It was serious enough to be the primary topic of coach Mike McDaniel’s final address to the 2024 Miami Dolphins .

They weren’t a disciplined team.

And if they want to go anywhere in 2025, they need to become one.

As players go through the offseason program with sights on next season, team MVP Zach Sieler said he’s seeing positive signs in that direction.

“We’re going to be on time,” said Sieler, a defensive lineman. “We’re going to be ready to work. And we’re going to set the tone. Just be ready to roll every day.”

Basic team necessities such as reporting on time for meetings were among the issues that came to light, with McDaniel sounding frustrated that fining players wasn’t enough to get the desired effect.

The challenges for next season are even greater now that two of the team’s best role models for younger players, offensive tackle Terron Armstead and defensive lineman Calais Campbell , are no longer around. Armstead retired. Campbell joined the Arizona Cardinals as a free agent.

“Two amazing role models on the field and off the field,” Sieler said. “But the foundation of groundwork that those guys put in last year, you still feel those waves this year.”

To say they leave a leadership void is an understatement, but it’s a task Sieler is embracing.

“We’re going to make sure of it from Day 1 in the D-line room and the defense in general, then obviously offense and the whole team, but the big thing is, hey, if we're going to be here, we're going to be here.”

Meaning?

“It’s not just kind of halfway going through things,” he said. “Trying to really kind of get the ultimate goal.”

While Sieler serves as one of the defensive leaders, center Aaron Brewer will be looked upon for leadership in offensive meetings.

“I’m loving how everybody is attacking the day, you know what I'm saying?” Brewer said. “We’re working. We’ve got a little couple of hours we’re here in the building, but even after that window closes, people are still around working. That's what you love to see, people putting in that extra time, that extra work. And so I feel like the identity from the defense and offense, both sides of the ball, we're after hours putting in overtime.”

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