Bailey has been the punter for the Patriots since the team drafted him in the fifth round in 2019. He spent some time on injured reserve this past season and looked ready to return before being suspended by the team in response to missed rehabilitation appointments. In Bailey’s absence, New England relied on former Panther Michael Palardy for the rest of the season. With Palardy set to hit free agency, the Patriots will need to figure out who will be flipping the field for them next year.
Gray has been a standout special teamer for the Saints, earning first-team All-Pro honors in 2021. His new contract will be his largest yet, a three-year, $9.6MM deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The deal includes $4MM guaranteed, $2.4MM at signing, and has annual playing time incentives that could pay up to $500,000 per season. The first year’s base salary of $1.1MM is fully guaranteed for injury, followed by second- and third-year base salaries of $2.5MM and $2.6MM, respectively. The new contract has an potential maximum value of $11.1MM.
Two years ago, injuries decimated the Dolphins’ running backs room, leading to Miami turning to two former Washington Huskies: Myles Gaskin, drafted in the seventh round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and Salvon Ahmed, an undrafted rookie in 2020. After some eventual health and free agent additions over the following two years, it’s looking like Gaskin and Ahmed may be battling for a roster spot, according to ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques.
In the 2020 NFL season, Gaskin and Ahmed were the teams two leading rushers in terms of yardage. Gaskin led the team with 584 yards on 142 attempts, while Ahmed was second on the team with 319 yards on 75 carries. Both had three rushing touchdowns, trailing only Jordan Howard who scored touchdowns on 4 of his 28 carries.
Ahmed’s rookie season saw him start four games. Two of those starts still hold as his best career games. His first career start saw him run for 85 yards on 21 carries with a touchdown. His third start, five weeks later, saw him rush for 122 yards on 23 carries while scoring his second touchdown of the season.
In 2021, Ahmed was relegated back to a backup role. Gaskin started the most games for the Dolphins with 10 while Duke Johnson, now with the Bills, and Malcolm Brown, currently a free agent, started the seven remaining games. Regardless of starts, Ahmed still finished third on the team in carries and rushing yards behind only Gaskin and Johnson.
The 2022 offseason saw the Dolphins go shopping in the free agent market, signing three new running backs to the roster. Raheem Mostert will return to his home-state after spending just over five seasons on the opposite coast in San Francisco. After a 2019 season in which Mostert led the 49ers in rushing yards without starting a single game, he was tabbed as the starter the following two seasons but only played in nine games with both of those years getting cut short due to injury. Chase Edmonds will have a chance to compete for the starting job in Miami after serving as the No. 2 running back behind the likes of Kenyan Drake and James Conner during his time in Arizona. Finally, Sony Michel will head back to the AFC East after a one-year hiatus in Los Angeles. Michel’s lone year with the Rams saw him return to form after an injury-plagued season in New England.
Michel has seen the most consistent success of the three, but Mostert has shown an ability to do more with less, touting a career 5.7 yards per carry, and Edmonds has shown effectiveness rushing and receiving out of the backfield for the Cardinals. It’s anybody’s guess who could end up starting for Miami at running back, but, with three solid options, Gaskin or Ahmed may find themselves in the dog house.
Both have served the Dolphins well in their short tenures, but Gaskin has had the clear preference over Ahmed in the past two seasons, being chosen to start over Ahmed and receiving 315 carries to Ahmed’s 129. Not to mention the fact that Gaskin offers much more to the passing game than Ahmed has so far in his career. Compared to Ahmed’s 23 career receptions for 178 yards, Gaskin has 97 catches for 673 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Miami has given Ahmed an opportunity not often afforded to young, undrafted players, but, sadly, everything above could be pointing to the end of his time with the Dolphins. I expect Ahmed to hang around through the preseason, given the injury history Miami has experienced at the position over recent years, but it’s hard to picture a scenario where the Dolphins hang on to five running backs or one where Ahmed is able to beat out one of the above four.
The deadline for teams to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents looms next week. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:
The move makes both players eligible to play against the Jets; Jackson adds that, “at least one, if not both, likely would play on Sunday”. Miami’s other options at the position include veterans Malcom Brownand Duke Johnson, as recent acquisition Phillip Lindsay remains in isolation due to COVID-19 protocol.
Gaskin has been the lead back for the Dolphins this season, posting 526 yards and three touchdowns on 154 carries, adding 45 catches for 217 yards and four touchdowns in the passing game. The 24-year-old’s 3.4 yards per carry have left the Dolphins wanting more from the ground game, though, leading to moves such as claiming Lindsay in November. Ahmed, meanwhile, has chipped in 266 total scrimmage yards in his second season in Miami.
Their return would be welcome against the Jets in particular, as New York has allowed just under 139 yards per game on the ground. That, coupled with the upcoming absence of standout rookie wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, should lend itself to plenty of rushing opportunities on Sunday.
December 13th, 2021 at 12:42pm CST by Zachary Links
Dolphins running back Phillip Lindsay has tested positive for COVID-19 (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). That completes an unfortunate hat trick for Miami as all three of their running backs — Lindsay, Myles Gaskin, and Salvon Ahmed — have tested positive in advance of Sunday’s game against the Jets.
