The Miami Dolphins have two weeks to formally balance their books and must slash payroll.
The Dolphins must comply with the NFL wage cap by March 13 in order to even start the free agent shopping process, re-signing the team’s own free agents and placing bids on new players to bolster the roster for 2024.
And in order to do that, the team’s decision-makers need to sort through the convoluted mess that the team’s win-now mindset caused.
It will help that last week’s release of cornerback Xavien Howard and pass rusher Emmanuel Ogbah resulted in $32.2 in cap savings. However, the cap space that Howard’s departure produces won’t be accessible to the team until June 1 because he has been designated as a June 1 cut.
This implies that General Manager Chris Grier will have a very busy schedule in the coming days together with his contract negotiators and cap specialists.
The Dolphins have 12 options to generate cap space in the upcoming weeks.
Potential Options for Extension
Extend Tyreek Hill’s contract as a receiver If the Dolphins decide to extend Hill’s contract by two years at his current salary of $24–26 million a season, they will be able to free up approximately $14 million in cap space this offseason. It is in everyone’s best interests to extend Hill’s deal if the Dolphins are certain he can play well and be productive for a further three seasons. Hill’s guaranteed money expires after this season, and his $45 million salary in 2026 is something he will never see.
Extend Jalen Ramsey’s contract as a cornerback Ramsey changed the terms of his contract when he signed with the Dolphins, turning it into a three-year, $55 million agreement. Of that total, $25.5 million will be given to him this season in the form of a guaranteed roster bonus of $11 million and basic salary of $14.5 million. Adding more years to Ramsey’s contract and substituting the voidable seasons of 2026 and 2027 with legal contract conditions that keep paying the seven-time Pro Bowler like a top-five cornerback is the best approach to lessen his $27.2 million cap charge in 2024. Depending on the specifics of the new agreement, his 2024 cap number might be lowered by about $14 million if $24 million of his 2024 salary were converted to a signing bonus.
Extend Tua Tagovailoa’s contract as the quarterback In order to keep Tagovailoa from playing on the fifth-year option, the Dolphins are actively discussing a long-term contract that will pay the Pro Bowl quarterback $23.2 million. It may take some time to finalize the terms because, assuming it is comparable to the agreements his colleagues have earned over the last two seasons, this will probably be the largest contract in team history. The extra $8 million in cap savings that a four- or five-year agreement with Tagovailoa should produce in the first year, though, is what drives the Dolphins.
Extend David Long Jr., a linebacker Long was one of the defense’s more reliable players in 2023. He led the Dolphins in tackles the previous season. But he played every game and maintained his health for the first time in that season. In the last year of the two-year, $10 million contract he signed as a free agency this offseason, Long will make $4.5 million. To significantly lower his $6.7 million cap cost, Miami may extend the contract for a further year or two. The 28-year-old would probably have injury protection under that kind of contract, which is usually advantageous from the player’s perspective.
Extension of Raheem Mostert’s contract: The Pro Bowl tailback from Miami will make $2.7 million in 2024, the last year of a two-year, $5.5 million contract he signed in the offseason. No matter how inventive the Dolphins get, they could extend the 32-year-old’s contract by one or two seasons, but in actuality, it wouldn’t significantly lower his $3.3 million cap hit. And just think of the potential consequences if Mostert asks for a sizable increase given that he recently had a career-year?
Release or extend quarterback Mike White: White, who covered for Tagovailoa for the entirety of the previous season and averaged a 118.1 passer rating in 53 offensive snaps, is scheduled to make $3.5 million in 2024; if he is released, that entire contract will become cap space. White, a native of South Florida, may play one more season with the Dolphins, which would reduce his $5.2 million cap hit in half, or nearly so, and convert the majority of his base pay into a bonus.
Contracts That Adapt to Change
Reorganize Bradley Chubb, a pass rusher. – The cap amount for a pass rusher in the seasons of 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027 is little under $27 million. The Dolphins would effectively be guaranteeing more than just this year’s $19.7 million contract if they restructured him for the second straight summer, which is a hazardous move for a player recovering from an ACL tear sustained in December. It would be problematic if he converted the majority of his $19.7 million basic pay into a roster bonus, increasing his additional cap charge to an additional $4.5 million per season. The Dolphins have the option to release him and move on before the 2026 and 2027 seasons begin, under the terms of his current deal.
reorganize defensive tackle Zach Sieler: In order to ensure that the former waiver wire would find $20 million of his contract, Sieler inked a three-year, $30.7 million contract before the previous season started. His career-high 63 tackles, 10 sacks, two forced fumbles, and one interception make his $8 million annual salary appear like a great deal. Miami could reduce his $10.6 million cap number in half by using $7 million of his base pay as a roster bonus. But Sieler and his team may prefer that the Dolphins sweeten his current contract by increasing his income and giving him a year of professional recognition in 2023.
Drop or let go Linebacker Jerome Baker: Baker has been a starter for six years and is fourth in the franchise’s career tackle total (587). He will make $11.1 million in basic pay and bonuses in 2024; however, his release would free up $9.8 million in cap space. With just two voidable years remaining on his contract, the Dolphins may be able to restructure it so that his pay and cap figure are reduced to around $5 million annually. Before recommending a wage reduction, the Dolphins are probably letting Baker’s agent determine how much the former Ohio State star could fetch on the open market.
Potential Players to Announce
Restructure Terron Armstead’s contract or release him as a June 1 cut, offensive tackle The Dolphins are eager to hear from Armstead regarding his future, but it seems doubtful that he will forego his $14.2 million pay in 2024 because $5 million of it is guaranteed, and that guarantee expires on March 15. To free up $9.5 million in cap space, the Dolphins may cut Armstead as the team’s second June 1 pick, but that decision would need to be made by March 15. The Dolphins might also talk to Armstead about renegotiating his contract in order to prevent the 33-year-old—who has struggled with multiple injuries over the last two seasons—from having to move again. Remember that Armstead’s departure would leave a huge hole in the roster.
Release tailback Jeff Wilson: If Wilson is released from the second year of the two-year, $5.8 million contract he signed as a free agency last offseason, he will save $2.9 million in cap space. Wilson played the most of last season as Miami’s third or fourth tailback.
Release cornerback Keion Crossen: A $3 million cap reduction would result from the release of this career special teams contributor who was sidelined for the entirety of the previous campaign due to a knee ailment.
