Analyzing the terms of new Dolphins S Jordan Poyer’s contract

Here’s what new Dolphins S Jordan Poyer’s contract looks like.

The Miami Dolphins needed to add to the backend of their defense this offseason with both DeShon Elliott and Brandon Jones hitting free agency and eventually signing with new teams.

Miami acquired some help for new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s secondary when they signed safety Jordan Poyer.

Poyer, 33, agreed to a one-year deal worth $2 million to join the Dolphins after spending the first 12 years of his career split between the Philadelphia Eagles (2013), Cleveland Browns (2013-16) and Buffalo Bills (2017-23).

According to Over the Cap, Poyer will receive a $1.25 million base salary ($500,000 guaranteed). The deal also includes a $500,000 signing bonus and $250,000 in per-game roster bonuses. His cap hit for 2024 is set to be $1.99 million.

While Poyer is almost certainly in the team’s plans for the 2024 season, this contract doesn’t totally guarantee him a spot on the roster in September. If Miami were to cut the safety before the season starts, they’d save $985,294 while incurring a dead-cap hit of $1 million.

As long as the former Bill hasn’t fallen off of the proverbial cliff, he should be one of the main pieces in the Dolphins’ secondary alongside Jevon Holland and Jalen Ramsey.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Best photos of new Dolphins S Jordan Poyer

Best photos of new Dolphins S Jordan Poyer.

The Miami Dolphins had two of their top three safeties hit the market this offseason, so they needed to add at least one to fill a starting spot for the 2024 season, and they found Jordan Poyer.

Poyer joins the Dolphins after playing collegiately for Oregon State and professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles (2013), Cleveland Browns (2013-2016) and Buffalo Bills (2017-23), making First-team All-Pro in 2021 and the Pro Bowl in 2022.

As Dolphins fans familiarize themselves with the team’s newest edge rusher, we’ve put together a gallery of photos from his time in Buffalo, Cleveland and Philadelphia.

Take a look:

New Dolphins S Jordan Poyer is still playing with a chip on his shoulder

Miami’s new safety is playing with a chip on his shoulder.

New Miami Dolphins safety Jordan Poyer has accomplished more than most would’ve expected of him during his time at Oregon State, which included an All-American final season in 2012.

It was after that final season that he was passed over time and time again before finally being selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL draft.

Since then, he’s made a Pro Bowl (2022) and was named First-team All-Pro (2021) while playing for the team that won the division in each of the last four seasons – the Buffalo Bills.

However, with Poyer being cut by the team that allowed him to flourish into a star, he’s signed with Miami, allowing him to work in the same state he lives in, in the offseason.

Despite his success, Poyer still plays with a chip on his shoulder to this day.

“Seventh round, 218th (overall pick) coming out of Oregon State as a consensus All-American, getting cut by Philadelphia, going to Cleveland and playing there for three and a half years, having a pretty bad injury then them not wanting to bring me back, then playing in Buffalo for seven years, getting cut with a year left on my contract,” Poyer told the South Florida media. “This is just another one of those opportunities, like I said, another one of those great opportunities to go out there and prove to myself really, and to everyone else around me, that I can still play and play at a high level. I can still help win games. I have a lot of experience in this game, a lot of experience within this division, of a lot of people that I’ve seen over the years and played over the years. I’m going to bring all that knowledge here to ultimately help the Dolphins win football games. Like I said, I’m here with an open mind, open heart, open arms, to learn, to grow, to evolve as a person and as a player, and just bring the best version of myself that I can to help this team win football games.”

Miami is looking to get over the hump and win some postseason games for the first time in two decades, and Poyer’s attitude might just be exactly what they need to accomplish that goal.

The sky is not falling on the Buffalo Bills

The sky is not falling on the Buffalo Bills (via @JBaileyNFL):

Alright, everyone take a deep breath and listen up.

It was a bleak day at One Bills Drive in Buffalo. Several long-term stars, including center Mitch Morse, cornerback Tre’Davious White, and safety Jordan Poyer were all released as Buffalo continues to gear toward getting back under the cap. However, the reactions that followed made it seem as if the sky was falling on the Bills.