All three players are vaccinated, according to Pelissero, giving them a chance to suit up on Sunday pending additional tests. If they’re unable to play, the Dolphins will likely turn to practice squad RBs Duke Johnson and Gerrid Doaks.
The Dolphins are still fighting for a playoff berth, albeit with slim odds. Stationed at 6-7, the Dolphins currently have a 10% chance at sneaking into a Wild Card spot, according to the stats at Five Thirty Eight. A win over the Jets would keep the ‘Fins afloat — a loss would effectively rule them out of the postseason.
Lindsay, 27, hooked on with the Dolphins earlier this month after being released by the Texans. In his Week 12 debut against the Panthers, the veteran ran for 42 yards off of 12 carries. Gaskin finished with more yards in a less efficient performance — 49 yards off of 16 totes.
Less than an hour after Le’Veon Bell‘s Jets departure became official, rumors about his new team are surfacing. While Bell’s suitor list is not yet known, many around the league expect the Chiefs to be interested in the former All-Pro back, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The Chiefs made a somewhat similar move last year, signing LeSean McCoy — after the Bills cut him — to play behind then-starter Damien Williams. Kansas City used a first-round pick on Clyde Edwards-Helaire but has lower-profile backs Darrel Williams and Darwin Thompson — after Damien Williams’ July opt-out — backing up the rookie. Bell, whose disappointing Jets stay secured him nearly $30MM, will prioritize his fit in an offense and a team’s chances of contending before choosing his next destination, per Fowler. Bell returned in Week 5 from a hamstring injury and averaged 4.62 yards per carry on 13 totes in the Jets’ loss to the Cardinals.
Here is the latest from the AFC West:
While Cam Newton‘s return to the Patriots’ active roster points to the Broncos facing him and not Jarrett Stidham this week, Drew Lock also appears on the verge of a return. The Denver starter participated fully in practice Wednesday. A Week 6 return would be in the timeframe initially set after Lock’s Week 2 shoulder injury. The Broncos used two different starters, running their post-Peyton Manning total to nine, in Lock’s absence. Were Lock to be held out another week, Brett Rypien would be in line to log a second start.
Mark Barron‘s Broncos debut remains on hold. On IR because of a hamstring injury, Barron suffered a pectoral malady that will delay his return to action, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. The Broncos signed Barron late in the summer, but the former first-round pick does not have a clear-cut return date.
The Raiders are also going to be without a rotational defender for a bit. Carl Nassib suffered a broken toe during the team’s win over the Chiefs, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). It is, in fact, a big toe injury. The former Browns and Buccaneers pass rusher will likely be out a while, though a concrete timetable does not exist yet. An offseason addition, Nassib has played just more than a fourth of Las Vegas’ defensive snaps this season.
The Dolphins recently promoted running back Salvon Ahmed to their active roster. They did so after the Chargers expressed interest in poaching Ahmed off Miami’s practice squad, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Chargers are down Austin Ekeler presently and have just two backs — Justin Jackson and Joshua Kelley — on their active roster. A rookie UDFA out of Washington, Ahmed has yet to dress for an NFL game.
The Dolphins have placed left tackle Austin Jackson on IR due to a foot injury he suffered during Sunday’s loss to the Seahawks, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports (via Twitter). Although the rookie LT would be eligible to return after three weeks under the modified rules for 2020, Barry Jackson says in a full-length piece that head coach Brian Flores was non-committal when asked if Austin Jackson would be back this season.
Indeed, Flores said the team is looking for a “long-term replacement” for Austin Jackson, so it sounds as if the USC product very well may miss the rest of the year. Though Miami has several options, Barry Jackson suggests that Julie’n Davenport — who filled in for Austin Jackson during the Seattle game and played well — might have the first crack at the LT job.
Austin Jackson was the second of three first-round choices that the Dolphins had in this year’s draft. He was thrown into the fire right away, and he acquitted himself reasonably well. He had not allowed a sack this season, and he recently earned praise from his position coach.
“Austin has had a great start to this season,” offensive line coach Steve Marshall said earlier this week. “He’s learning every time he’s going out there. I’m very excited for his future. He can be a heck of a pro offensive left tackle.”
Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics considered Austin Jackson to be a below-average performer in terms of both run-blocking and pass-blocking, but he has certainly shown enough flashes to justify Marshall’s enthusiasm. One wonders if Austin Jackson’s absence will have any bearing on Flores’ decision as to when to insert rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa into the starting lineup.
To take Austin Jackson’s place on the roster, the Dolphins have promoted rookie running back Salvon Ahmed from the practice squad. As Barry Jackson observes (via Twitter), the team has liked what it has seen from the UDFA, though he will be joining a crowded RB depth chart.
Waived: RB Nathan Cottrell, TE Matthew Flanagan, OL Blake Hance, OL K.C. McDermott, OL Garrett McGhin, LS Matthew Orzech, OL Ryan Pope, OL Austen Pleasants, WR Marvelle Ross
