MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Ghosts of the Miami Dolphins’ past hovered Wednesday, as the team’s latest incarnation conducted its opening practice of training camp at the Baptist Health Training Complex.While there’s no doubt reason for excitement about this new era under first-year general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and first-year coach Jeff Hafley — the tandem of former Green Bay Packers who have been chosen to lead an unprecedented rebuild in Miami — they also recognize that to reach the fortunes of a better future, the Dolphins must become unshackled by the errors of their all-too-recent past.And that’s going to take time. And money.The Dolphins’ $179.2 million in dead salary cap is the most in NFL history, and they’re at a distinct financial disadvantage with their books clogged by players who currently ply their trade elsewhere, if anywhere at all. With roughly $120 million in cap space projected to their top-53 players, according to Over The Cap, the Dolphins are essentially rostering a team under the salary cap constraints of the 2011 season — a time when Tom Brady and Peyton Manning paced the quarterback market with contracts worth $18 million annually.The Dolphins' $179 million in dead cap space looms over training campJeff HoweThe Dolphins are realistic about their timeline, and they were willing to let the accounting department (and ownership) take one on the chin in the short term. Even so, there was a clear method behind the mayhem.Tua Tagovailoa became the first $50 million quarterback to lose his job for performance. Tagovailoa, who accounts for $55.4 million in dead money in 2026, was a necessary cut to symbolize a new era. From there, the Dolphins released wide receiver Tyreek Hill ($28.2 million in dead money), linebacker Bradley Chubb ($11 million) and traded wideout Jaylen Waddle ($23.2 million) for a first-round pick and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick ($13 million) in a cap dump.Since the 2025 trade of Jalen Ramsey ($20.8 million) and the retirement of tackle Terron Armstead ($10.7 million) are still on the books, seven of the Dolphins’ nine biggest cap hits currently belong to players who won’t play a snap for them this season.