Dolphins To Release RB Raheem Mostert
Raheem Mostert faced an uncertain future after the end of the 2024 campaign, but that has now been resolved. The veteran running back will not be back with the Dolphins next season. 
Mostert has been informed by the Dolphins that he will not be retained for 2025 (as noted by agent Brett Tessler). One year remained on his pact, but instead Miami will move forward with a release. This marks a notable turn of events compared to where things stood between team and player one year ago.
[RELATED: Dolphins Cut Kendall Fuller, Durham Smythe]
Returning to Miami on a one-year free agent deal in 2022, Mostert gave head coach Mike McDaniel a familiar option in the backfield after they worked together with the 49ers. Mostert was a key figure on offense with 891 rushing yards; his 4.9 yards per carry average indicated he could remain a leading contributor in the backfield for years to come. As such, it came as no surprise when the Dolphins re-signed him on a two-year, $5.6MM pact.
That investment proved to be highly effective in 2023, a campaign in which Mostert topped 1,000 yards on the ground for the first time in his career. The former UDFA led the NFL in rushing (18) and total (21) touchdowns, playing a central role in Miami’s ground attack. That year also saw rookie De’Von Achane emerge as an important member of the team’s backfield, however, so questions loomed about Mostert’s position in the organization in spite of another new deal being agreed to last year.
In 2024, Achane took over lead back duties with 203 carries. Mostert, by contrast, saw his usage plummet to just 85 attempts; as a result, today’s news does not come as a surprise. By releasing the 32-year-old, Miami will free up $2.95MM in cap space while generating a dead money charge of $1MM. The Dolphins were among the teams which entered Friday over the projected 2025 salary cap, so more cost-shedding moves will be required.
Mostert’s attention will now turn to free agency, and once his release becomes official he will be able to sign with a new team before the league year begins in March. Veteran running backs have generally struggled to land long-term deals on the open market in recent years, although several teams made notable backfield commitments last spring. That could help the Purdue product find a new team, but on the other hand the 2025 draft class is seen as having a number of high-profile running backs. Another short-term opportunity will likely await Mostert as a result.
The Dolphins have Achane on the books through 2026, and he will be expected to continue handling RB1 duties over at least the near future. 2024 fourth-rounder Jaylen Wright is another young backfield option the team can plan around, but veteran Jeff Wilson is a pending free agent. A departure by the latter, coupled with Mostert’s release, would leave Miami in need of a depth addition this offseason.
Dolphins Cut Kendall Fuller, Durham Smythe
The Dolphins continued to trim their roster on Friday, releasing cornerback Kendall Fuller and tight end Durham Smythe.
Fuller signed a two-year deal with the Dolphins last March and started 11 games as a boundary cornerback in 2024. He ended the season on injured reserve with no interceptions and seven passes defended. The nine-year veteran will likely receive interest as a free agent on another short-term deal, especially since he will not count against the compensatory pick formula as a cap casualty. The Dolphins, meanwhile, will need to find another cornerback to start opposite Jalen Ramsey.
Smythe was the team’s longest tenured player after landing in Miami as a fourth-round pick in 2018. He emerged as a starter in his second year, but was used primarily as a blocker. The 29-year-old has never topped 40 receptions or 400 receiving yards in a single-season and has just three career touchdowns despite his 6-foot-6, 246-pound frame. He signed a three-year extension with the Dolphins in 2023, but saw his role diminish in 2024 due to Jonnu Smith‘s breakout. Smythe’s lack of receiving upside will limit his free agency market, but he will likely find a new home as an experienced blocking tight end. The Dolphins have Smith under contract in 2025 as well as fullback Alec Ingold, so they’re most likely to address the position through the draft.
Like Raheem Mostert‘s release reported earlier in the day, the roster moves are primarily driven by Miami’s current salary cap burden. The Dolphins started the day more than $13MM over the projected 2025 salary cap, per OverTheCap, but Fuller’s release will save $2.671MM in cap space. Cutting Durham frees another $2.175MM, leading to total cap savings of just under $7MM (including Mostert).
