The Miami Dolphins’ wide receiver room is one of the team’s more well established positions. Miami has plenty of size in the group, a fair amount of depth with the likes of Allen Hurns, Albert Wilson, Isaiah Ford and others on the roster and the group finally saw the big breakout the team was hoping for from DeVante Parker.
But Albert Wilson’s status with Miami is up in the air thanks to a sizable cap hit in 2020 and an underwhelming 2019 season. As this Dolphins team looks to remodel to offense to fit offensive coordinator Chan Gailey’s ideals, this team may be looking to find a new starter in the slot.
Who are some of the prime candidates?
Dolphins’ Jakeem Grant
Cost: Nothing
Let’s start with the good: Grant is an explosive athlete, a good route runner and a natural playmaker. The bad? He’s failed to finish the last two seasons with durability concerns and needs limited touches to protect him from breaking down over the course of 16 games.
Grant is a logical choice because he’s on the roster and was recently given an extension. But entrusting him with a primary role is risky business.
Free agent Rashard Higgins
Cost: Short-term “prove it” deal
Higgins found success in 2018 with the Browns before being pushed to the fringes of the team in 2019 — he logged nearly 600 receiving yards in 2018. Higgins’ route running skills are a viable asset and, if he’s left in the slot, he should routinely find separation. The concern here? There’s not a lot of long speed and Miami’s slot will ideally have explosive qualities.
Florida’ Van Jefferson
Cost: 56th/70th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft
Jefferson catches the ball really well in traffic, which will make him an asset in Miami’s horizontal spread attack under Gailey. With a heavy down hill run presence, the Dolphins stand to flourish from putting LBs in a bind and taking advantage of spacing issues to hit the defense over the middle. Jefferson frequently ate as a middle of the field receiver with the Gators and showed off some impressive route running at January’s Senior Bowl.
Arizona State’s Brandon Aiyuk
Cost: 56th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft
Aiyuk thrived at Arizona State as a tunnel screen and in traffic receiver — he’s got a large catch radius, explosive qualities and the ability to force a missed tackle and make house calls in the quick game. He feels like a strong fit for what Miami is looking to do and if the Dolphins feel an early investment is necessary to upgrade the slot, he’s a name that would add another dynamic to the receiver group with his twitchiness.
Dolphins’ Albert Wilson
Cost: Over $10.5M in cap in 2020
If the Dolphins choose to stand pat, they’ll eat eight figures in cap space, $9.5M of which is easily avoidable by cutting Wilson. But if Miami feels Wilson has a reasonable chance of returning to form and getting the quickness back that he lost after a 2018 hip injury, they have the cap space to eat the money.