A Dolphin making case for a big contract. And Zach Thomas a Hall of Fame finalist
For months this past offseason, the Dolphins and Emmanuel Ogbah discussed an extension for the looming unrestricted free agent.
But nothing materialized, and the Dolphins likely will need to pay a sizable amount to re-sign him this upcoming spring.
Ogbah has been excellent value on the two-year, $15 million deal that’s set to expire.
He’s 15th in the league with nine sacks, matching his total of a year ago.
He’s ninth among NFL edge players with 61 quarterback pressures, and his 122 total pressures since 2020 rank sixth among edge defenders.
And as Pro Football Focus noted Tuesday, four of the five players ahead of him are earning at least $17 million per year.
Ogbah leads the league in batted-down passes with nine.
PFF ranks him 17th among 105 edge defenders and 36th against the run.
PFF predicts he will command a three-year, $42 million contract with $30 million guaranteed.
“His pass-rush grade has improved in four straight seasons, and his [18] sacks since 2020 [nearly] match his total output over the first four years of his career with games left to play in 2021,” PFF said. “The Dolphins are set to have a league-high $75 million in cap space, so they’ll be able to afford Ogbah. In his case, he likely made a good decision gambling on himself.”
Ogbah said recently that he asked agent Drew Rosenhaus not to update him on negotiations once the season started. As a result of that request, Ogbah said he does not want to know the Dolphins’ best offer so far.
“I told him before the season, I dont want to be distracted,” Ogbah said, reiterating that his “goal is to stay here the rest of my career.”
Ogbah has moved inside on passing downs more than in previous stops: “Taking on double teams and rushing the passer improved my game tremendously.”
THOMAS A FINALIST
For the third consecutive year, former Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas was named one of 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Thursday.
Thomas was named to the NFL’s 2000 All-Decade team, made the Pro Bowl seven times and was a first-team All-Pro on five occasions. Thomas — whose 1,734 career tackles are fifth in NFL history — played 12 seasons for the Dolphins and his final season for the Cowboys.
“I want to thank the Hall of Fame selectors for choosing me as one of the 15 finalists and for considering me for enshrinement once again. I’ve always said getting this far in the process is an honor and I feel no different this year. I am humbled to be listed alongside these 14 other great players.”
Three former University of Miami Hurricanes are also among the finalists for the 2022 class: punt and kickoff returner/receiver Devin Hester and receivers Andre Johnson and Reggie Wayne.
The other modern-day finalists: linebackers DeMarcus Ware, Sam Mills and Patrick Willis; safety LeRoy Butler; receiver Torry Holt; defensive back Ronde Barber; offensive tackles Tony Boselli and Willie Anderson; and defensive linemen Richard Seymour, Jared Allen and Bryant Young.
The selection committee may vote to induct as many as five modern-era players for the Class of 2022; each must receive a minimum of 80 percent of the votes to be inducted.
THIS AND THAT
▪ The Dolphins placed no players on the COVID-19 list on Thursday, but six Dolphins on the 53-man roster remain on the list: safety Brandon Jones, receivers Albert Wilson and Preston Williams, defensive linemen Adam Butler and John Jenkins and guard Solomon Kindley. All are eligible to come off the COVID list in time for Sunday’s game at Tennessee if they aren’t showing any symptoms.
▪ Xavien Howard on facing former teammate Ryan Tannehill on Sunday: “We’ve got to put pressure on him. Dealing with him -- knowing some of the weak things for him -- that’s one of them that we’ve got to do... He’s improved over the years. I’m expecting to see him do a lot of great things when we play him.”
Dolphins defenders love when they see opposing offenses confused by the Dolphins’ disguises.
“You can see stress in their face; you can see them in arguments in the huddle,” Nik Needham said. Ogbah said: “We love seeing the QB get frustrated when we give them different looks. It brings joy to us.”
The Dolphins’ 45 sacks lead the league. Tannehill has been sacked 45 times, second-most in the league.
▪ ESPN’s Brian Griese made an odd comment during the Monday Night Football telecast, suggesting that the Dolphins said they would just as soon punt on second or third and long.
“This Miami offense is not explosive enough to come back from holding penalties like that,” Griese said. “We talked with George Godsey about that. [He] said when we get in these positions, it’s almost like we can punt on second or third down. We just can’t get back after first and 20, second and 20.”
Did Godsey really say that?
“I think for some downs, third down and very long, that’s a tough situation and it’s really not fair to a unit, the quarterback, the line, to put that much stress on those type of players,” Godsey said.
“I don’t remember that exactly being the comment, but I’m sure that’s really what we were alluding to that sometimes some of those situations are so unfair to that – now we put ourselves in that situation, let’s not forget that. But when you get yourself in third and extra long in this league, those percentages of converting are very low....
“We don’t want to make a living there in those situations at all. I think Brian knows that as a former quarterback too. That’s kind of how that conversation went.”
Though the Dolphins rank just 24th in yards per game (311) and 21st in points per game (20.3), Godsey has had some good moments as a play-caller in recent weeks, including running some gimmick plays against Baltimore and maximizing Jaylen Waddle’s skill set by using him in different ways. Godsey also has used pre-snap motion effectively.
“George has done a very good job as well as [co-offensive coordinator Eric Studesville], implementing different things in our offense and being creative,” tight end Mike Gesicki said.
Receiver Isaiah Ford said Godsey has been “giving defenses a bunch of different things to look at. Being able to come up with different ways to run similar plays and concepts and simplifying them has been the biggest thing.”
▪ Linebacker Jerome Baker was named AFC Defensive Player of the Month on Thursday. In three games in December, Baker produced 16 tackles — including six for loss — as well as six quarterback hits and 3.5 sacks.
This story was originally published December 30, 2021 at 5:21 PM.