Combined, the three players will also account for $9MM of dead cap space in 2025. Since the Dolphins have to become cap-compliant by the start of the new league year on March 12, they could not use post-June 1 designations to spread out the dead money between two years.
The Dolphins remain $5.4MM over the projected 2025 cap, so a few additional moves will be necessary to get below the cap with enough money for free agency and the team’s incoming rookie class. Restructuring the contracts of Tua Tagovailoa or Bradley Chubb could free up to $30MM, giving Miami enough financial room to navigate the offseason.
Dolphins To Meet With Terron Armstead, Plan To Invest In O-Line
As Tua Tagovailoa‘s injury issues resurfaced, the Dolphins exited the 2024 season with major questions along their offensive line. Chief among them: Terron Armstead‘s future. After matching his career high with 15 games played, the veteran left tackle once again is undecided about sticking around.
Armstead has not determined if he will play a 13th NFL season, and The Athletic’s Dianna Russini indicates the decorated left tackle will soon meet with Dolphins brass about his future. Armstead’s five-year, $75MM contract runs through the 2026 season, but the ex-Saints draftee has taken a year-to-year approach recently.
By this time in 2024, Armstead had not yet decided to play, and Grier said last April the Dolphins had to prepare as though last season would be the five-time Pro Bowler’s finale. It appears the team still wants to extend the partnership with the oft-injured tackle.
Pro Football Focus slotted Armstead as the No. 4 overall tackle last season, though ESPN’s win rate metrics did not place the veteran blocker in the top 10 in run blocking or in pass protection. Armstead, 33, is due a $13.3MM base salary this coming season. That money is nonguaranteed, but the two void years Miami inserted into this contract would result in an $18MM-plus dead money bill if Armstead retires this year.
Armstead retiring would open a spot for 2024 second-round pick Patrick Paul at LT, but Miami has more questions along its interior O-line. The team did not re-sign Robert Hunt or Connor Williams in 2024, and while Aaron Brewer is tied to a three-year deal, the team has guards Liam Eichenberg, Robert Jones and Isaiah Wynn due for free agency. Wynn experienced a setback during rehab from his 2024 quad injury, per ESPN.com’s Marcel Louis-Jacques and only played in three games (103 total snaps). As could be expected, the Dolphins will make moves to address their front soon.
“We had some players that were very confident in [O-line coach] Butch [Barry] and Mike [McDaniel],” Grier said, via Louis-Jacques. “Those guys, I thought, deserved some praise because of what they had done the year before. And they started out the year well and unfortunately, injuries got to us, we didn’t finish well … We’re going to have to invest in the offensive line now.”
Kendall Lamm is not expected back, and would-be swing tackle Kion Smith is also unsigned after suffering an ACL tear during the preseason. The Dolphins still have Austin Jackson tied to a $12MM-per-year accord that runs through 2026, with he and Brewer — PFF’s No. 8 center last season — providing some stability for the team.
As was the case last year, the Dolphins need to make moves to reach cap compliance before the start of the league year next month. OverTheCap projects Miami to be more than $11MM over the to-be-determined 2025 salary ceiling. A Trey Smith push appears unrealistic, and the money allocated at tackle, center, wide receiver and quarterback may require a measured approach at guard in free agency — before a likely draft investment at the position.
Ex-Texans OC Bobby Slowik Joins Dolphins
It didn’t take too long for Bobby Slowik to find another job in the NFL. About two and a half weeks after being fired by the Texans, the former coordinator will rebound by reuniting with his old boss from San Francisco. Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Slowik will join the Dolphins as senior passing game coordinator. 
Slowik worked alongside Miami head coach Mike McDaniel when the two were in San Francisco together from 2017 to 2021. McDaniel started in 2017 as the run game coordinator before spending that final season as offensive coordinator. Slowik began with the Niners as a defensive quality control coach before becoming an offensive assistant in 2019 and getting promoted to offensive pass game specialist in 2021. When McDaniel left for Miami in 2022, Slowik was named offensive passing game coordinator. The next year, Slowik followed DeMeco Ryans to Houston for his first offensive coordinator job.
