Frank Gore Wants To Return For 16th Season
Frank Gore has authored one of the more remarkable careers in modern NFL history, and the player who now sits third on the league’s all-time rushing list is still not ready to retire.
The 36-year-old running back is once again a free agent, after his one-year Bills deal led to a playoff appearance. Rather than pause on exploring his next opportunity to consider retirement, Gore will explore his options on the market.
“I want to play,” Gore said, via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. “I feel I showed people I can play when I got my opportunities. Just seeing if a team wants me.”
Gore reached one-year agreements with the Dolphins and Bills in 2018 and ’19, respectively. Although the rebuilding Dolphins moved on from him, Gore said he would welcome a return to his native Miami for the 2020 season, per Jackson. Gore will turn 37 in May.
The Bills gave Gore a key role for much of the season, starting him in eight games and keeping him in their rotation throughout the season. He gained a season-high 109 rushing yards against the Patriots in Week 4 and surpassed Barry Sanders on the all-time rushing list. The future Hall of Famer trails only Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton now. However, Gore averaged a career-worst 3.6 yards per carry — after a 4.6 YPC season in Miami — and has now logged 3,548 career carries. That ranks third all time. Excluding Adrian Peterson, Gore has totaled over 1,000 more carries than any other active back who played a full 2019 season.
Since the merger, Marcus Allen is the only running back (non-fullback) to play an age-37 season. Gore’s carry total already surpasses Allen’s by 500, but the former 49ers Pro Bowler’s pattern of landing work and continued durability (two missed games over the past nine seasons) since leaving San Francisco point to a 16th season being in play.
Dolphins' Owner Expresses Concern Over Tua's Hip
There’s been a lot of buzz about former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa going to the Dolphins in the draft. We heard recently that the southpaw’s family wanted Miami to nab him, and there’s been a connection there for a while. Tagovailoa is obviously dealing with a serious hip injury, and it’s clearly a concern for the Dolphins. Miami’s owner Stephen Ross spoke to reporters earlier today and said “he’s a great player. I just worry about his health,” per Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). That would seem to indicate Tagovailoa to the ‘Phins is far from a done deal. We heard a couple of weeks ago that Miami wanted Joe Burrow, and that they were willing trade up to go get him. Of course, this all could be some gamesmanship from Ross to throw other teams off the scent. Despite the injury, Tagovailoa will reportedly throw for scouts in a private workout at some point before the draft. That workout will go a long way toward determining where he goes in the draft.
Latest On Tom Brady, Dolphins
Tom Brady sparked a frenzy earlier this week when he posted a cryptic photo of himself to Twitter. Although Adam Schefter of ESPN soon clarified in a tweet that it wasn’t a statement on his impending free agency, that didn’t stop the rumor mill from churning. 
The potential new team for Brady “that continues to get the most buzz” is the Dolphins, according to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. While Brady going to a team that was in a full-blown rebuild this past season wasn’t something anybody has expected, there are at least some connections. Dolphins head coach Brian Flores spent 15 seasons with Brady in New England, and there are other ex-Patriots on staff.
Florio also highlights the presence of Dolphins owner Stephen Ross’ business partner Bruce Beal. Florio writes that there has been talk of “Beal buying the team and selling a sliver of it to Brady.” One league source told Florio “that a sale to Beal is possible not long after” Miami finishes hosting the Super Bowl. All that being said, Ross himself quickly threw some cold water on all the speculation.
Responding to the report he might sell the team, Ross said “I have no interest in selling the team. Zero. Got it? People can write what they want to write. I’m going to own it until I die,” per David Wilson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Beal still appears to be Ross’ successor as owner, but it doesn’t sound like he’s selling anytime soon. Ross, 79, also didn’t sound overly enthused about the possibility of adding Brady.
Ross said “we’re building” and that “people are writing about it. People need something to write about,” when asked about the Brady rumors, via Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). It would’ve been very entertaining to see Brady stay in the AFC East and play the Pats twice a year, but it doesn’t seem too likely as of right now.
Ryan Fitzpatrick To Play In 2020
Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick says he’ll play in 2020 (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). All signs have been pointing in this direction and it’s now confirmed, straight from the veteran himself. 
The Dolphins haven’t been shy about their desire to have Fitzpatrick back for another year, even as they plan to draft their QB of the future. FitzMagic, 37, would be the ideal mentor for whoever the Dolphins choose in April and it’s clear that he still has some tricks still up his short sleeve.
