Jason Fox

Dolphins Waive OT Jason Fox

The Dolphins have waived tackle Jason Fox, Field Yates of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). Fox was previously under contract for the 2016 season. Fox was due to earn $1.28MM in base salary in 2016, so Miami has now freed up significant funds that can be used elsewhere. Jason Fox (vertical)

The release will leave $138K in dead money on Miami’s 2016 cap and, in total, they will save $1.38MM in cap space with this move. Salguero notes that this is the first of many expected moves to free up cap space for the Dolphins this offseason.

The Dolphins are expected to make even more changes to their second unit on the offensive line. Salguero writes that the Dolphins will be on the hunt for a backup tackle this offseason and that search may include asking either Billy Turner or Dallas Thomas to work at right tackle. The Dolphins are dissatisfied with the play of their interior lineman as well, so they could make some moves at guard as well.

Fox, a University of Miami product, entered the league as a fourth-round pick of the Lions in 2010. Over the course of his six-year career, Fox has played 37 career games with 16 starts.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dolphins Rumors: Miller, Cameron, Matthews

The Dolphins are expected to make plenty of changes on the defensive side of the ball this offseason, after the addition of blockbuster free agent Ndamukong Suh failed to make the unit a formidable one in 2015. However, there are many moves coming on offense as well, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald details.

After Dallas Thomas and Billy Turner underperformed this past season, the Dolphins realized they’ll “need to do what it takes” to upgrade at the position, perhaps on both sides of the line, according to Jackson. While the Dolphins may target a top free agent such as Ravens guard Kelechi Osemele, the team’s pursuit of a player like that will depend how high the bidding gets.

Let’s round up a few more of Jackson’s notes on how Mike Tannenbaum, along with new GM Chris Grier and head coach Adam Gase, will try to retool the Dolphins’ offense….

  • The Dolphins don’t expect to engage in serious talks with free agent running back Lamar Miller for several weeks, and the chances of Miller staying with Miami “depend on the economics,” a club official tells Jackson. In other words, the club won’t overpay, since 2015 draftee Jay Ajayi could step in and compete for more carries. The Fins don’t want to spend big at the position.
  • While the Dolphins are happy with their starting tackles, they plan on finding a new swing tackle to replace Jason Fox.
  • One Dolphins official on tight end Jordan Cameron: “There’s a lot to like about him, but we wish there was more production.” The team’s front office is fond of Cameron, but will probably want to reduce his cap hit ($9.5MM) if he stays on the roster.
  • Wide receiver Rishard Matthews acknowledges that he’s more likely to sign elsewhere than to return to the Dolphins. “I would have to be offered something I can’t refuse [to re-sign],” Matthews said.
  • Quarterback Logan Thomas indicated that Tannenbaum told him he’ll have a legitimate chance to compete for the Dolphins’ backup job behind Ryan Tannehill next season. As Jackson notes, that seems to leave the future of Matt Moore – a pending free agent – in doubt.

Dolphins Re-Sign Jason Fox

The Dolphins have agreed to terms with free agent offensive tackle Jason Fox, re-signing him to a new two-year deal that locks him up through the 2016 season, the team announced today (via Twitter). Per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), Fox’s new contract is worth $2.5MM in total.

Fox, who signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract last year with the Dolphins, was a reserve for the majority of the season behind Branden Albert and Ja’Wuan James, and eventually Dallas Thomas. Fox got a chance to start at right tackle for the team during its final two games of the season, and the team liked what it saw enough to give him a modest raise for the 2015 season.

Returning to Miami for the coming year, Fox figures to return to a reserve role, assuming Albert and James are good to go for Week 1. If either of those starters, or someone else on the line, goes down with an injury or fails to impress in training camp, Fox figures to be one of the first players off the bench.

Dolphins Rumors: Clay, Odrick, Harris, WRs

Barry Jackson’s Wednesday Buzz column for the Miami Herald is chock full of notable Dolphins-related tidbits, so let’s dive right in and see what kind of free agent rumors Jackson has for us today….