During his first year as a coordinator and play-caller, Slowik oversaw an offense which posted middling numbers in terms of both yards and points. The Texans’ ground game left plenty to be desired, but a superb rookie campaign from quarterback C.J. Stroud helped lead the team to the divisional round of the playoffs. Slowik was among the hottest head coaching candidates during last year’s cycle as a result.
This past campaign saw a regression from his unit; Houston was marginally better on the ground with running back Joe Mixon leading the way, but a major drop-off in passing efficiency led to questions about the Texans’ postseason chances at the onset of the playoffs. While the team managed a home upset against the Chargers, it was, once again, eliminated in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Following their elimination from the postseason, Slowik didn’t garner nearly the same head coaching interest as he did last year, though he did log an interview with the Jets. The young coach’s momentum, in fact, took a U-turn with Houston relieving him of his duties. He’ll now start working towards a second coordinator opportunity through his work with the Dolphins.
The “senior” in Slowik’s new title is doing a bit of work, as Miami already has a passing game coordinator in quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell. According to ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques, Bevell’s title, one he’s held since 2022, will not change with the arrival of Slowik. Bevell, 55, will continue to serve as quarterbacks coach & passing game coordinator, while Slowik, 37, will serve as senior passing game coordinator.
Updated 2025 NFL Draft Order
With Super Bowl LIX in the books, the 2024 campaign has come to a close. The final first-round order for April’s draft is now set as a result.
All 32 teams currently own a Day 1 selection, leaving the door open to each one adding a prospect in the first round for the first time since expansion in 2002. Any number of trades will no doubt take place between now and the draft, though, and it will be interesting to see how teams maneuver in the lead-in to the event. Of course, Tennessee in particular will be worth watching closely with a move to sell off the No. 1 pick being seen as a distinct possibility.
A weak quarterback class will leave teams like the Titans, Browns, Giants and Raiders with plenty of key offseason decisions. The free agent and trade markets do not offer many short-term alternatives which are seen as surefire additions, and teams which do not make moves in March will rely on the incoming group of rookies as part of their efforts to find a long-term solution under center. The two prospects seen as the clear-cut top options in 2025, however, are two-way Colorado star Travis Hunter and Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter.
For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2024 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.
Here is a final look at the first-round order:
- Tennessee Titans (3-14)
- Cleveland Browns (3-14)
- New York Giants (3-14)
- New England Patriots (4-13)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13)
- Las Vegas Raiders (4-13)
- New York Jets (5-12)
- Carolina Panthers (5-12)
- New Orleans Saints (5-12)
- Chicago Bears (5-12)
- San Francisco 49ers (6-11)
- Dallas Cowboys (7-10)
- Miami Dolphins (8-9)
- Indianapolis Colts (8-9)
- Atlanta Falcons (8-9)
- Arizona Cardinals (8-9)
- Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)
- Seattle Seahawks (10-7)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
- Denver Broncos (10-7)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
- Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
- Green Bay Packers (11-6)
- Minnesota Vikings (14-3)
- Houston Texans (10-7)
- Los Angeles Rams (10-7)
- Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
- Detroit Lions (15-2)
- Washington Commanders (12-5)
- Buffalo Bills (13-4)
- Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)
- Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)
Tyreek Hill Wants To Stay With Dolphins
Tyreek Hill‘s odd ending to the 2024 season involved checking himself out of the Dolphins’ Week 18 game and indicating soon after he was eager to move on from the team. This came despite Hill refusing to request a trade as he angled for an updated contract last year. The Dolphins gave him that revised deal, adding to the confusion at season’s end.
Hill’s agent pointed to his client being prepared to circle back to the Dolphins in January, and GM Chris Grier had indicated no trade request had come out even after the future Hall of Famer’s actions in New Jersey. A month later, Hill is indeed ready to move forward with the Dolphins.
During an appearance on Up & Adams, Hill told Kay Adams he wants to stay in Miami (video links). The nine-year veteran, when asked if he was apologizing to teammates for his behavior in Week 18, said they “already know” he is not that type of player. Hill certainly has enjoyed a complicated career, complete with significant off-field trouble in college and then in Kansas City — before the 2023 marina incident while with the Dolphins — but he has proven to be one of his era’s best wide receivers.