Talks of “well, it looks like the Bills’ Super Bowl window has closed” or “Buffalo is officially rebuilding” started making the rounds on the app formerly known as Twitter.

Mind you, this all stems from Buffalo releasing a 33 year-old safety, a 32 year old center (whom they may actually try to bring back on a cheaper deal) and a 29 year old cornerback who has missed 24 of the team’s last 34 regular season games. That is what has everyone sticking a fork in the Buffalo Bills? That is what their window is hinged upon? Folks, if you have Josh Allen, your window is never closed. You’re never rebuilding, you’re reloading.

Now, in terms of a fan perspective, the sentimental wound is very real, and I can respect that. Poyer and White helped end the playoff drought in 2017, and Morse has been a focal point of the team’s offensive line since 2019. These are guys that have built relationships with the fans and the community, so of course it hurts seeing them go if you are a Bills fan. However, in terms of the on-field impact, the Bills are more than capable to retooling.

And if there is one group that Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott consistently knock out of the park, it’s defensive backs. Poyer and Micah Hyde are prime examples of that, They took two cast-offs and made them the best safety duo in football for half a decade. They turned seventh-round pick Dane Jackson into a reliable rotational cornerback. They got the absolute most out of Rasul Douglas after acquiring him ahead of the trade deadline.

On top of that, according to Spotrac, if the Bills do a full base salary and roster bonus conversion to signing bonus to Josh Allen’s deal, they can free up $22.7 million in cap space, which would make them cap compliant.

The day was filled with hard goodbyes for fans, but the Buffalo Bills are fine. They’ll need to address the secondary in free agency and the draft, as well as wide receiver, but this is far from Armageddon.

Article via NFL Wire’s Jarrett Bailey.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport breaks down long week for Bills (video)

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport breaks down long week for #Bills (video):

The Buffalo Bills had a crazy week. All-Pros are no longer with the teams after being released because of salary cap restraints.

Fan favorites got the axe, too.

Cuts weren’t just apart of the operation, either. Pass rusher Von Miller took a pay cut and other players restructured their deals.

NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport did his best to breakdown all that happened at One Bills Drive this week.

Rap Sheets analysis can be found below:

[lawrence-related id=132576,132571,132569]

Bills sign Taylor Rapp to three-year extension

#Bills sign Taylor Rapp to three-year extension:

Jordan Poyer’s gone and Micah Hyde is a pending free agent.

But Taylor Rapp is going nowhere.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Rapp has signed a three-year extension with the Buffalo Bills.

Rapp, 26, signed with the Bills last year on a one-year contract. He served as a backup to both Poyer and Hyde and played in certain packages which put all three on the field at once.

In his first season with the Bills, Rapp accounted for 50 total tackles, one tackle for loss, one quarterback hit, half a sack, two pass breakups, an interception, and a fumble recovery. He appeared on 421 defensive snaps and another 191 on special teams.

What’s certainly going to be different now is his role on the defense. With Poyer out, Rapp is likely sliding into his starting spot. Damar Hamlin and Kendall Williamson are the only other safeties under contract with the Bills currently.

Rapp was originally a second-round draft choice of the Los Angeles Rams in the 2019 NFL draft.

Bills Wire will continue to provide free agency updates throughout the 2024 offseason.

[lawrence-related id=132547,132538,132529]

How Talanoa Hufanga injury impacts 49ers offseason

Don’t expect the #49ers to make a big splash at safety as they navigate Talanoa Hufanga’s injury:

The 49ers are in a little bit of a tough spot when it comes to navigating the safety market this offseason. It appears they have two young starters to fill out the free safety and strong safety spots with Ji’Ayir Brown and Talanoa Hufanga, but Hufanga’s torn ACL in Week 11 of last season puts a sizable twist into how San Francisco can attack the position this offseason.

Even before Hufanga’s injury last season it looked on the horizon like the 49ers were going to need some depth at the position in 2024. Brown at that point was waiting in the wings behind Hufanga and Tashaun Gipson, and veteran special teams ace George Odum is at his best when just contributing on special teams. San Francisco, assuming Gipson’s exit, was going to need some viable depth.

The issue now is what type of depth they’ll need, and what the 49ers want to do over the next couple of years at that spot.

