Jonnu Smith Could Make the Dolphins Offense An Unstoppable Force
Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Last season Mike McDaniel was at the helm of an offensive unit that ranked second in the league in offensive DVOA, trailing only the San Francisco 49ers. Naturally, when you already have an elite offense it’s very difficult to find room for improvement. This begs the question: how could the Miami Dolphins possibly get better on offense if they’re already among the crème de la crème?
The answer? You identify the weakest link, then strengthen it with Gorilla Glue. Durham Smythe was the weakest link among the Dolphins’ offensive skill players. Now, Smythe has proven himself as a reliable blocking tight end, but he isn’t exactly what you would consider a receiving threat. One may think that the Dolphins would’ve been content to run it back with the same core whilst preaching continuity
That’s not what happened. Instead, Chris Grier went out and signed Jonnu Smith to a two-year, $8.4 million contract.
Call it a hot take, but Jonnu Smith could very well make the Dolphins offense an (even more) unstoppable force this year. Now look: we are talking about a journeyman tight end who has never eclipsed 600 receiving yards in a season. If you purely go by PFF grades, they’ll tell you that Jonnu Smith had a mediocre year, finishing the season with an overall grade of 59.1. None of that looks overly inspiring at first glance.
Yet, Smith has still found ways to be productive, regardless of how bad his supporting cast has been. The Tennessee Titans drafted Smith in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and he sat behind veteran Delanie Walker for a year before taking over as the starting tight end. In a run-first offense helmed by Ryan Tannehill, accrued 1,145 yards in his three years with the Titans.
Fast-forward to 2023, where Jonnu had a career year in Atlanta with 50 receptions for 582 yards and three touchdowns. He accomplished this feat with Desmond Ridder as his starting quarterback, mind you.
Another thing worth mentioning is that Smith is an above-average athlete. At the NFL Combine, he showed off exceptional speed, agility, and explosiveness. Smith scored in the 95th percentile in the broad jump, the 93rd percentile in the vertical jump, the 87th percentile in the 20-yard shuttle, the 82nd percentile in the 40-yard dash… you get it. Additionally, over the last three years, Smith ranks first amongst all tight ends in YAC per reception in the NFL.
As great as Miami’s offense was last year, there were times when they were vulnerable. Teams with good defenses like the Titans, Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, and Kansas City Chiefs were all able to slow down the Dolphins’ offense. This made Miami very beatable late in the 2023 season and into the postseason. During that late-season stretch, Tyreek Hill failed to register more than 100 yards in games against any of those opponents. Thus, the blueprint was out: If you have a good enough defense to slow down Hill, then you have a chance to win.
Smith is a very capable tight end, which is something the Dolphins haven’t had in years. Smythe is a fine blocking tight end but shouldn’t be the main guy, and Mike Gesicki was far too inconsistent to be relied on heavily. Smith gives the Dolphins a player who has established himself as one of the better receiving threats at his position.
Although Smith is not an elite player by any means, he is simply too talented for defenses to ignore, and his presence will help take some pressure off of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. Great defensive teams will no longer be able to effectively slow down the Dolphins’ offense simply by reducing Hill’s impact on the game.
With Smith and Odell Beckham, Jr. now in Miami, it’s more of a pick-your-poison scenario. Do defenses sell out to stop Hill and risk Smith or OBJ going off? Or do they try to force one of the league’s best wide receivers to win a one-on-one matchup, where he’s bound to win 9 times out of 10?
Needless to say, the addition of an above-average receiving threat at tight end in Smith could very well be the difference between the Dolphins having an elite offense versus a borderline unstoppable one.
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