What to do with the extra cap space?
Stephen Ross and the Dolphins have not been shy about opening up their wallet this off-season, and paying to bring in top talent. Phins fans always seem to complain when a team is spending a lot of money, and then worrying that the team will have salary cap problems in the future. However, Ross is the second richest owner in the NFL behind Seattle’s Paul Allen (net worth $17.5 billion), and he is also ranked as the 216th richest man in the world, with a net worth of $6.5 billion, so please there is no reason to worry about if Ross can afford multimillion-dollar player contracts.
Some Phins fans may not like Ross, but there is no arguing with the fact that he has no qualms about spending his hard-earned money in the hopes of bringing a championship to Miami.
With all the money that Miami has laid out this off-season, they surprisingly have $10.3 million in cap space still available. That is a nice chunk of money that can be put to good use. It is not something where if you do not use the cap space this season then you get to use it for next year, it is either you use it or you lose it. Some owners would rather keep the savings, but those owners usually have bad teams. Just look at the top 5 teams that have the most cap space, and it is clear that one of the reasons they are some of the worst teams in the league is because they have owners that either can’t or won’t open their wallets. (1 Jaguars $36.5 million in cap space, 2 Titans $24.8m, 3 Browns $22m, 4 Raiders $21.2m, 5 Buccaneers $20.2m)
Clearly, my first suggestion would be to use a large part of our available cap space to sign former All-Pro Guard Evan Mathis. He played briefly for the Dolphins is 2008, and our Offensive Coordinator Bill Lazor was his former Offensive Coordinator in Philadelphia, so he does have some ties to Miami. Mathis was released from Philly because of contract issues, and was not happy with his current salary of $5.5 million, so most football gambling fans would say a team would have to be willing to pay at least $5.5 million for this season. Miami can afford him, and since this team is in a win-now mode then they should make one last splurge and sign Mathis. The pay per head bookie service sites like AcePerHead.com.
If Miami does not use the free cap space on Mathis then my next move would be to work out a long-term deal with Olivier Vernon. Vernon is a Miami native, who played at the University of Miami and was drafted by the Miami Dolphins. Besides the fact that it is nice to keep homegrown talent at home, he is also young, productive, and plays a position that is a cornerstone to any Defense in the NFL. Talented pass rushers are not growing on trees, and they are not cheap, so it would be wise to re-sign the one we already have.
The third option would be to use the money on a long term contract for Lamar Miller, but running backs are a dime a dozen, and can be found easier than Defensive Ends. In addition, I would wait to see what Ajayi can do, before we think about re-signing Miller.
The fourth option would be to stay on the alert for other players at positions of need, such as Guard. And the fifth option would be to do nothing and not use the $10.3 million in available cap space. Regardless of what we do, I hope we use it in some way, because when we have an owner that is not afraid to spend his money and is allowed to spend more, then we should put our available resources to good use. What does the rest of the Miami Dolphins fans think we should do with our remaining cap space?
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I am all in for getting Vernon signed for years to come. As mentioned, he is a Miami native, he even attended the Dolphins summer camps as a youngster, our D end opposite him is great but getting up there in NFL age, and oh yea, he’s a baller. A true professional franchise does not let those kind of players walk. Vernon needs and deserves to be here w/a long term deal.
I am not a fan of paying any RB top dollar (unless he has Peterson talent). If Miller were to take a home town deal, great, sign him. Miami should offer Miller a reasonable contract and leave the decision up to him.
The more time passes and Miami seems not to pursue Mathis, it makes me wonder about their thoughts about Mathis. After all Lazor did work with Mathis. Maybe Lazor sees Mathis as a product of the environment and believes they have a player with similar skill set on their roster. I guess we shall wait and see. However; that could be a grave decision, should this staff choose not to pursue Mathis and the O-Line guards are a train wreck then that would directly fall back onto this coaching staff.
I personally believe in this front office. As much as I want to believe in this coaching staff, I have my doubts at times.
Let’s hope that they get this one right, because Miami has a roster that can make the playoffs and have a legitimate shot once in.
Because Miami is in a win now mode, then again, in today’s NFL every team is in a win now mode, every little can have a monstrous outcome.
I agree Dunner, the longer this goes that the Dolphins do not sign Mathis, the less chance he signs with Miami. Its a pity we didn’t use one of our 5th round picks on LSU’s Collins, he could have been an immediate improvement at one of the Guard positions.
Jimmy, that puzzles me. Why not one team did not use a late round pick on Collins, especially a team like us with a void at that position. I know his agent threatened that he would sit out for a year and then re-enter the draft, a 5th/6th/7th round pick would have been worth calling his bluff.
I am just as puzzled, because sometimes 7th round picks do not even make the team, so why not use one on a guy that was a first round talent.