What Miami Dolphins’ Pass Rush Will Look Like in 2023 With Emmanuel Ogbah’s Return

Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Vic Fangio envisions a four-headed edge-rushing monster in 2023, and that vision inched closer to reality with the return of Emmanuel Ogbah from injury.

Ogbah — the 29-year-old defensive end — told reporters this week that his recovery from a triceps injury that cost him the last eight games of the 2022 season (including the playoffs) is “going good.” Ogbah added, “They’re taking it easy on me during camp, but I’ve been fully cleared, and I am ready to go.”

That means Fangio should have all four heads of the monster — Ogbah, Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and Malik Reed — available when training camp begins in July. How he plans to use them when the regular season begins in September remains to be seen, but Fangio’s (relatively) recent history provides some clues.

How Vic Fangio Plans To Use Emmanuel Ogbah, Miami Dolphins’ Pass Rushers

Fangio is reunited with Chubb and Reed, who played for the respected defensive mind in Denver.

Fangio also had Von Miller on his team for much of his time as Broncos head coach. But the world barely got a chance to see how Chubb and Miller would play together in Fangio’s scheme.

They both had injuries that cost them significant time.

But the short time in which they were both healthy provided a window into Fangio’s mindset.

In brief, he was not too concerned with load management.

Early 2019 was the last real time we saw Chubb and Miller playing together at full strength. And that was only for a month.

During that four-game stretch, both logged at least 87% of their team’s snaps in each contest, with Chubb hitting 100% in one game and 98% in another.

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Will he follow that blueprint in Miami (with Chubb and Phillips, presumably)?

“There’s a few things that I came up with that I’m anxious to try,” Fangio said earlier this offseason when asked how he used his one-year sabbatical. “We’ll try them in OTAs at some point and then in training camp as a good fit for the other things we do. But what’s going to be most important is tailoring what we do to our players and to the opponent that we’re playing for that week.

“So there may be things that we did at previous stops that we won’t do much here because it doesn’t fit our players and vice versa; we might do something a lot that we didn’t do other places because it’s a better fit for our players. And sometimes it’s a better – you might think it’d be great to do something because it fits a certain player really good, but you really have to think about how it fits all 11 and what’s the best way to stop somebody from scoring too many points.”

An Overview of the Miami Dolphins’ Pass Rush

The Dolphins’ pass rush in 2023 can’t truly be great unless Chubb and Phillips are great.

“They have great potential,” Fangio said. “But potential — we got to see it. Talking about it is easy, projecting it as easy, but we got to see it. And I’m confident knowing those two guys’ work ethic that they’ll do everything they can to put a good product out there on the field from the both of them. They both have the tools. They both have the makeup to be really good players on the edges for us.”

So expect a healthy dose of both.

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But considering that Chubb and Miller both broke down physically at points of their time playing for Fangio, perhaps he’ll ramp back on the usage.

He also has more depth on his defensive front now than he did in Denver.

Ogbah could be a potent weapon if he regains his form from 2021 when he had nine sacks and 39 pressures in 17 games.

Plus, Fangio surely was instrumental in the team’s decision to sign Reed, who had five sacks and 22 pressures in 14 games as a member of Fangio’s Broncos in 2021.

And we haven’t even yet discussed Christian Wilkins, who emerged as one of the most disruptive defensive tackles in football last season.

The good news for the Dolphins? Their players have position flexibility. Ogbah volunteered this week that he expects to play all over the defensive line this year — inside, outside, standing up, and with his hand in the dirt.

“We’re all obviously a talented bunch,” Ogbah said. “I’m excited. I’m sure Vic is going to draw up some packages that will have us in there. I’m excited about this new defense that we’ve got going. Unfortunately, I know I got hurt last year, so we didn’t get to see all of what we can do on the field together. But it’s a new season, and I’m excited about it.”