Dolphins Allow Jarvis Landry To Seek Trade
Reports had already indicated the Dolphins are shopping franchise-tagged wide receiver Jarvis Landry, but they’re now involving the slot weapon in the process. Miami has given Landry and his agent permission to “seek and facilitate” a trade, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Landry has already spoken with two unidentified teams, tweets Josina Anderson of ESPN.com, and he’s expected to sign his tender soon to further move discussions along, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
The Dolphins always seemed likely to allow Landry to speak with other clubs, if for no other reason than to work out a new contract that would be amendable to both him and his new team. Landry is set to earn $16.228MM salary thanks to the franchise tender, which Miami assigned last week. An acquiring club likely wouldn’t want Landry at that expensive one-year cost, and will be expected to negotiate a fresh contract.
Miami’s decision to tag Landry has been widely viewed as a negotiating tactic, and few believe the Dolphins actually want him on their roster at that salary. Other clubs likely realize that lack of leverage on the part of Miami, which would help explain Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald‘s recent report that the return for Landry will likely be a third-round pick, a late second-round pick, or a player.
Landry, 25, is thought to be seeking a $14MM annual salary and $30MM in guarantees, but whether he’ll be able to reach that level of compensation while attempting to discuss both a contract and a trade is unclear. Although he led the league in receptions in 2017, Landry managed only 8.8 yards per catch, which is the lowest average for any 100-catch receiver in NFL history.
Dolphins Interested In Travis Swanson
- Free agent center Travis Swanson has generated the most interest from the Jets and Dolphins, a source tells Howe (Twitter link). Swanson is eligible for free agency for the first time in his career after spending the last four seasons with the Lions. The 2014 third-round pick has 53 appearances with 42 starts to his credit. Jets starting center Wesley Johnson and reserve Jonotthan Harrison are both headed towards free agency in March. The Dolphins have Mike Pouncey as their starter, but they could be looking as Swanson as a reserve option.
Latest On Jarvis Landry
The Dolphins are attempting to trade wide receiver Jarvis Landry after assigning him the franchise tag last week, but the club probably shouldn’t expect a first-round pick for their slot receiver, as Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald writes. Instead, fair compensation is likely to be a third-round pick, a low second-rounder, or perhaps a player, multiple sources tell Salguero. Landry can be an effective weapon, but any team that acquires him is either committing to carrying his $16MM+ salary in 2018, or inking him to a new deal, so Miami isn’t likely to get blown away in terms of trade offers. The Dolphins were expected to meet with Landry’s representatives at the combine on Wednesday, so a resolution could be coming soon.
Dolphins Could Take QB In First Round
- Though the Dolphins are committed to Ryan Tannehill being their starter in 2018, that does not mean the team won’t look to draft a quarterback with its No. 11 pick in the first round, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson writes. He says the Dolphins were impressed by Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield in interviews at the Senior Bowl, though he is expected to be off the board by the time Miami gets on the clock.
Salary Cap Rollover For All 32 NFL Teams
This week, the NFLPA updated its salary cap report to include the rollover amounts for all 32 teams in the NFL. The Browns, as expected, lead the league in $58.9MM in cap space rolled over from the previous season. Here is the full rundown of each team’s rollover amounts:
After the Browns, the 49ers ($56MM), Titans ($30.3MM), Jaguars ($27.8MM), and Jets ($17.3MM) boast the highest rollover amounts in the league. The Dolphins ($69K), Saints ($287K), Giants ($365K), Eagles ($514K), and the Seahawks ($547K) have the least amount of rollover. In total, teams carried over nearly $340MM from last season, good for an average of $10.6MM per club.
Latest On Dolphins, Jarvis Landry
The Dolphins are slated to meet with the agent for wide receiver Jarvis Landry on Wednesday in Indianapolis to discuss the wide receiver’s future, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Multiple sources believe the Dolphins are interested in trading Landry, Schefter writes, which is consistent with what we’ve been hearing in recent days.
The Dolphins surprised many last week when they opted to franchise tag Landry at a cost of more than $16.2MM. Soon after, we learned that the Dolphins are looking to trade Landry and quickly utilized the tag so that they could commence talks. What it boils down to is this – the Dolphins have limited cap space this offseason and Landry’s rumored request for $30MM in guaranteed money and more than $14MM/year does not fit into the budget. That’s also a remarkably steep price tag for a slot receiver, albeit a very good one.
Per league rules, the teams have until July 16 to agree on a long-term contract with franchise tagged players. If no deal is agreed upon by that date, then the tagged player plays out the coming season on the one-year tender. The Dolphins also reserve the right to revoke the tag from Landry once the free agent period begins on March 14.
