Examining the roster ties between Patriots, Dolphins ahead of Week 2

There’s more Foxborough familiarity in Miami than just head coach Brian Flores, offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea, defensive coordinator Patrick Graham and defensive pass-game coordinator Josh Boyer.

More than assistant coaches in Dave DeGuglielmo, George Godsey, Jerry Schuplinski and Tiquan Underwood, too.

Miami’s 0-1 roster also includes a long list of members from the 1-0 New England Patriots’ past.

Here’s a glance through the ties on both sides of the AFC East heading into Sunday’s 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium.

MIAMI

Trent Harris, defensive end – Harris, who led the Miami Hurricanes in sacks as a senior, signed with New England as an undrafted free agent in the spring of 2018. Harris would go on to post a team-high 2.5 sacks during his rookie preseason and spent the duration of that regular season on the practice squad. Harris was claimed off waivers by the Dolphins on Labor Day weekend. He was questionable, and inactive, for the September opener.

Christian Sam, linebacker – Sam, who signed to the Miami practice squad after clearing waivers via New England at the 53-man cutdown, spent 2018 on injured reserve. Sam did so after collecting 12 tackles to go with an interception last August. The Patriots had drafted the former Arizona State linebacker in the sixth round an April ago at No. 178 overall. Weak-side coverage and a role on special teams were in the designs for Sam.

Jomal Wiltz, cornerback – Wiltz spent all of the 2017 and 2018 campaigns on the Patriots’ practice squad. The 5-foot-10, 180-pound Iowa State product, who initially landed with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent, then became Flores’ first ex-Patriots signing in February on a futures deal. Wiltz has since earned a place on the Dolphins’ 53-man roster as his third year in the league rolls on. The corner logged one tackle in his official debut.

Eric Rowe, cornerback – New England had acquired Rowe from the Eagles in September 2016 for a conditional fourth-round draft pick. Rowe went on to appear in 21 games across three regular seasons with the Patriots, starting a dozen while tallying 51 tackles, 11 passes defensed and one interception. The Dolphins signed the 26-year-old via Utah to a one-year, $3.5 million deal as a free agent in March. Rowe started last Sunday, and posted 11 tackles.

Johnson Bademosi, cornerback – In September 2017, the Patriots acquired Bademosi from the Detroit Lions in exchange for a future sixth-rounder. In September 2019, the Dolphins acquired the core special-teamer from the Houston Texans in the deal for ascending left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Along the way was a campaign with New England that featured 16 games, three starts, 29 tackles and a pass breakup.

Ken Webster, cornerback – The final selection in the Patriots’ 2019 draft class, Webster entered at No. 252 overall out of Ole Miss. The corner, whose athletic testing compared to Western Carolina’s Keion Crossen the year prior, notched 10 tackles and one deflection over New England’s final three August exhibitions. The Dolphins claimed Webster off the waiver wire as the calendar flipped to September. Webster was made an inactive last weekend.

NEW ENGLAND

Brandon Bolden, running back – Released by the Patriots during the roster cutdown of 2018, the versatile back and member of the kicking game would go elsewhere. Bolden, now 29, netted 91 rushing yards, 13 receiving yards and three touchdowns with Miami before returning to New England as a free agent this league year. Two of those trips to the end zone transpired against the Patriots last December.