In 2019, Fitzpatrick was a bright spot for the Fins in an otherwise trying year. He racked up 3,529 passing yards with 20 touchdowns against 13 interceptions and helped cap off the year in style with wins over the Bengals and Patriots.
Fitzpatrick is under contract for 2020 at an $8MM salary for this upcoming year. Even though he could wind up as the QB2 by the midway point of the year, the Dolphins can afford it thanks to their ample cap room.
Next up for the Dolphins’ QB room – evaluating candidates for the No. 5 overall pick and, perhaps, mulling a trade up to get their man. They’ll also have to figure out how former first-round pick Josh Rosen fits into the picture.
Latest On Tua Tagovailoa
Still in consideration for the No. 1 overall pick and a good bet to be a top-10 choice, Tua Tagovailoa nevertheless said he was close to returning to Alabama for his senior season.
The early-entry quarterback said during an appearance on PFT Live his decision to enter the draft after his junior year was more difficult than most assumed it would be. But Tagovailoa is in the draft and continuing to rehab his injured hip. He is expected to be the second or third quarterback chosen, with Joe Burrow still the odds-on favorite to go No. 1 overall.
The Dolphins’ interest in the southpaw passer has not exactly been a secret, and even though Miami’s No. 5 pick may be enough to land Tagovailoa, the team is prepared to trade higher into the top five if necessary to land whichever prospect it prefers. If it were up to Tagovailoa family, they would “love” for the Dolphins to trade up with the Lions and make the pick, per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. The Lions have certainly done well to throw anyone off the scent, committing to Matthew Stafford. But if this is an elaborate smokescreen, Detroit’s long-term uncertainty in the GM and head coach roles is not as enticing for the Tagovailoas as going to Miami, per Salguero.
Tagovailoa, who was the frontrunner to be the 2020 No. 1 pick going into his final Crimson Tide season, confirmed he remains on schedule to make a full recovery. He will not throw at the Combine, but the plan for a late-March or early-April pro day remains. His next benchmark will be an MRI and CT scan in February.
“My main goal is not to win the 40, not to win the bench press, but to win my medical,” Tagovailoa said during an appearance on the NFL Network’s Super Bowl Live (via NFL.com). “I’m going to go over there looking to win my medical and then go in and interview with the teams. That’s pretty much what I’m going to do. And then hopefully there’s a pro day down the line, either late March or early April.”
Dolphins Work Out Alex Collins
The Dolphins worked out former Ravens running back Alex Collins, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Collins didn’t play last season, but he’s aiming to get back to work in 2020.
Collins led the Ravens in rushing in 2017 with 973 yards, so he’d be a logical fit for the Dolphins as they look to revamp their backfield. Collins would not be the centerpiece of the Dolphins’ RB group, but he’d be an option worth exploring as a part of the team’s 90-man roster. The Dolphins figure to have upwards of $90MM in cap space and a bevy of draft picks, so they should have ample opportunities to upgrade.
Collins served his three-game ban for marijuana possession while in free agency limbo, so he’s ready to go for Week 1 of the upcoming season. If he doesn’t sign with the Dolphins, it’s possible that he could circle back to the Seahawks, Packers, and Bills – the teams he auditioned for down the stretch.
In addition to Collins, the Dolphins also worked out CFL quarterback Chris Streveler, Yates reports.
Dolphins Notes: Wilson, Jones, Kilgore
Albert Wilson started his Dolphins career off with a bang in 2018, but a serious hip injury quickly derailed his momentum. He wasn’t the same player this past year, and ended up racking up only 351 yards and one touchdown in 13 games. Wilson has one more year left on his deal at $9.5MM, but it’s entirely non-guaranteed. The blazing fast slot receiver has shown a lot of flashes, but that’s a hefty price tag for any slot receiver. To that end, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes that Miami is “likely to discuss a restructuring in the weeks ahead.”
It sounds like Wilson is going to have to accept a pay-cut if he wants to stay in Miami for 2020. Wilson did start to make a case for himself down the stretch, gaining at least 59 yards in each of their last three games. Unfortunately, he hadn’t topped 33 yards in any game before that. Wilson signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent back in 2014, and slowly started to breakout in Kansas City. He’s never produced huge numbers, but the Dolphins placed a huge bet on his potential.