Right now, the Dolphins seem intent on forgoing options A, B, and C, and going with option D: Dealing Landry elsewhere.
Latest On Ja'Wuan James
The Dolphins are “strongly” considering releasing offensive tackle Ja’Wuan James instead of paying his $9.341MM base salary in 2018, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. James, a former first-round pick, is under contract next season thanks to his fifth-year option, but given that his salary is non-guaranteed, Miami can get out of the deal with no penalty. While the Dolphins could speculatively be interested in retaining James at a reduced price, the 25-year-old has little incentive to accept a pay cut, as he’d immediately become one of the best tackles on the open market if he were to be released. Indeed, the top end of an extremely weak free agent tackle class includes Nate Solder, Justin Pugh, Cameron Fleming, and Chris Hubbard, so James would surely draw interest.
Is Jarvis Landry Giving Signs Of Potential Trade?
- Chiefs outside linebacker Tamba Hali, Bills wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, Dolphins center Mike Pouncey, Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan, Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib and others were identified by the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin as players who could be cut in cap-saving measures this offseason.
- Florida Football Insiders wonders whether Dolphins wide receiver Jarvis Landry is giving signs that he may not be with the team for much longer, despite being designated with the team’s franchise tag earlier this week. While purely speculative, Landry’s official website has been taken down, and before that, his official merchandise on the site had been priced down, signaling it may be lesser in value in the near future. These items should certainly be taken with a grain of salt but could help piece together the puzzle on whether Landry will be back with the Dolphins, or if they’re planning to ship him out via trade before long.
AFC East Notes: Suh, Jets, Bills, Cousins
The Dolphins need for current-year cap space is undeniable and the team has already reportedly made the decision to cut linebacker Lawrence Timmons and tight end Julius Thomas when the new league year begins.
Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reported earlier this week that the team was looking at all options when it came to defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and how to create space with his current deal. That included cutting the five-time Pro Bowler with a post-June 1 designation, saving the team $17MM as of June 2, or trading him, which would open $3.9MM in cap space.
There is an option in which the team could open some cap space next year with Suh’s deal, while also keeping him on the roster, which Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk broke down Saturday.
The Dolphins could essentially turn Suh’s deal into a signing bonus, reducing his salary this season to $1MM while dividing the other $15.95MM he’s set to make this season over the next three seasons. The move would immediately create $10.66MM in cap space. But Florio does note that the would move would place Suh’s 2019 cap hit at $33.5MM but it does give them an option to keep him this season while getting their desired cap room.
Here’s more from around the AFC East:
- With Jets center Wesley Johnson due to hit free agency, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News identified Iowa center James Daniels as someone the team should keep an eye on at the upcoming NFL Scouting Combine. Mehta believes that Daniels could present the Jets with a second-day option in the draft. At 6-foot-4, 295 pounds, Mehta does point out that Daniels is on the lighter side for a center but thinks he could still be a high-caliber player within the Jets’ scheme. Mehta broke down four other players the team should be looking at as well.
- The Bills are reportedly unwilling to cut quarterback Tyrod Taylor before the league year begins on March 16, meaning his $6MM roster bonus would go into effect. But both Florio and Joe Buscaglia of WKBW Buffalo opine that the move doesn’t mean the Bills are committed to hanging on to Taylor. By taking on the $6MM, they allow themselves the chance to let free agency play out, possibly opening up trade opportunities for Taylor.
- We learned earlier Saturday that while the Jets are set to pursue Kirk Cousins aggressively in free agency, they reportedly won’t give him a record-breaking $60MM in his first year, which has been suggested.
Dolphins Meet With CB Vontae Davis
Where in the world is free agent Vontae Davis? On Friday, the cornerback continued his travels by visiting with the Dolphins in Miami, according to a source who spoke with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). 
In the last week or so, Davis has met with the 49ers, Browns, Bills, and Raiders. He hopes to sign with a team before free agency opens on March 14, but not before doing his homework on several interested clubs.
Davis is in a unique position as an accomplished veteran who is free to sign with teams before most are eligible for the open market. That’s because the veteran was released by the Colts in November and did not return to the field last season. Surgery for a core injury held Davis back last season, but he recently gained medical clearance from doctors.
The Dolphins have two cornerbacks – Walt Aikens and Alterraun Verner – slated for unrestricted free agency next month. Safeties Nate Allen and Michael Thomas are also scheduled to hit the open market. As it stands, the team is slated to start Xavien Howard and Cordrea Tankersley at cornerback with T.J. McDonald and Reshad Jones at safety. In theory, Davis could bump Tankersley from the CB2 slot after the rookie earned a dismal 53.8 overall score from Pro Football Focus, placing him as the No. 93 ranked CB out of 121 qualified players last year.