Omar Kelly: Steve Ross' worst fear -- apathy -- has engulfed Dolphins franchise

Omar Kelly, Miami Herald on Nov 5, 2025

Published in Football

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MIAMI — Bill Parcells was the smartest and most accomplished leader the Miami Dolphins organization has had since the franchise forced Don Shula into retirement so they could land Jimmy Johnson.

And he was a complete disaster.

Two of Parcells’ first moves upon taking over as Miami’s vice president of football operations was to run off Zach Thomas, and to trigger a lifelong beef with Jason Taylor, mistreating both Hall of Famers.

Then Parcells opted to select a left tackle (Jake Long) instead of drafting Matt Ryan with the first overall pick in the 2008 NFL draft. His master plan of selecting Joe Flacco with the 32nd pick was ruined by the Baltimore Ravens, and Miami was forced to settle on Michigan quarterback Chad Henne in the second round.

The next year Parcells doubled down on quarterback by drafting West Virginia legend Pat White in the second round because of his belief that an athletic quarterback was about to alter the course of how football was played with the Wildcat.

Problem is, White couldn’t survive the physicality of the NFL and wasn’t able to throw a spiral without gloves (which Parcells insisted he take off), and his NFL career was over after two seasons.

The point of sharing those nearly two-decade-old tales of failure and dysfunction was to give an example of how this mediocrity merry-go-round ride didn’t start with anyone associated with the franchise today. And it might not end with anyone hired tomorrow.

Being part of the NFL is a continued journey of humility, teaching and learning, and owner Steve Ross is getting one hell of a lesson this season.

Ross has failed this franchise again! And that can’t be denied.

The Dolphins’ owner made a poor decision running it back in 2024, keeping general manager Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniel when deep down he probably knew the 2025 season was going to end badly.

Delaying the inevitable has produced a 2-7 start to the season, but more troubling is that it has triggered the one thing Ross feared the most, with his fan apathy.

As the midseason point approaches, Dolphins fans have checked out on this season, if not the franchise. Season-ticket renewals are being declined at a staggering rate, I’m told. And now Ross and CEO Tom Garfinkel must find a way to stop the bleeding.

The mistake has been made.

The important question is, what has Ross learned from it?

The way the Dolphins have conducted themselves since firing Grier last Friday it appears he has embraced the process of new beginnings.

In the span of five days the Dolphins have gone from THE ONLY franchise that hasn’t released a single player who made the regular-season roster or practice squad (Cornell Armstrong was waived off injury reserve after agreeing to an injury settlement) to one that trades away its top young talented defender in Jaelan Phillips, shipping him to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2025 third-round pick.

This is what happens when the general manager who built the team (Chris Grier) gets fired, is replaced by an outsider (interim GM Champ Kelly), and the franchise intends on starting fresh.

Miami should have purged the roster even more, shipping off starters for draft picks, but apparently none of the bids enticed Ross and his minions, who are the individuals really calling the shots now.

A couple of players probably wish they were Phillips right now and landed in the arms of a Super Bowl contender.

Players say the right thing (or try to) when a microphone’s in front of their face, but in private many want to get as far away from this franchise as they can because the Dolphins’ culture is contaminated.

I recently had two former players explain why the entire franchise needs to be purged because “they’re focused on the wrong things,” as one player-turned-coach relayed.

Neither of these two former players were drafted by Grier the GM, or played for McDaniel.

But this franchise’s problems have been consistent, lingering since Shula’s late years, and at this point we can only blame the two constants, which are the South Florida environment, and Ross.

Ross better hit a home run on his next hires, adding executives and a head coach who injects hope into the veins of this fan base like Parcells once did, because at this rate Dolphins apathy will become the constant.

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