Dolphins OLB Andrew Van Ginkel has to stay on the field

There is a saying you can never have enough good pass rushers.  The Miami Dolphins are proving that to be the case this season. 

However, it could actually be a little bit problematic for Miami. 

OLB Andrew Van Ginkel is playing at a very high level through the season's first five weeks.  He's been so good that it's completely fair and supportable by facts to say he's been Miami's best defender, or at least in the front seven.  

The 2019 5th round pick out of Wisconsin currently leads the Dolphins with 4 sacks on the season.  In the first four games, he's had a solid pressure rate of 12.8%.  And yesterday against the Giants, he was a menace again off the edge, with a sack and multiple pressures.  

The problem is Miami has invested heavily in its pass rush, with both draft capital and money.  Jaelan Phillips is Miami's 2021 first round draft pick and has played at a high level when he's been on the field this year, sporting a 13.8% pressure rate.  He's had 15.5 sacks in his first two seasons and appeared ready to take that next step to achieving a double-digit sack total in 2023.  However, multiple injuries have sidelined him for three games so far this year. 

Bradley Chubb was also basically a first-round pick, as Miami acquired him at the 2022 trade deadline for a 2023 first rounder.  They then proceeded to sign him to a whopping 5-year $119 million contract extension.  While he's been ok, he hasn't lived up to that level of contract so far this season, only generating 12 pressures in 131 pass rushing snaps through last week with one sack.  

The bottom line is that Van Ginkel has been the best pass rusher on the team.  Phillips could be back this week against the Panthers, but Mike McDaniel and Vic Fangio have a serious choice to make.  Does performance matter the most in determining who plays?  Because if it does, there is absolutely no way #43 doesn't get the lion's share of snaps at one of the spots off the edge.  He simply has to be rewarded for his stellar level of play. 

It's a great problem for the Dolphins to have, but it won't be an easy situation for their coaches to resolve.