JP #94

Jordan Phillips

Defensive Tackle · Maryland

A former high school wrestler turned Maryland defensive tackle, Jordan Phillips leaned on leverage and length to become a fifth-round steal for Miami.

Jordan Phillips is a defensive tackle who started his college career at Tennessee before finding his footing at Maryland, where two years as a full-time starter turned him into a legitimate NFL prospect. The Miami Dolphins took him in the fifth round of the 2025 draft, and he wasted little time proving that pick right, playing his way into the starting lineup as a rookie.

★ Fifth-round pick (No. 143 overall) of the Miami Dolphins in the 2025 NFL Draft

★ Started 16 of 17 games as a rookie defensive tackle in 2025

★ Two-year starter at Maryland after transferring from Tennessee

Path to the league

Phillips began his college career at Tennessee in 2022 but appeared in just three games before entering the transfer portal. He landed at Maryland, where he started 11 of 13 games in 2023 and all 12 games in 2024, building a reputation as a stout, hard-to-move interior presence. He also played in the 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl before the Dolphins drafted him in the fifth round with the 143rd overall pick.

Career highlights

At Maryland, Phillips combined 57 tackles across his two seasons as a starter, including a tackle and a half for loss in 2023. His college tape emphasized leverage and hand technique, traits scouts pointed to from his background as a wrestler, and it helped him carve out a role early in a crowded Dolphins defensive line room.

2025 season recap

Phillips made the Dolphins' 53-man roster as a rookie and turned heads in the preseason, including a goal-line stand against the Chicago Bears where he shed multiple blockers to make a stop just short of the end zone. He went on to appear in all 17 games with 16 starts, finishing with 34 combined tackles and one tackle for loss in his first NFL season.