When new Miami Dolphins tight end Pharaoh Brown was growing up in Cleveland, he and his friends enjoyed some physical football practice periods.

“All the drills that I was brought up in playing football are all banned now,” Brown recalled Monday. “Nutcracker, bull in the ring, like we was really playing ball. I remember being young and I’m in the middle of the ring and guys running at you and you got to come meet them. It’s kind of like a fight in the backyard.”

Fight. That’s exactly why Brown, 30, has been in the NFL for seven seasons.

It’s not because he’s averaged 10 catches a season. No. It’s because Brown fights. He is a physical, determined blocker.

The Dolphins must get tougher and more physical in 2025, on both sides of the ball.

On Monday, the Dolphins introduced seven free agent additions to the local media.

And it’s no coincidence that several of them – notably Brown, linebacker K.J. Britt and receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine – are well-known for their tackling and blocking.

They have physical approaches to the game.

Miami Dolphins free agents: Focus on toughness, fight

Britt, a 25-year-old middle linebacker, is a thumper. On Monday, he was asked how he would approach facing a 4th-and-1 at the Dolphins’ 1-yard line.

“As a linebacker in this league, you’ve got to have some killer instinct,” Britt said. “So fourth-and-1, they come out in heavy personnel, I know they’re going to run the ball, so it’s balls to the wall to make sure the defense gets the call and let’s play.”

Balls to the wall. That’s an approach Miami must take on offense and defense in 2025.

There was some side-stepping or back-tracking, but let’s not forget Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks said Miami was “soft” in a critical loss at Green Bay.

On offense, the Dolphins must run the ball more effectively next season. And it’s not just offensive line blocking that must improve.

Brown is an outstanding blocking tight end. And new receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine is an excellent blocking receiver.

Dolphins need better WR, TE blocking to improve run game

Westbrook-Ikhine can convert third downs and catch touchdowns and can be an occasional deep threat. But Westbrook-Ikhine – 6-foot-2, 211 pounds – also does not shy away from contact.

“It’s a gritty game,” said Westbrook-Ikhine, 28 years old. “I feel like with wide receiver blocking, you’ve just got to get dirty, you’ve got to find a way to make it work. It’s not going to look pretty half the time. You’ve got really athletic DBs, safeties, linebackers, d-ends sometimes and it’s just finding a way to get a piece of them at the right time so the back can get through. So yeah, it’s something I’m excited to do. I’ve always enjoyed blocking and as a receiver. I feel like it’s a lost art.”

The Dolphins roster is not fully formed.

Miami must add guards and defensive tackles and defensive ends… etc…. etc.

One thing that seems obvious is general manager Chris Grier and coach Mike McDaniel are intent on adding players who show up on tape as tough, aggressive and physical.

Pharaoh Brown, the 6-foot-5, 246-pound tight end, brings the needed mindset.

“You’re undrafted, ain’t nobody paying you to come catch no balls,” Brown said, adding, “Hitting them is just not good enough. You got to go run and meet that contact. So that’s kind of like how I was brought up.”