MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- As a disappointing 2024 season closed, Miami Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith was one of the veterans in the locker room who called for a change -- not from coaching or management but from the players themselves.
Unspecified players were routinely late for team meetings, and leaders in the locker room believed players needed to reinstate a culture of accountability to truly put last season's 8-9 record behind them.
"I would definitely say, definitely a lot more housecleaning rules we can clean up on," Smith said in January. "Is that going to equate to wins? It's hard to say. You definitely need structure any time you're striving to do something great. There's a lot of things we need to clean up as a team. I'm speaking individually for myself that I can improve on and get better.
"I think we all know the foundation that was set. We've got a good foundation. We've just got to continue to carry that out and let the leaders in this locker room continue to stand on that and continue to relay that message throughout the 2025 season coming up."
That doesn't sound like a player planning to play elsewhere in 2025, but that remains a possibility if Smith and the Dolphins are unable to reach an agreement on a new contract. The ninth-year veteran has been absent from the team's voluntary OTA practices due to a desire for a new contract, and sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter that Miami has discussed trading Smith with the Pittsburgh Steelers over the past week.
Smith signed a two-year, $8.4 million contract with the Dolphins last offseason but outplayed his price point in his first year with the team. He set franchise records for a tight end last season with 88 receptions for 884 yards and eight touchdowns -- which were also all career highs. The $4.09 million owed to him in 2025 ranks 30th among tight ends in total cash owed, but Smith ranked fourth in receiving yards by a tight end last season.
Smith reportedly prefers to remain in Miami. Coach Mike McDaniel said Smith has been "around" despite not practicing, but he urged other players not to spend too much time worrying about Smith's situation.
"Jonnu is a very important player and person to me and to the guys. One thing that we can stand on is his professionalism and how he goes about his business," McDaniel said. "There's times that business can play a part, for sure, and a team can make it as complicated as they would like. If they have a lot of time to focus on what's going on with Jonnu, I would encourage them to focus on their own game. Fortunately, I haven't had to have those conversations. Guys have been very focused on what they can do today to get better for the Miami Dolphins organization."
If the Dolphins end up trading Smith, they'll be left without a true receiving tight end. Smith played 54.8% of the team's offensive snaps last season and accounted for roughly a quarter of the team's receiving yards; Dolphins tight ends recorded 1,053 receiving yards last season, with Smith accounting for 84% of that production.
Behind him are Julian Hill and free agent signee Pharaoh Brown, both of whom are known more as blockers than receivers. Tanner Conner has flashed receiving potential as a converted wide receiver but that has yet to translate into the regular season, while Hayden Rucci flashed at training camp last season but is still unproven.
While Smith objectively outplayed the first year of his contract, Miami has just over $14 million in cap space remaining after a frugal offseason, which is enough to give Smith a raise but not enough to vault him into the upper echelon of tight end salaries. Smith turns 30 in August but has set career highs in consecutive seasons; 44% of his 3,307 career receiving yards have accrued over the past two seasons.
Even as the team looks to trade another star player in Jalen Ramsey, players say the culture they're attempting to rebuild has not taken a hit.
"I would say [the vibe is] optimistic," offensive lineman Austin Jackson said. "Optimistic because we didn't get the outcome we wanted as a team last year. No playoffs, I think we had a losing record for most of the year, finished with a losing record -- so the feeling is optimistic and hardworking. Everyone just wants to get better.
"The business stuff is the business stuff. We can't do much with that. We don't know how that's going to play out, but for the guys that are there right now, we're very optimistic that whoever is on the field is doing the right thing so we can win."