Offseason shows Dolphins embrace one year at a time. Why that’s good and bad
Free agency for the Miami Dolphins in 2021 will be remembered as the year the team decided not to make long-term commitments.
With the bulk of free agency practically over, we can look at the Dolphins’ talent haul and see there was a dominant philosophy to the exercise:
Don’t look beyond the 2021 season.
That’s because the Dolphins signed or re-signed 12 players (possibly 13 depending on the length of the Elandon Roberts contract) to one-year deals.
So 12 and possibly 13 of the 15 players Miami signed are committed to the team — and vice versa — for one season.
This includes receiver Will Fuller, the most accomplished free agent Miami acquired, as well as presumed backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett.
The only multiyear deals the Dolphins handed out during free agency went to tight end/fullback Cethan Carter (three years) and defensive lineman Adam Butler (two years).
The Dolphins spent approximately $32.3 million on one-year contracts the past two weeks.
Those dozen deals currently count for approximately $28.3 million in salary cap space because all of them are above the so-called top 51 cutoff — where only the top 51 contracts count against the cap in the offseason.
So what does this mean?
Well, the Dolphins have not explained the reason for this philosophy as opposed to, say, using that cap space on fewer but more accomplished players. Coach Brian Flores spoke to reporters a week before the start of free agency and general manager Chris Grier has not spoken to reporters since January.
One can guess the Dolphins felt a great need to fill in special teams and depth players and do it as cheaply as possible because they had salary cap space but weren’t brimming with salary cap space because the bottom fell out of the cap.
So the Dolphins spent $2 million or less on nine of those 12 players signed to one-year deals, with Fuller, Brissett and slot cornerback Justin Coleman being the three exceptions.
This one-year approach, by the way, offers the team a chance to reset next offseason with new depth and special teams players — some hopefully found cheaper late in the draft or as undrafted free agents, if Grier’s personnel department is good at it.
And that reset can occur in an offseason the NFL’s cap is expected to rise after falling $15.7 million this offseason.
The approach also says things about what the team will look like this coming season and the culture Flores and Grier have instituted — for both good and bad.
The Dolphins, you see, are currently scheduled to have at least 23 players enter the 2021 season on expiring contracts. That’s because aside from the 12 new free agents on one-year deals, the team already had 11 players not signed beyond this season.
That total number includes six players who have either started for Miami in the past or are expected to start, such as Fuller.
That list includes defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah, linebacker Jerome Baker, and tight end Mike Gesicki, who are in the final year of their deals.
So if the Dolphins did a great job in free agency to the point their additions make the team, then 43 percent of the 2021 roster would be playing on expiring contracts.
That’s a lot.
And that can be both a blessing or a curse.
It can be great because players often try to deliver their best performances in contract years. It happens all the time and it might happen for the Dolphins on multiple fronts.
But having so many players know the team isn’t invested in them long-term might also do damage because some might decide they similarly don’t need to be fully invested in the team long-term.
The atmosphere can turn sterile in the locker room because the mentality can become that of a business rather than a brotherhood.
That was, in part, what negatively affected the 1995 Dolphins when the club gathered 19 former first-round picks onto the roster — many with the understanding they were one-year additions. When things got tough late in the season, some players made business decisions that didn’t necessarily help the team.
One more thing: The Dolphins have clearly embraced the idea that the NFL is a Not For Long league.
Because that shows everywhere in Miami’s football operations.
This year the Dolphins cut linebacker Kyle Van Noy after he played one year of a four-year contract.
The team traded Shaq Lawson after he played one year of a three-year contract.
The team cut running back Jordan Howard three months into the regular season after he signed a two-year contract.
The team traded a fifth-round pick for running back Matt Breida in 2020 but isn’t expected to bring him back for 2021.
The team traded a second- and fifth-round pick for quarterback Josh Rosen but he only played one season.
Chan Gailey was offensive coordinator for one season and is gone.
Chad O’’Shea was offensive coordinator for one season and is gone.
Patrick Graham was defensive coordinator for one season and is gone.
Steve Marshall was offensive line coach for one season. Dave DeGuglielmo was offensive line coach for one season. Pat Flaherty was offensive line coach for four days during training camp in 2019.
Terry Schuplinski was quarterbacks coach for one season. Robby Brown was quarterbacks coach for one season. Jim Caldwell was quarterbacks coach for a few months before taking ill. He didn’t return once he got well.
I suppose you can say the Dolphins move on quickly when they feel they’ve made a mistake or can upgrade. I suppose you can also say it would be better not to make the mistakes or constantly be requiring upgrade.
Whatever you think, it’s clear these Dolphins have been built for one year.
