Insider Reveals Dolphins’ 2 Biggest Priorities This Offseason as they finalized one of them
While the long-suffering Miami Dolphins made a lot of progress last season and have a very talented roster, they have a long way to go before they can call themselves legitimate Super Bowl contenders.
While they have an explosive offense, their defense needs work, and two of their main talents have been due for contract extensions.
On Thursday, wide receiver Jaylen Waddle agreed to a three-year, $84.75 million extension, and per FinsXtra, the Dolphins have achieved one of their offseason goals, allowing them to now focus on their other: giving quarterback Tua Tagovailoa an extension.
Tagovailoa is somewhat of a polarizing figure across the NFL, as a number of pundits have taken shots at him and claimed he isn’t capable of being a legitimate franchise quarterback.
Yet he led the league in passing yards in 2023 while throwing 29 touchdown passes and completing 69.3 percent of his pass attempts, which earned him his first Pro Bowl nod.
He has shown improvement each year since he was a rookie in 2020, and it resulted in Miami’s second straight playoff appearance, something they haven’t achieved since the 2001 campaign.
Tagovailoa’s exploits allowed them to rank second in the NFL in points and first in passing yards and total yards last season.
In addition to him being up for an extension, there have been reports that wideout Tyreek Hill, their top offensive weapon, now wants a new contract.
He is under contract through the 2026 season, but with a number of other star wideouts getting new deals in the $30 million a year range, perhaps Hill feels he is now underpaid.
Heading into a key 2024 campaign, the Miami Dolphins have added a potential sleeper in free agency according to Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder.
“After spending the majority of his career in Washington, [cornerback] Kendall Fuller decided to head south in the offseason to replace Xavien Howard as the Dolphins starting cornerback opposite Jalen Ramsey,” Holder wrote, naming Fuller Miami’s “best-kept secret” in 2024.
“It’s kind of surprising that the 29-year-old doesn’t have many accolades on his resume as he’s logged 16 career interceptions and 75 pass breakups during his career,” the analyst went on. “Fuller is also coming off a season in which he earned an 83.1 PFF grade and has the versatility to cover on the boundary or in the slot.”
New Dolphins CB Kendall Fuller Has Been More Well-Rounded Than Xavien Howard in Recent Years
When you dive into the numbers and analytics, Fuller should end up being an upgrade on Howard this year despite their respective price tags and status.
The truth is that Howard’s play has been regressing for a while, and Fuller has remained consistent over that span — even if he’s never been considered a star. Using Pro Football Focus, it’s easy to see why the Dolphins made this cornerback swap in 2024.
Howard was decent in coverage last season. In fact, he actually held opposing quarterbacks to a lower passer rating (86.7) than Fuller did (101.9), and his reception percentage and yardage allowed were either on par or slightly better than the newcomer in most areas.
Howard was a total liability in other ways, however, and that’s where fans will grow to appreciate Fuller.
For example, Howard was flagged for seven penalties in 2023, while Fuller was only charged with two. The former was also horrid as a tackler with a 14.3% missed tackle rate on the year and just eight key defensive “stops.”
Fuller recorded a low missed tackle rate of 5.1% with 28 key defensive stops.
Keep in mind that Fuller was also often guarding the opposition’s best, which he won’t have to do in Miami across from Ramsey. That should assist his coverage numbers a bit while maintaining his well-rounded performance as a run defender and tackler. Areas Howard has struggled for much of his career.
