Live updates: Dolphins Day 3 free agency. Nine players sign, two exit
Welcome to the Miami Herald’s live blog for Day 3 of Dolphins free agency.
Please keep checking back for updates:
New cornerback added
6:30 p.m. update: The Dolphins added their fourth defensive back in four hours, agreeing to a deal with Patriots cornerback Alex Austin, according to a source.
Drafted in the seventh round out of Oregon State in 2023, the 6-1 Austin was cut by the Bills at the end of training camp that August and quickly signed with Houston, where he appeared in three games and spent time on the practice squad before being cut Nov. 1.
But he found his footing in New England, where he signed on Nov. 2, 2023 and developed into a helpful player. He appeared in 26 games for the Patriots and started six, including two last season. He has one career interception.
The other defensive backs added by the Dolphins on Wednesday: Veteran free agent cornerback Darrell Baker and veteran safeties Zayne Anderson and Lonnie Johnson.
New tight end added
6:25 p.m. update: The Dolphins signed veteran tight end Ben Sims, who will essentially replace Patriots-bound Julian Hill. A skilled in-line blocker, Sims has caught 11 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown in 45 games over five seasons for the Packers and Vikings.
He joined Minnesota as an undrafted free agent out of Baylor in 2023 but was cut that August and claimed by the Packers. He started one game that season for Green Bay and another five in 2024.
Sims appeared in three games for the Packers last season but was waived in October and signed by the Vikings, where he played eight games and started two while catching three passes for 30 yards. Sims, who’s 6-5 and 250 pounds, grew up in San Antonio.
Julian Hill joins Patriots
5:50 p.m. update: Tight end Julian Hill agreed to a contract with the Patriots on Friday after negotiations with the Dolphins ended earlier in the day.
The Dolphins decided not to tender Hill at the required $3.5 million and asked him to take less money. Hill considered it but ultimately said no.
Undrafted out of Campbell in 2023, Hill caught 33 passes for 288 yards in three seasons as Miami, while establishing himself as a very solid in-line blocker. He played 1298 offensive snaps and 496 special teams snaps in his three years with the Dolphins.
Miami now needs to find an in-line blocking tight end to complement Greg Dulcich, who was re-signed at $3.2 million.
Core special teams player added
5:30 p.m. update: Zayne Anderson, who was a backup safety and core special teams player for Green Bay the past three seasons, agreed to terms with the Dolphins, agent David Canter said.
Anderson appeared in 47 games, with two starts, over five seasons -- his first two in Kansas City and last three with the Packers, where new Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan was employed. He spent the summer of 2023 with the Bills but was claimed off waivers by the Packers after Buffalo released him.
In his career, he has played 700 special teams snaps and 145 defensive snaps. All his defensive snaps have come with the Packers, including 123 in 2024, when he started two games and produced his one career interception.
Undrafted out of BYU, Anderson missed the last three games of the 2025 season with an ankle injury.
Cornerbacks signed
4:35 p.m. update:
Miami added a veteran cornerback, albeit one coming off a bad year, when they added Darrell Baker late Wednesday.
The 6-1 Baker, who played two years in Indianapolis and the past two in Tennessee, started 10 games for the Titans and permitted a bloated 135.4 passer rating and five TDs. He started six games for Indianapolis over his first two seasons and 19 for the Titans over the past two. In 2024, he allowed a 117.9 passer rating and four touchdowns for the Titans.
The 6-1 Baker -- who was born in Panama -- went undrafted out of Georgia Southern in 2022.
The Dolphins also re-signed cornerback AJ Green III, who played just eight defensive snaps in three appearance for Miami after being plucked from the Rams practice squad last Nov. 19.
Undrafted out of Oklahoma State in 2020, the 6-2 Green played his first four seasons in Cleveland and had two interceptions.
Chubb officially released with designation
4:20 p.m.: The Dolphins officially announced that Bradley Chubb is being released with a post June 1 designation, as expected. Teams can release no more than two players with post-June 1 designations, and Miami is using them on Tua Tagovailoa and Chubb.
Both can sign elsewhere immediately; Tagovailoa is expected to join the Falcons. Chubb agreed to a three-year, $43.5 million deal with the Buffalo Bills. The contract has $29 million guaranteed and could be worth up to $52.5 million, per ESPN.
Chubb’s 2026 Dolphins cap hit will drop from $31.2 million to $10.9 million on June 2.
Tagovailoa’s likely 2026 Dolphins cap hit will rise from $56 million to $67 million on June 2, though overthecap.com reports there’s a way to keep his 2026 cap hit at $56 million if the Dolphins pursue that option, which would call for a sizable dead money hit in 2027.
Julian Hill not tendered, Butler retained
4 p.m. update: According to a source, the Dolphins did not make a $3.5 million tender to restricted free agent tight end Julian Hill by today’s 4 p.m. deadline, making him an unrestricted free agent.
The Dolphins showed interest in bringing back Hill at a lower number, but it’s unclear if he will accept that. Miami is still free to negotiate with him.
Greg Dulcich is the team’s only veteran tight end under contract.
The Dolphins had one other restricted free agent, defensive tackle Matthew Butler. He agreed to a contract with the team Wednesday afternoon. So Miami has retained five defensive tackles: Zach Sieler, Butler, Kenneth Grant, Zeek Biggers and Jordan Phillips.
Dolphins add veteran safety
3 p.m. update: Lonnie Johnson Jr., a 2019 second-round pick of the Texans, agreed to a one-year deal with the Dolphins on Wednesday, giving Miami its only safety with multiple years of NFL experience.
Johnson, 30, joins second-year player Dante Trader Jr. as the only veteran safeties under contract. Ashtyn Davis, Elijah Campbell and Ifeatu Melifonwu are free agents; Minkah Fitzpatrick was traded to the Jets.
Last August 2, in his only year with the Raiders, Johnson sustained a fractured fibula after colliding with teammate Maxx Crosby during a practice. He returned from injured reserve in early November and appeared in nine games with two starts.
Johnson, a strong special teams player, had three interceptions for Houston in 2021 but just one in his six other seasons. Miami will be his seventh team.
Drafted 54th overall in 2019 out of Kentucky, Johnson has 224 tackles and no sacks in 92 career games, including 22 starts.
He started 17 games over his first three seasons for Houston. But since then, he has made only five starts while playing for different teams each of the past four years (Tennessee, New Orleans, Carolina, Las Vegas).
Johnson -- a Gary, Indiana native who’s listed at 6-2 and 240 pounds -- didn’t make it to the end of his four-year rookie contract with the Texans; in May 2022, he was traded to Kansas City for a conditional seventh-round pick. But the Chiefs released him during training camp without him ever playing a snap. He has bounced around the league since, changing teams every year.
If he had enough snaps to qualify, he would have rated 88th among 91 safeties last season, per Pro Football Focus’ grading system.
One signing now official
The Dolphins announced tight end Greg Dulcich’s new deal. That could be announced before the start of the new league year at 4 p.m. Wednesday because he’s an incumbent Dolphins free agent.
It’s a one-year deal for $3.25 million.
Dolphins add Uche
1 p.m. update: The Dolphins augmented their depleted outside linebacker room by agreeing to a one-year deal with veteran Josh Uche, a former Miami Columbus High standout and second-round pick of the Patriots in 2020. Agent Drew Rosenhaus confirmed the deal.
Uche, who had 7.5 sacks in his final season at Michigan, had 20.5 sacks and 76 tackles in 4 1/2 seasons for the Patriots, including 58 games and four starts. Of those sacks, 11.5 came in 2022.
In October 2024, the Patriots traded him to the Chiefs for a 2024 sixth-rounder, and he had 10 tackles in six games for Kansas City.
Uche, who’s 6-1 and 240 pounds, signed a one-year deal with the Eagles last March 23. He had 23 tackles, 23 quarterback pressures and a sack in 12 games (all off the bench) and 244 defensive snaps for Philadelphia.
His 23 pressures were more than any player who had as few pass rush chances (143); he led the league in pass rush win rate in Week 1.
Uche, 27, joins Chop Robinson and Cam Goode as veterans in the Dolphins’ outside linebacker room.
Willie Gay to stay
The Dolphins agreed to terms with Willie Gay on a one-year deal, keeping the team’s No. 3 inside linebacker in the fold.