In the short-term they have to figure out if they need to find a player capable of starting if Hufanga isn’t ready to return by the season opener. It’s hard to be super optimistic about that since he was hurt so late in the year, but it’s not impossible that he’d be on the field by early September. They’ll need depth in either event, but the quality of player they add will have to be determined by Hufanga’s prognosis.

Do they go get a veteran like Broncos safety Justin Simmons or Bills safety Jordan Poyer, both of whom were released for salary cap reasons? Or do they add a free agent from the margins who can work in as a short-term starter if Hufanga does miss time?

The draft is also an option, but that’s where the long-term piece of this puzzle falls in. Hufanga is entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2024, and his play through three seasons could earn him a deal beyond the 49ers’ budget next offseason. That would mean a relatively early pick in this year’s draft would be prudent since they’d be able to pair that player long-term with Brown.

If there’s optimism that Hufanga will re-sign, then perhaps the team would either skip a draft pick this year or use a later-round pick on a player who may or may not ultimately contribute.

There are no firm answers either way, but it would appear that a low-cost free agent on a one-year deal would make the most sense. That gives San Francisco the quality of depth they need to withstand Hufanga’s injury recovery, while also not tying them up for too many years. If they lose that free agent and Hufanga next offseason they’d be able to cross that bridge then either via free agency or the draft.

For now the lack of answers makes it hard to believe a big splash is coming for the 49ers at safety in 2024.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

The sky is not falling on the Buffalo Bills

Some familiar faces may be gone, but this is far from Armageddon for the Buffalo Bills

Alright, everyone take a deep breath and listen up.

It was a bleak day at One Bills Drive in Buffalo. Several long-term stars, including center Mitch Morse, cornerback Tre’Davious White, and safety Jordan Poyer were all released as Buffalo continues to gear toward getting back under the cap. However, the reactions that followed made it seem as if the sky was falling on the Bills.

Talks of “well, it looks like the Bills’ Super Bowl window has closed” or “Buffalo is officially rebuilding” started making the rounds on the app formerly known as Twitter.

Mind you, this all stems from Buffalo releasing a 33 year-old safety, a 32 year old center (whom they may actually try to bring back on a cheaper deal) and a 29 year old cornerback who has missed 24 of the team’s last 34 regular season games. That is what has everyone sticking a fork in the Buffalo Bills? That is what their window is hinged upon? Folks, if you have Josh Allen, your window is never closed. You’re never rebuilding, you’re reloading.

Now, in terms of a fan perspective, the sentimental wound is very real, and I can respect that. Poyer and White helped end the playoff drought in 2017, and Morse has been a focal point of the team’s offensive line since 2019. These are guys that have built relationships with the fans and the community, so of course it hurts seeing them go if you are a Bills fan. However, in terms of the on-field impact, the Bills are more than capable to retooling.

And if there is one group that Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott consistently knock out of the park, it’s defensive backs. Poyer and Micah Hyde are prime examples of that, They took two cast-offs and made them the best safety duo in football for half a decade. They turned seventh-round pick Dane Jackson into a reliable rotational cornerback. They got the absolute most out of Rasul Douglas after acquiring him ahead of the trade deadline.

On top of that, according to Spotrac, if the Bills do a full base salary and roster bonus conversion to signing bonus to Josh Allen’s deal, they can free up $22.7 million in cap space, which would make them cap compliant.

The day was filled with hard goodbyes for fans, but the Buffalo Bills are fine. They’ll need to address the secondary in free agency and the draft, as well as wide receiver, but this is far from Armageddon.

8 Bills players who could have played their last game with the team

8 #Bills players who could have played their last game with the team:

The 2023 NFL season has concluded as the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 58.

Unfortunately, the same Chiefs ended the Buffalo Bills’ run to the Big Game a few weeks prior. In that outing, Buffalo lost 27-24 to Kansas City.

As it always goes at this time of the year, changes are en route. Multiple players, even featured ones, might have put on the blue and red for the final time in their careers against the Chiefs… or even some that were injured and unable to play could’ve done so even longer ago.

With that, here are eight Bills players who could have played their final game for the team: