Dolphins make big addition to defensive front with veteran Calais Campbell

The Miami Dolphins continued the post minicamp enhancements of the training camp roster this week by adding a second veteran who could become a Week 1 starter.

On the same day Miami officially signed safety Marcus Maye, who has started all 77 games he has played in his NFL career, the team came to terms with former University of Miami standout Calais Campbell, who ranks third when it comes to sack production for active players.

According to the NFL Network, the Dolphins are adding Campbell, signing him to a one-year deal for an undisclosed salary with the hopes that he could fortify a defensive line that was depleted by free agency this spring, and is void of leadership.

This will be Campbell’s 17th season in the NFL, but based on his play last season for the Atlanta Falcons he’s still wildly durable and effective.

He started all 17 games for the Falcons and contributed 56 tackles, 6.5 sacks with one forced fumble and one fumble recovered last season.

The Dolphins could use Campbell specifically as a 3-4 end, where he would be paired with Zach Sieler, who contributed 10 sacks last season.

Campbell is known for his ability to play all along the defensive line, and for applying pressure on quarterbacks by collapsing the pocket on them. His 105.5 career sacks ranks him behind Buffalo’s Von Miller (123.5 career sacks) and New Orleans’ Cameron Jordan (117.5), now that Aaron Donald has retired.

Before Campbell’s signing the Dolphins defensive line lacked notable, accomplished NFL starters because of Miami’s decision to sign five veterans — Benito Jones, Teair Tart, Neville Gallimore, Da’Shawn Hand and Jonathan Harris — to contracts that either paid them the NFL minimum, or close to it.

Miami did not draft a defensive lineman in 2024, but did select Chop Robinson in the first round and Mohamed Kamara in the fifth round. Both are edge players in Miami’s hybrid defense, which will use a 3-4 base. The Dolphins need an edge-setting specialist, and that’s Campbell.

Fortunately for Campbell, he has played in defenses similar to what Miami’s running most of his NFL career, and has actually played for new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver for one season during their time together with the Baltimore Ravens from 2020 to 2022.

Campbell is a six-time Pro Bowl selection who was selected to the NFL’s 2010s All-Decade Team, and was the winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award in 2019.

By adding Maye and Campbell a week after wrapping the team’s offseason program it’s clear that general manager Chris Grier and his staff are addressing areas of weakness in the team’s 90-player training camp roster.

The only position left to address is the interior of the offensive line, where Isaiah Wynn, Liam Eichenberg, Jack Driscoll, Robert Jones, Lester Cotton and Chasen Hines are the veterans competing for the two starting guard spots.

The Dolphins would benefit from adding another starting-caliber offensive lineman to the mix because Wynn is working his way back from a quadriceps injury that ended his 2023 season prematurely, and Eichenberg is viewed as the top backup center and might be forced to fill in as a starter there, much like he did last season if something happens to Aaron Brewer, the center Miami signed to replace Connor Williams.