Gay was a standout during last year’s training camp but played only 131 defensive snaps. He had 20 tackles and two sacks in 17 games and two starts. If he impresses the new defensive staff, he could take on a larger role.
Gay started 47 games with the Chiefs over the first four seasons of his career, then started eight games in one season in New Orleans before joining the Dolphins last offseason.
The team’s other veteran backup inside linebacker, KJ Britt, moved to another AFC East team earlier in the day. (See below.)
Offense takes shape
12:05 p.m. update: While the Dolphins defense remains something of a blank canvas, the offense is starting to take shape.
Maik Willis will be the starting quarterback and Quinn Ewers the backup.
The running back room looks set with De’Von Achane, Jaylen Wright and Ollie Gordon II. A fullback must be added to replace Chargers-bound Alec Ingold; the Dolphins have said they see a role for a fullback in this offense, which will have many similarities with Mike McDaniel’s former Dolphins offense.
Miami is set at tackle (Patrick Paul and Austin Jackson) and center (Aaron Brewer).
Greg Dulcich gives the Dolphins a serviceable starting tight end, with a decision pending in the next few hours on Julian Hill, who must be tendered at a pricey $3.5 million (or agree to a new deal before) for Miami to retain his rights.
Still unresolved: Two guard spots among Jonah Savaiianaea, Andrew Meyer and whoever is added in free agency and the draft process. One option: draft UM tackle/guard Francis Mauigoa if he’s available at 11, play him at guard this year, and potentially move him to right tackle in 2027 if Jackson moves on.
And three receivers are needed to fill out a room with Jaylen Waddle, Malik Washington and potentially Theo Wease.
Gonzalez deal disclosed
12 pm update: The Dolphins gave kicker Zane Gonzalez a one-year, $1.49 million deal with a $100,000 signing bonus, as NFL writer Aaron Wilson noted. He replaces Giants-bound Jason Sanders and Riley Patterson, who remains a free agent after Miami bypassed re-signing him.
Britt moves on
11: 55 a.m. update: Former Dolphins linebacker KJ Britt agreed to a one-year deal with the Patriots. Britt and Willie Gay Jr. were Miami’s backup inside linebackers last season. Gay remains unsigned.
Jordyn Brooks and Tyrel Dodson remain the starters; both are under contract for 2026.
Jackson agrees to new deal
8 am update: Right tackle Austin Jackson agreed to a pay cut as part of a new contract on Wednesday, meaning he will remain part of the team’s offensive line for at least one more season. The move allowed the Dolphins to become cap compliant before teams were required to do so by 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Jackson agreed to a one-year, $7 million deal -- a cut from the $11.5 million he was scheduled to earn -- in a move that created $8.5 million in cap space for the team. The contract includes a $5.26 million signing bonus.
Jackson reduced his 2026 salary by $4.5 million and in return had $5.475 million guaranteed, including a $4.26 million signing bonus. Another $1.5 million of the new contract is tied to per game bonuses. Before the restructure, none of his 2026 money was guaranteed.
Jackson is now under contract through 2026, as he had been before the restructure. The Dolphins became cap compliant by creating four void years in his contract, meaning years that the team will take a cap hit but he won’t be under contract.
The cap hit for the 2027 void year is $12.9 million, per overthecap.com.
Miami preferred to keep Jackson with a new deal than cut him, and that path also came with a cap benefit, provided he took a pay cut.
Jackson, whose salary this season was non-guaranteed before the restructure, was set to have a $15.8 million cap hit in 2026. Instead, it will be $6.8 million under terms of the new deal.
If the Dolphins had decided to part ways, his cap hit would have been $13.8 million if the Dolphins released or traded him before June 1, but just $4.3 million after June 1 (with a $9.5 million hit in 2027).
But Miami wanted to keep Jackson and preferred having the cap space now.
The Dolphins are now positioned to use their two permitted post-June 1 cut designations on Tua Tagovailoa and likely, Bradley Chubb.
On June 2, Chubb’s cap hit on Miami’s 2026 books would thus drop from $31.2 million to $10.9 million, offsetting some of the Tagovailoa post-June 1 cap hit and giving Miami space to sign June/July free agents and a draft class.
This story was originally published March 11, 2026 at 8:21 AM.
