The Miami Dolphins’ quest for an improved offensive line is not going to be an easy chore. The Dolphins, after announcing that they will not be exercising the club option on center Daniel Kilgore, are facing the task of acquiring potentially four new starters along their front — and it isn’t realistic to expect the team to spend big dollars on every position. There’s too many needs on this roster in the short and long term to justify dropping $50-$60M against the salary cap in an effort to sure up the line of scrimmage.
But the Dolphins can’t afford to be timid, either. As the league braces for free agency to open this Wednesday, Miami will need to be firm and confident in their price points. And if players become hot commodities and see their value skyrocket past what the Dolphins are comfortable to spend, it is time to walk away. This has been a sore spot for the Dolphins in the past; but Miami deserves credit for their restraint on DE Trey Flowers last offseason.
Miami was among the final two teams bidding for Flowers before ultimately conceding to the Detroit Lions, who signed him to a 5-year, $90M contract with a whopping $56M in guarantees.
Could another former Patriot, guard Joe Thuney, be next?
The Dolphins have been closely linked to Thuney throughout the build-up to free agency — yet as we near the “legal tampering period” the noise of Thuney seems to have quieted as it relates to the Dolphins. Could the Dolphins be realizing that this is another scenario that, for as good as Thuney is, would be unwise to do “whatever it takes” to add him to the interior?
Thuney is expected to command somewhere around $15M per season on his new contract; which would be a record setting total for a guard’s annual average salary. Miami will have contingency plans in place to ensure they’re not spending themselves out of their long-term view — the only question is how much do they have budgeted to appeal to Thuney in their efforts to acquire his services. If the writing on the wall is to be believed, Miami may be ready to fold their cards and prep for the next man in line to play guard.
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