The way first-year Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph sees it, there shouldn’t be a difference between his strong and free safety.

“We want those guys to be twins,” Joseph said during Miami’s rookie minicamp. “We don’t want a strong safety who is a bigger body in the box. We want two guys who can play halves, two guys who can cover and two guys who can tackle.

“If you have that, you play them left and right. If you don’t, you play them strong and free.”

Reshad Jones, who is sitting out voluntary practices as he tries to get a new contract, has started at strong safety for years.

Isa Abdul-Quddus, who signed with Miami in the offseason, started at strong safety for Detroit the second half of last season. He’s expected to move to free safety.

If shouldn’t matter in Joseph’s defense.

“Hopefully, eventually, we can work to just being left and right safeties,” Joseph said.

Joseph, who was previously Cincinnati’s defensive backs coach, likes Miami’s depth at safety. He believes he has athletic players who can make plays on the ball.

Assuming Abdul-Quddus starts, Michael Thomas and Walt Aikens — who are both key special teams players — are the top two reserves.

Thomas and Aikens alternated as starters last year after Louis Delmas tore his ACL in training camp.

“Walt Aikens, he has corner movement,” Joseph said. “He’s going to be a guy who’s going to grow into a pretty good free safety or strong safety. Obviously, Reshad is a great player. Mike Thomas is very, very efficient — a very solid, smart player. Isa, he can really run — he’s a low 4.4 guy. We’ve got four guys who are very capable.”

Joseph said Jones’ absence hasn’t yet hurt the team.

Jones is set to earn $7.2 million this year and $7.1 million next year, making him around the NFL’s ninth-highest paid safety. But the money is not guaranteed.

Last year he had the best statistical season of any safety in the NFL. The league’s top safeties make closer to $10 million a year.

“Right now it is voluntary,” Joseph said of Jones’ absence. “It has not really affected us a lot. Because for him, he has played a bunch of ball. It’s really terminology more than it is a difference in scheme. He’ll be fine. He’ll be back in time to have his assignments in writing. He’ll be ready to go.”