As it stands, it looks like the Dolphins can plan on another Hill-centered passing attack taking shape in 2025. That said, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson notes Hill’s January actions were aimed more at wanting the team to make roster augmentations, to avoid another playoff absence, rather than him wanting out. Though, Hill specifically saying, “I’m out,” does contradict that. On a separate Super Bowl-week appearance (via Pro Football Talk), Hill said he takes full accountability for what happened last month.
Although three seasons remained on Hill’s four-year, $120MM extension, the Dolphins gave into the WR talent’s wishes for an infusion of guaranteed money on his deal. No years were added, but Hill saw $54MM of his current contract become fully guaranteed via the reworking. Hill spent two years as the NFL’s highest-paid wide receiver, and although Justin Jefferson and others surpassed him in 2024, the decorated speedster is still doing quite well in Miami. The Dolphins also paid Jaylen Waddle, giving the younger player more in total guarantees, but saw both starters take major steps back this past season.
Hill failed to reach 1,000 yards for the first time since 2019, an injury-shortened season, totaling 959 in a year Tua Tagovailoa missed six games. Hill also sustained a significant wrist injury during a joint practice in August but opted to play through it; no surgery is on tap. As the Dolphins are presently pot-committed with Hill and Waddle, they will hope for better Tagovailoa health restoring order in a high-end passing attack.
Dolphins Eyeing Marcus Mariota, Andy Dalton?
After cycling through a handful of backup quarterbacks in 2024, the Dolphins are determined to find a capable contingency plan for Tua Tagovailoa. That search could lead them to a former first-round pick, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported today that the Dolphins could be a suitor for free agent QB Marcus Mariota (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald).
[RELATED: Dolphins To Prioritize Backup QB Job]
Schefter noted the friendship between Mariota and Tagovailoa, plus the lack of state income taxes. While Mariota’s stats have generally been underwhelming throughout his career, he’s shown an ability to keep his team afloat. In 74 career starts, the former second-overall pick has gone 34-40, including a three-year span with the Titans where he finished with a winning record.
Most recently, Mariota has served as a backup in stops with the Raiders, Falcons, Eagles, and Commanders. He did garner 13 starts with Atlanta in 2022, but he’s otherwise been held to a bench role over the past five seasons. Over that span, Mariota has completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 2,977 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He spent the 2024 campaign in Washington, where he tossed four touchdowns in three relief appearances.
Jackson adds another name to Miami’s impending search: Andy Dalton, with the reporter noting that the veteran is “held in high regard” by the organization. Dalton has garnered starts at all of his post-Bengals stops, although that wasn’t always necessarily the plan. The 37-year-old got five starts for the Panthers this past season while filling in for the struggling Bryce Young, with Dalton guiding his squad to only a 1-4 record while tossing seven touchdowns vs. six interceptions.
While the Dolphins pursued “a couple of top-flight backup QBs” last offseason, the team ultimately stuck with Skylar Thompson as their initial QB2 while releasing Mike White from the roster. Thompson only got one start for the Dolphins, as the team also gave Tyler Huntley and Tim Boyle looks under center. The trio of backup options represented a clear step back from Tagovailoa, and when the QB1 was sidelined early in the season, the Dolphins were limited to only 40 total points in four games. The Dolphins are clearly looking to avoid a similar situation in 2025.
Raiders Interview Jerrod Johnson; Darrell Bevell Seen As OC Frontrunner
This week has seen many coordinator dominoes fall around the NFL. The Raiders are among the teams still in need of an OC hire, though, and their search on that front continues. 
[RELATED: Raiders Retain Patrick Graham As DC]
Vegas has interviewed Jerrod Johnson for the offensive coordinator vacancy, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reports. That marks the third opening Houston’s quarterbacks coach has been connected to for this year’s hiring cycle. The meeting represents the fourth time a candidate has been linked to the Raiders’ opening, although only the second to take part in a known interview.
