The Miami Dolphins added these potential starters at running back and linebacker
Continuing a spending spree in the first 28 hours of free agency, the Dolphins added a potential starting running back and a fourth front-seven defender Tuesday, agreeing to terms with running back Jordan Howard and linebacker Kamu Grieger-Hill.
Howard, who agreed to a two-year, $10 million contract, gives the Dolphins a veteran who has rushed for 3,895 yards, on 4.3 per carry, in his first four NFL seasons.
Drafted in the fifth round in 2016 out of Indiana, he spent the first three years of his career with Chicago, rushing for 1,333, 1,122 and 935 yards. He made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, when he averaged 5.2 yards per carry.
Last March, the Bears traded him to Philadelphia for a sixth-round pick. He ran the ball 119 times in his one season with the Eagles, averaging 4.4 per carry. He also caught 10 passes for 69 yards.
Howard (6-0, 224 pounds) rushed for 30 touchdowns and caught two touchdowns in his four seasons. He has five career fumbles and has lost three.
Howard, 25, was a starter for the Bears but started only four of the nine games he played for the Eagles last season.
He missed all but one snap in the final eight games last season — and Philadelphia’s playoff game — with a shoulder injury. He was actually cleared to play in the final two games, including the playoff games, but didn’t get a carry.
With Miami, he likely will be the lead back or 1A.
Miami also has interest in several of the top running backs in this draft, particularly Ohio State’s J.K. Dobbins and Georgia’s D’Andre Swift, according to a source. Running back remains an option for Miami with the 26th pick in the draft.
Kalen Ballage, Patrick Laird and Myles Gaskin will also compete for a roster spot.
The Dolphins never seriously pursued free agent Melvin Gordon.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins added another contender to start in 25-year-old Grieger-Hill, who started 10 games for the Eagles in 2018 and six games last season.
A special teams standout, Grieger-Hill had 23 tackles for the Eagles last season and 98 in his four-year NFL career, all with Philadelphia. He has one career interception (against Eli Manning) and one career sack.
The Patriots selected Grieger-Hill (6 2, 230 pounds) in the sixth round of the 2016 draft out of Eastern Illinois but released him before the start of the season. Philadelphia claimed his off waivers three days later, and he spent four seasons there.
He missed the final two games last season with a lower lumbar disk herniation.
Grieger-Hill, who ran a 4.47 in the 40 yard dash coming out of college, joins Kyle Van Noy, Shaq Lawson and Emmanuel Ogbah as Dolphins’ front-seven additions in free agency.
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 3:20 PM.