  • Negotiations between the Dolphins and tight end Charles Clay are active and the team is cautiously optimistic that something will get done. There’s no certainty at this point, but Miami would like to keep its Clay/Dion Sims TE duo intact.
  • The Dolphins intend to make an offer to free-agent-to-be Jared Odrick, and have told him as much. However, the team has confided in people that the defensive tackle may command more than what the club is willing to pay — a contract worth $7MM+ per year isn’t out of reach for Odrick.
  • Miami wants to add a starting linebacker, and David Harris of the Jets figures to be a prime target. New Dolphins president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum drafted Harris back in 2007 when he was the Jets’ general manager. If Harris ultimately ends up out of the Dolphins’ price range, Mason Foster of the Buccaneers may be Plan B, per Jackson.
  • The Dolphins would like to re-sign prospective free agent defensive backs Louis Delmas and Jimmy Wilson, as well as tackle Jason Fox.
  • While the fate of specific players like Mike Wallace and Brian Hartline still hasn’t been made clear, the Dolphins have told people that there will be some turnover at the wide receiver position, according to Jackson.
  • Although Miami would like to bring back Samson Satele, he will likely find a better opportunity elsewhere now that the club is moving Mike Pouncey back to center.

Dolphins Sign Jason Fox

12:59pm: Fox’s deal is worth $795K, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). That sounds to me like a minimum salary benefit contract, with $65K in bonus money.

12:22pm: The Dolphins have inked offensive tackle Jason Fox to a one-year contract, according to Pro Football Talk (via Twitter). Earlier today, we heard that the team was hosting Fox on a free agent visit.

As Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald suggested earlier today, the Dolphins are likely bringing Fox aboard to provide depth and potentially compete for playing time, rather than assuming he’ll be the answer at right tackle. Still, there’s some upside in the move. Fox is only 25 years old, and as Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press tweets, the former fourth-rounder won the Lions’ right tackle job out of camp last season before his year was derailed due to injuries.

Fox is the latest free agent addition on the offensive line for a Dolphins team that has also locked up Branden Albert and Shelley Smith since free agency opened last month.

AFC Rumors: Dolphins, Jets, Clowney, Texans

As they continue attempting to fortify their offensive line, the Dolphins are hosting 25-year-old free agent Jason Fox for a visit, writes Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. According to Salguero, if the team were to sign Fox, who reportedly worked out for the Chiefs earlier this week, the former Lion would be viewed as a depth piece with a chance to earn a larger role, not the Dolphins’ starter at right tackle.

Here’s more on another free agent paying a visit to Miami, as well as a few other notes from around the AFC:

  • The Dolphins will also host free agent wideout Lestar Jean for a visit and workout, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. Jean met with the Panthers last month, but left Carolina without a deal.
  • Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) still expects the Titans to release Chris Johnson this week. If and when that happens, look for the Jets to “pounce” on the veteran running back, says La Canfora.
  • Asked about Jadeveon Clowney at South Carolina’s Pro Day today, Texans head coach Bill O’Brien confirmed that his club met with Clowney last night, tweets James Palmer of CSNHouston.com. However, according to O’Brien, the Texans’ No. 1 pick is still “wide open” (Twitter link via Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle).
  • Before he signed with the Raiders, Maurice Jones-Drew was strongly considering the Patriots and Steelers as well, as he said today on Mad Dog Sports Radio (Twitter link).
  • In a pair of tweets, Aaron Wilson provides details on Dimitri Patterson‘s one-year, $3MM deal with the Jets, which includes a $1MM signing bonus, and C.J. Wilson‘s one-year, minimum-salary benefit contract with the Raiders.

FA Notes: Patterson, Rogers, Fox, Hall

DeSean Jackson may be the biggest name on the free agent market these days, but he’s not the only potential difference-maker still available. Let’s round up a few of the latest news and notes related to a few other free agents still on the board…