Johnson has been a full-time NFL coach since 2020, having previously spent time with the Colts and Vikings. He was part of DeMeco Ryans’ initial Texans staff, and he continued in his role as QBs coach this past season. The 35-year-old has a relationship with C.J. Stroud predating their time together in Houston, a factor which helps make him a logical internal replacement candidate for the Texans. Johnson recently interviewed for Bobby Slowik’s former position, while the Jets were also named as a potential landing spot (although they have since hired Tanner Engstrand as their OC).
While Johnson has received consideration for the Vegas gig, he does not appear to be in pole position. Darrell Bevell is expected to be the eventual Raiders hire in this case, per KRPC2’s Aaron Wilson. That update comes as no surprise considering Bevell’s history with head coach Pete Carroll. The two worked together from 2011-17 with the Seahawks, the second of four NFL teams Bevell has served as an OC for. The 55-year-old has spent the past three seasons as the Dolphins’ QBs coach and pass-game coordinator.
Shortly after Bevell’s name surfaced as a strong contender, the Raiders interviewed him. A fifth OC opportunity could soon await him as a result, although as Wilson notes the team’s search is still active. It will be interesting to see if Johnson draws strong interest from Vegas with a Houston promotion still possible as things stand. In any case, the Raiders could still expand their list of candidates during the waning stages of the hiring cycle.
Via PFR’s OC/DC Tracker, here is an updated look at where things stand with the Raiders:
- Darrell Bevell, quarterbacks coach (Dolphins): Interviewed 1/28; frontrunner
- Bo Hardegree, quarterbacks coach (Titans): Mentioned as candidate
- Jerrod Johnson, quarterbacks coach (Texans): Interviewed
- David Shaw, senior personnel executive (Broncos): Mentioned as candidate; hired by Lions
Titans Add Reggie McKenzie To Front Office, Make More Coaching Staff Changes
Brian Callahan‘s first season in Tennessee wasn’t an ideal one. Following a 6-11 season that led to Mike Vrabel‘s dismissal, the Titans went a dismal 3-14 in Callahan’s first year as head coach. Naturally, Callahan and new general manager Mike Borgonzi are opting to make some changes across both the coaching and front office staffs this offseason in an attempt to turn things around, per Titans senior writer/editor Jim Wyatt. 
In the front office, we already reported on Tennessee’s additions of Borgonzi as GM and Dave Ziegler as assistant general manager. In support of these two, the Titans have opted to bring on former Dolphins senior personnel executive Reggie McKenzie as vice president of football advisor.
McKenzie, a former pro linebacker from 1985-92, began his front office career just two years after his playing career came to an end. He began as a pro personnel assistant for the Packers in 1994, elevating to pro personnel director in 1997, and director of football operations in 2008. After 18 years in Green Bay, McKenzie was hired as general manager of the Raiders in 2012, holding the role for seven seasons before getting fired. He rebounded in his most recent role in Miami, which he held for six years before leaving for this new role in Tennessee.
The coaching staff is where many more changes are taking place. First off, tight ends coach Justin Outten, passing game coordinator/cornerbacks coach Chris Harris, and special teams assistant Anthony Levine are not expected to remain on Callahan’s staff in 2025. After they were initially retained in Callahan’s first year at the helm, the contracts of Outten, Harris, and Levine have expired and won’t be extended. Another holdover from the previous staff, Luke Stocker earned a promotion. After serving last year as assistant tight ends coach, he has earned the full role of tight ends coach for 2025.
Replacing Harris as passing game coordinator/cornerbacks coach will be Tony Oden, a former senior defensive assistant/cornerbacks coach with the Jets, where he mentored players like Sauce Gardner. In 19 years of NFL experience, Oden has worked on the staffs of the Texans, Saints, Jaguars, Buccaneers, Lions, Dolphins, and 49ers. He’ll now join his eighth NFL franchise and his third in the AFC South.
We had already reported the addition of John Fassel as the new special teams coordinator. Following Fassel from the Cowboys‘ staff will be Rayna Stewart. A former NFL safety for two franchises currently in the AFC South, Stewart served the past three years as assistant special teams coach under Fassel in Dallas and will take on the same role in Nashville.
