Omar Kelly: Delusional Dolphins learned to cheer themselves on

Omar Kelly, Miami Herald on Dec 9, 2025

Published in Football

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MIAMI — Only in this uniquely weird season would something intended to call out, and motivate a slacking player serve as a catalyst that helped jumpstart the Miami Dolphins’ four-game winning streak, transforming this once disastrous season into something worthy of respect.

By now you’ve probably seen the Dolphins’ defense surround one specific player to chant their full name over and over, clapping hands in unison each time the player’s government name — no nicknames allowed — is said.

This new defensive celebration actually began as a call out for those who lacked energy, or couldn’t focus in team meetings.

“We’d call the name out of the person coming in juiceless,” linebacker and team captain Jordyn Brooks said. “It’s kind of to wake them up. It started from that and [morphed into] whoever makes a great play.”

Over the past month the Dolphins’ social media team, and the television crews that cover South Florida’s NFL franchise would show the celebration of individual success.

In Sunday’s 34-10 win over the Jets we watched Zach Sieler’s name get chanted multiple times for the 2 1/2 sack performance he put together.

Tyrel Dodson, Rasul Douglas and Ethan Bonner each got their name clapped up for the interceptions they brought down against the Jets.

Make an impactful play, get clapped up by your teammates.

“It took on a life of its own in meetings, and we were like, ‘Let’s do it in the games,’” Brooks said.

The player celebrations on gameday began in Miami’s 34-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Since that point, coincidence or not, the Dolphins defense has become stingy against the run, produced double-digit turnovers in six games, and limited the past six opponents to 15.1 points per game while Miami won five of the past six games.

“That’s energy has been real,” Brooks said. “I want to keep it going. Every time somebody makes a play we do it.”

After games, they do it when game balls are handed out after wins, and the celebration has become infectious. Dolphins players believe it’s helped turn this nightmarish start of the season into something the Dolphins can hold their head up about.

But the job - and celebrations - aren’t done yet.

The Dolphins still own a losing record (6-7) heading into Monday night’s nationally televised game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, which sit in pole position for the AFC North division title, and are seemingly fighting for Mike Tomlin’s future as the franchise’s head coach.

If the Dolphins win on Monday night, on the road, in the cold, against a tradition-rich franchise that plays a physical brand of football, this season could potentially evolve into something that isn’t the “status quo” owner Steve Ross warned wouldn’t do in 2025 when he threatened that this Dolphins season needs to look different than those of the past two decades.

Coincidentally, or not, when the Dolphins were losing, opening the season 1-6, in possession of the worst defense in the NFL, this team still believed.

I vividly remember pass rusher Bradley Chubb beginning a statement a month ago about Miami’s potential playoff run with “call me delusional,” and as those words came out his mouth I chuckled because I thought he was delusional.

Jim Mora’s “PLAYOFFS! PLAYOFFS!” soundbite played in my head. Like most of Miami’s fanbase, I didn’t believe. Probably still don’t if I’m being honest.

But this defense’s belief never wavers, publicly or privately, especially with the leaders, who openly call themselves the “Delusional Dolphins.”

Nobody’s laughing now.

“I’d be crazy to say no,” Brooks said, when asked if Miami, which coming into this week owning the same record as the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs, are a playoff caliber team. “We have the guys. We got what we need. We got the momentum, and the belief. If you can believe, anything can happen. I don’t care who you are.

“That’s the biggest thing we’ve got going for the Miami Dolphins, the belief in the locker room,” Brooks continued. “As long as we believe we can accomplish anything we want to for the rest of the year.”

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