3 cut candidates on Dolphins’ roster ahead of NFL training camp
When a franchise turns the corner from low-level outcast to postseason contender, roster decisions often involve more known players. That’s where the high-hope Miami Dolphins stand as they look for cut candidates ahead of the 2024 NFL training camp.
One of the three players in the cut crosshairs is Jeff Wilson Jr. The 28-year-old running back is a 6-foot, 210-pounder who came to the Dolphins in 2022 after four years in San Francisco. Wilson got a career-high 176 carries that season, split between the two teams. But he was relegated to 41
attempts last year and could be on the way out.
Also in the chopping-block conversation are wide receivers Braxton Berrios and edge rusher Cameron Goode.
But the Dolphins restructured RB Jeff Wilson’s contract, right?
Money management in the NFL salary-cap world is a tricky business. When the Dolphins wiped out much of Wilson’s base salary and signed him to a new deal, they saved $3.67 million in cap space. Yay! Win, win for team and player. Right?
But let’s look at the running back room. Raheem Mostert is coming off a career year. Although it’s fair to point out his complicated and lengthy injury history and wonder whether he will hold up after playing in 31 of the team’s 34 games over the last two seasons.
And then there’s De’Von Achane. A rookie flash in 2024 — when health allowed — Achane looks like a star. He finished last year with 103 carries for 800 yards, a crazy-good average of 7.8 yards per carry.
According to nbcsports.com, the last time a running back averaged more yards per carry while running the ball 100 times came in 1934. Yes, here’s your Beattie Feathers mention for the day. He averaged 8.4 yards per carry in 119 attempts.
Two quarterbacks, Michael Vick and Randall Cunningham, topped 7.5 yards per carry in a season with at least 100 carries. But Achane and Feathers are the only two running backs to do it.
So any carries Wilson gets, if he makes the roster, are going to be in backup or injury duty. And the Dolphins didn’t stop there in deprioritizing Wilson. They grabbed speedboat Jaylen Wright off the banks of the Tennessee River. The former Volunteers’ standout slotted at pick No. 120 overall in the fourth round.
Others in the running back mix
If all of that isn’t enough, Wilson also has to contend with Salvon Ahmed and Chris Brooks. Ahmed profiles more like Achane and Wright, so he’s likely out of the 2024 plans as well.
Brooks is a second-year player, who beat out Myles Gaskin for a roster spot in 2023. But he can be a special-teams guy. Also, he’s the biggest back on the roster at 6-foot-1 and 223 pounds. That gives him another step ahead of Wilson.