Lastly, having their fingers in both the front office and coaching pots, Scott Cohen has accepted the role of director of football strategy, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Cohen served this past year as a consultant for the Titans after nine years in the Ravens front office, most recently as director of football research. In his new role, Cohen will collaborate with Callahan and president of football operations Chad Brinker.
AFC Coaching Rumors: Rizzi, Broncos, Browns, Musgrave, Dolphins, Colts, Bengals
Mickey Loomis has been linked to wanting to tie his to-be-determined next HC to some of Dennis Allen‘s contracted assistants, but Mike McCarthy may not see eye-to-eye with that approach. This has introduced one of the potential hurdles in McCarthy’s path back to New Orleans. McCarthy’s view could affect the Broncos‘ staff as well, as 9News’ Mike Klis notes that he or Kellen Moore landing the Saints’ HC job could well lead Darren Rizzi to rejoin Sean Payton in Denver. Before the coaching carousel started to spin, the Saints moving Rizzi from interim HC to another staff position — presumably back to the special teams coordinator role — was likely. But the Broncos are among the teams interested in poaching him if the Saints let the ex-Payton hire out of his deal. Rizzi and Payton coached together for three seasons.
The Broncos have seen two of their staffers — pass-game coordinator John Morton and tight ends coach Declan Doyle — become OCs elsewhere (Lions, Bears). But they are retaining Vance Joseph for a third season; DBs coach Jim Leonhard is also staying, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. Leonhard is believed to have drawn DC interest from three teams, and while it is interesting that no interviews are taking place (as Denver cannot block them), the former Wisconsin DC and Broncos safety will stick around.
Here is the latest from the AFC coaching ranks:
- The Browns kept their OC post internal, elevating Tommy Rees, and they will do the same with their QBs coaching role. The team interviewed Giants assistant QBs coach Christian Jones for the job, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets, but they are instead shifting veteran Bill Musgrave to that position (via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo). Musgrave, 57, is a six-time NFL OC — with the Eagles, Panthers, Jaguars, Vikings, Raiders and Broncos — and served as a senior offensive assistant on the past two Browns staffs. The Browns are backstopping their 32-year-old OC with considerable experience.
- Former Cardinals and Giants DC James Bettcher has landed another gig under Lou Anarumo. The new Colts DC is adding Bettcher as linebackers coach, Pelissero tweets. Bettcher, 46, served as the Bengals’ LBs coach from 2022-24. He had previously headed up the Arizona and New York defenses in the 2010s but has since settled back on the positional level. This will also be a second tour of duty for Bettcher in Indianapolis; he coached under Chuck Pagano in 2012, before following Bruce Arians — Indy’s acting HC during Pagano’s cancer battle that year — to Arizona.
- The Bengals will replace Bettcher with Mike Hodges, who will come over from the Saints. New Orleans had employed Hodges, 38, as its linebackers coach from 2020-24. Overall, Hodges spent eight seasons under Dennis Allen in the Big Easy, making it a bit interesting he is headed to Cincinnati than following Allen to Chicago.
- Two new staffers are joining the Dolphins. Craig Aukerman is set to lead Miami’s ST units, Pelissero adds. An NFL staffer for 14 years, Aukerman spent 10 seasons with the Titans, staying on staff through four HCs. A 2023 game that featured two Tennessee punts blocked and standout punter Ryan Stonehouse suffering a serious knee injury led to Aukerman’s firing, and he did not coach in 2024. The Dolphins are also hiring Robert Prince as their wide receivers coach, per Pelissero. Prince has not previously coached under Mike McDaniel, but he has been an NFL assistant since 2004. After seven seasons with the Lions and a 2021 stop in Houston, he coached the Cowboys’ WRs for the past three years.
- Circling back to Denver, the team is moving on from one of Joseph’s staffers. Greg Manusky will not be back as the Broncos‘ linebackers coach, Pelissero offers. The Broncos’ linebackers were perhaps the weak point on a top-five defense this season, though the unit lost top tackler Alex Singleton in Week 2. A four-time NFL DC, Manusky spent the past two seasons as Denver’s ILBs coach.