questions after practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tutu Atwell answers questions after practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins cornerback JuJu Brents answers questions after practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan observes practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins tight end Greg Dulcich answers questions after practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Dolphins coach Jeff Hafley answers questions before minicamp practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Zeek Biggers answers questions after practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel) Show Caption1 of 25Miami Dolphins quarterbacks Quinn Ewers, Mark Gronowski, and Malik Willis participate in practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)Expand