DeVante Parker’s big breakout season in 2019 was a breath of fresh air for Dolphins fans, largely because the receiver had finally lived up to the expectations that were placed upon him when the team made him their top draft choice back in 2015. Parker’s first four seasons in Miami were erratic and frustrating — Parker struggled with health and then found himself in the doghouse of former head coach Adam Gase (although to be fair to Parker, that wasn’t an exclusive club).
But then last year Parker became the high-volume target that the team envisioned. And, after posting 1,202 receiving yards, Parker was rewarded with a contract extension that will keep him in South Florida for the foreseeable future.
And now, thanks to Parker’s explosive 2019 campaign, he’s now well positioned to vault himself up the all-time receiving ranks in team history. Parker, who currently owns 3,419 career receiving yards with the Dolphins, could find himself sitting as high as 6th on the Dolphins’ all-time receivers list by the end of 2020. He currently sits 11th, just a handful of yards behind former WR Davone Bess. Suppose Parker tallies a 1,000 yard season in 2020 — a total of 4,419 yards would rank Parker 7th on the all-time receiving list and would result in him passing Bess, Tony Nathan, Jarvis Landry and Brian Hartline. A repeat of his 2019 receiving totals would also allow Parker to pass Duriel Harris’ 4,534 yards with the Dolphins for 6th all-time in team history.
The top five receiving leaders in Dolphins history are as follows:
- Mark Duper — 8,869 yards
- Mark Clayton — 8,643 yards
- Nat Moore — 7,546 yards
- Chris Chambers — 5,688 yards
- O.J. McDuffie — 5,074 yards
Parker won’t likely push this group in 2020. He’d need a massive effort to even sniff McDuffie. But if the 2019 edition of Parker is the new normal in his production, we are two seasons away from Parker sitting 4th in team history and two more from him sitting 3rd. There’s a whole lot that can change over such a long timespan — but the Dolphins offense appears to be trending up and Parker is scheduled to be under contract for four more seasons through the end of 2023.
Most intriguing of all, a best case scenario for Parker that sees him keep up this receiving pace over the life of his new contract would mean he’d be due a new contract and only be 31 years old — with plenty of time to continue his chase up the receiving ranks.
Of course, this is all moot if Parker doesn’t come out and prove 2019 is the new standard. He’ll need a big year in 2020 to kickstart his surge up the board, but he’s got four or five former Dolphins receivers in striking distance for 2020 if he does.