While many Miami Dolphins fans and even the national media seem to believe that the team has had a decent, if not solid, to great, offseason, the beginning of the offseason was anything but. The 2024 free agency period saw the Phins lose three of their own players, Christian Wilkins, Robert Hunt, and Andrew Van Ginkel, who they had both drafted and developed into great or even star players. Now, the Dolphins head into another season with yet three more star/emerging star players they must decide on as it applies to their long-term futures.
First is Jevon Holland. Holland is entering the final season of his rookie contract. Unlike the other two players we will discuss, he was not eligible for the fifth-year option as a second-round pick. This makes Holland the most immediate priority of the three, in my opinion. In his three seasons, Holland has cemented himself as one of the NFL’s best and most reliable safeties. It seems as if Holland is only ascending in his level of play each season, and signing him to an extension before the kickoff of the 2024 season might be the smartest option, with his price tag most likely only increasing substantially by waiting until next offseason.
Next is Jaylen Waddle. Like Holland, Waddle is entering his fourth season and has had his fifth-year option picked up as a first-round selection. While there have been many debates among the Dolphins fan base about whether or not Waddle is a true number-one wide receiver in the NFL, he has been productive in his first three seasons. In his three seasons, Waddle has had over a thousand yards receiving every season and averaged 13.5 yards per reception and 6 TDs per season. Even if the Dolphins do not see Waddle as a true number one and an eventual successor to Tyreek Hill, he will demand a much larger payday if allowed to hit the open market. Like Holland, his price tag will only increase as time passes, especially if he goes out and has an even better season in 2024 than he has had in any of his three previous seasons.
Finally, we have Jaelan Phillips. Like Waddle, Phillips was a first-round selection and has already had the Dolphins pick up his fifth-year option. Phillips was on the verge of breaking out as one of the best pass rushers in the NFL before his injury last season. Phillips is probably the one out of the three that I would wait on to see how well he returns from his 2023 season-ending injury. I might even wait until he’s in his fifth and final season of his contract if he does not return to form this coming season. We have all seen players come back from serious injury but not really be themselves until the season after the initial season that they return. I am not suggesting that this will happen with Phillips, but only that it’s possible. If he returns this coming season and by mid or late season has returned to where he was before he was injured, then I would like to see the team re-up him ASAP at that point
As a side note, the team would still have the option to franchise tag any of the three if a long-term deal is not worked out before their current contract runs out, although this would most likely result in a bigger cap hit for that player for that season.
So tonight’s question of the day is, in what order would you like to see our Miami Dolphins prioritize resigning these three players to extensions, that are entering their third NFL season? Are there any of the three that you believe would not be worth the price they will demand and should thus be allowed to walk or even floated as trade bait?
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