Here’s more from Miami:
- Speaking of players who might have to take pay-cuts, Jackson writes that Reshad Jones “returning under his current contract is inconceivable.” Jones is due $11.5MM in 2020, but only $2MM of that is guaranteed. Jackson writes that as of right now their plan is to start Bobby McCain and Eric Rowe at safety, but that Jones returning on a “restructured deal isn’t entirely out of the question.” Jones made the Pro Bowl in 2017, but his relationship with the franchise quickly deteriorated and for a while it looked like a divorce was inevitable. He had a falling out with Adam Gase but was apparently able to patch things over with new head coach Brian Flores, and Jones said back in September that he wanted to stay with the Dolphins for the long haul.
- Another Dolphins starter on the chopping block is center Daniel Kilgore. Kilgore is due a non-guaranteed $3.1MM, and Miami can cut him right before the start of the season with no cap penalty. Jackson expects the team to look for an upgrade at center this offseason, and he points out that GM Chris Grier was recently non-committal about his status. Jackson indicates that the ‘Phins will be completely revamping their O-line this offseason, which isn’t surprising considering the beatings that Ryan Fitzpatrick and Josh Rosen were taking last year.
- In case you missed it, the Dolphins are prepared to move up in the draft.
Dolphins Hire New DBs Coach
- Finally, the Dolphins are hiring a new defensive backs coach in Gerald Alexander, as Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald tweets. Alexander is coming from the college ranks, where he served as the defensive backs coach at Cal for the past few seasons. Alexander was briefly with the Dolphins as a safety during his playing days back in 2011. Miami had the vacancy after they promoted Josh Boyer to defensive coordinator following Patrick Graham’s departure.
Dolphins Expect Ryan Fitzpatrick Return
The Dolphins “fully expect” to see quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick back on the field in 2020, GM Chris Grier told reporters this week. This jibes with previous comments from the GM, who earlier this month said that the plan “right now” is for FitzMagic and Josh Rosen to stay in the fold. 
The Dolphins will almost certainly select their QB of their future early in the draft, but in any circumstance, they’d love to have the veteran back. In 2019, Fitzpatrick was a bright spot for the Fins in an otherwise rocky year. The 37-year-old would be the perfect bridge for a young QB and his $8MM salary for 2020 would not be cost-prohibitive – particularly since the Dolphins have ample cap room heading into March.
Fitzpatrick has indicated that it would be difficult for him to walk away from football this year and his bond with the organization is evident. It all adds up to an obvious match, though the same can’t be said for Rosen, a former first-round pick who has yet to make a dent at the pro level.
Last year, Fitz threw for 3,529 passing yards with 20 touchdowns against 13 interceptions. He also helped the club end the year on a high note with back-to-back wins over the Bengals and Patriots.
The Dolphins will go into the draft with an absolute stockpile of draft capital, giving them the ability to move up for a signal caller that might not be available at No. 5 overall. However the QB room shakes out, we know this much – the offense will be guided by Chan Gailey, who was hired to replace Chad O’Shea on New Year’s Eve.
Dolphins Prepared To Move Up In Draft?
If the Dolphins want to move up to the No. 1 pick for LSU’s Joe Burrow – or to another pick for any other player – they’ll have the ammunition to get a deal done. This week, GM Chris Grier, who has a bevy of picks this year, publicly acknowledged the potential for a big jump on the board. 
At the same time, Grier pointed out what we all know – around this time of year, teams are eager to spread information that benefits them in order to drum up leverage. In other words, the Dolphins almost certainly want to come away with their quarterback of the future in this year’s draft, but their eagerness to land Burrow or any of this year’s other signal callers might be overstated.
Alabama star Tua Tagovailoa is among the prized QBs in this year’s crop and many have connected the dots between him and the Fins. For what it’s worth, Grier says he doesn’t feel pressured to roll the dice on the one-time consensus top prospect who has serious question marks due to his hip injury.
“We’ll evaluate him just like every player,” Grier said. “When people were talking about [us taking him], we said we weren’t tanking. We were trying to win and build. And so to say one player was attached to us, you can’t control what fans and people in the media say. So there’s no pressure for us. The pressure for us is to find the right guy to be the quarterback for the Dolphins, whether it’s him or someone else. That’s the pressure. Finding the right guy to lead the organization.”
For now, the Dolphins are slated to pick at No. 5 where Tagovailoa and other top QBs besides Burrow will be available. After that, they’re up again at Nos. 18 and 26.