Dolphins sign Jason Pierre-Paul, place Jaelan Phillips on injured reserve
In the aftermath of outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips’ season-ending Achilles injury, the Dolphins are bringing in reinforcements.
Miami on Tuesday announced the signing of veteran pass rusher Jason Pierre-Paul to the team’s 53-man roster. Pierre-Paul spent the last two weeks on the New Orleans Saints practice squad.
To free a roster spot for the addition of Pierre-Paul, the Dolphins also placed Phillips on injured reserve.
Pierre-Paul, a Deerfield Beach native and Deerfield Beach High School alum who spent his final college season at South Florida, wrote, “I’m coming home,” in an Instagram post on Monday evening.
Pierre-Paul, who turns 35 on Jan. 1, appeared in one game for New Orleans, recording two tackles in a 24-15 loss to the Atlanta Falcons last Sunday.
Last season, as a member of the Baltimore Ravens, Pierre-Paul recorded three sacks, 26 tackles and one interception in 14 games (13 starts).
Over 14 seasons, Pierre-Paul has recorded 94.5 sacks. He’s won Super Bowls with the New York Giants (2011) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2020).
A three-time Pro Bowler, twice with the Giants (2011, 2012) and once with the Buccaneers (2020), Pierre-Paul provides depth for an ascending Dolphins’ defense after Phillips tore his Achilles against the New York Jets on Black Friday. The No. 15 overall pick in the 2010 Draft, Pierre-Paul was an All-Pro selection in the 2011 season.
Pierre-Paul notably had all or parts of three fingers on his right hand amputated after a fireworks accident in South Florida on July 4, 2015. While there was concern about his career, he returned to the field, playing with a padded club on his right hand. Pierre-Paul had one sack in eight games played during the 2015 season that followed the accident.
But he then recorded 15.5 sacks over the next two seasons, playing with a custom-made four-fingered glove on his surgically repaired right hand. The Giants traded Pierre-Paul to the Buccaneers ahead of the 2018 season.
After overcoming early-season injuries, Phillips was in the midst of the best stretch of his young career. He recorded a sack in five straight games, including one on Black Friday, and his 6.5 sacks are tied with defensive lineman Christian Wilkins for the most on the team. The Dolphins’ 38 ranks are third-most in the NFL.
“Obviously that whole situation sucks for Jaelan,” Wilkins said Monday, “because he was just playing some really good ball and just seeing his growth from Year 1 to now, it’s just great to see because that’s my little brother and whatnot and I’ve got a lot of love for Jaelan and the things he does.
“He’s an inspirational player in the sense that he just plays so hard and relentless, so you see him doing that and that you’re like, all right, I’ve got to up my standard and it’s contagious throughout the defense so that’s obviously tough for us there. But we’ve got guys who will be able to do a really solid job. But yeah, it’s just obviously a tough situation for him.”
Andrew Van Ginkel and Emmanuel Ogbah are expected to see an increase in snaps but Miami was looking for additional help at edge defender. According to ESPN, the Dolphins put in a waiver claim for former Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher Derek Barnett. He was claimed on Monday by the Houston Texans, who had a higher priority number.
This story was originally published November 27, 2023 at 8:02 PM.
