A year after signing three unrestricted free agents to address the worst pass rush in the NFL, the Miami Dolphins are going to be back searching for pass rush help in free agency on Monday.
Monday is the first day NFL teams can begin to negotiate with the agents for looming free agents and the Dolphins, according to league sources, are planning to cast their net quite wide to try and lure at least one pass rusher to the club in the coming days.
That seemed likely before the team agreed to trade away edge linebacker Shaq Lawson on Sunday.
It’s obvious now.
This is a big deal. Pass rush and quarterback disruption is key to NFL success, as the top four teams and seven of the top 10 teams to lead the league in pressure made the postseason in 2020.
The Dolphins, by the way addressed this need last year when they signed Emmanuel Ogbah, Lawson and Kyle Van Noy. And the team’s sack total rose from 23, which was last in the NFL in 2019, to 41, which was 11th in the NFL in 2020. But, obviously, both Lawson and Van Noy are gone now.
So coach Brian Flores and general manager Chris Grier need to go back for more. And hopefully better.
There are multiple small problem with this:
One issue is that despite there being an ample number of pass rush candidates about to hit free agency, many of them have shown no consistency in their careers, or are older or are coming off injuries. Many are one-year wonders so far.
Issue No 2 is there are also multiple teams with ample salary cap space wanting pass rushers. Those include the New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals, and San Francisco 49ers -- all of which have more salary cap space than the Dolphins.
So the Dolphins must somehow find the pass rusher sweet spot:
A player who fits the scheme (Lawson didn’t fit as well as Miami wanted), might choose Miami over a team offering more, and ultimately delivers on his potential in 2021.
The annual salary for most of the top-tier edge rushers will be in the $17 million to $20 million per year range. A couple might get more.
And, again, there is no shortage of rushers ready to hit the market Monday:
Shaquil Barrett (Buccaneers): Let’s start with the fact last week Tom Brady wrote on social media about keeping the band together and Barrett replied, “Yes sir,” which suggests he expects to be back in Tampa. But ...
Barrett, 28, was something of disappointment during the 2020 regular season when he recorded just eight sacks. Eight sacks was a disappointment. Let that sink in. And I guess that’s fair because he had 19.5 sacks the previous year, but eight sacks is a solid year. Barrett was excellent in the postseason -- collecting eight quarterback hits and four sacks in as many games.
Haason Reddick (Cardinals): So the one-year wonder concerns are here because Reddick delivered 12.5 sacks in 2020 and that’s more than the previous three years combined. But the mitigating factor is the Cardinals were using him as an inside linebacker before December of 2019. Last year he not only grew into his pass rush role, but did so without the help of Chandler Jones, who was injured.
Romeo Okwara (Lions): So he played in a scheme run by former Patriots defensive coach Matt Patricia and that’s similar to the scheme run by former Patriots defensive coach Brian Flores. He had 18 quarterback hits, 11 tackles for loss and a career-high 10 sacks. In fact, Okwara registered as many sacks in 2020 as he did in his first four seasons combined. The concern, of course, is that he waited until his contract year to break out and he’s a so-called one-year wonder.
Bud Dupree (Steelers): If he hadn’t torn his ACL in December, he’d be getting ready to sign a monster deal. But because of that injury, Dupree might become something of a bargain after collecting 19.5 sacks the last two seasons. The issue here is obviously recovery from the injury and whether the Dolphins are willing to gamble.
Carl Lawson (Bengals): The 5 sacks a season ago aren’t going to wow anyone. The Dolphins had their own guy named Lawson who four sacks and that got him traded. But Lawson led the NFL with 32 quarterback hits. And he didn’t have a lot of help on that Bengals defense. He’s only 25 years old and has Southeastern Conference pedigree, having played at Auburn -- the Dolphins love SEC players. The curious question is why the Bengals, which have over $41 million in salary cap room, haven’t re-signed Lawson? The other issue is the Cleveland Browns are said to like Lawson -- a lot.
Trey Hendrickson (Saints): He’s arrived and he played locally at Florida Atlantic University but he might not be a perfect fit. Hendrickson delivered a career high 13.5 sacks last season. He also had 25 quarterback hits. The issue is he never did this before last season and he is more a classic 4-3 defensive end. One supposes the Dolphins could obviously make adjustments and allow for Hendrickson’s most valuable trait, which is rushing the passer.
Matt Judon (Ravens): He’s a former fifth-round pick who has delivered consistently although not with spectacular pass rush numbers. He had six sacks and 21 quarterback hits in 2020, numbers not quite as good as 2019 when he was healthier and had 9.5 sacks and 33 QB hits.
Ryan Kerrigan (WFT): Bill Parcells loved Kerrigan in the 2011 draft and it would’ve been great if he could have selected him because he’s been to the Pro Bowl four times. The thing is he’s 32 years old now, has been phased out in Washington, and is a 30-40 percent of the snaps guy now. If the Dolphins are signing Kerrigan they likely failed in their attempt to sign a full-time player and it won’t be a long-term deal.
Melvin Ingram (Chargers): Zero sacks last season. He’s 31 years old. He’s on this list based on what he’s done years ago, not what he’s likely to do going forward.
