Sorry, other NFL teams — the Miami Dolphins have franchise tagged Jarvis Landry
Jarvis Landry looked to be one of the most sought-after wide receivers in NFL free agency…but the Miami Dolphins won’t let him get to that point.
Not long after the NFL franchise tag window opened Tuesday, Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post revealed that the Miami Dolphins were likely to use it on top wideout Jarvis Landry:
BREAKING NEWS: The Miami Dolphins are likely to use the franchise tag on Jarvis Landry, per league source
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) February 21, 2018
The team itself confirmed the move not long after:
We have placed the franchise tag on wide receiver Jarvis Landry.
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) February 21, 2018
The move will come at a hefty cost for the Dolphins — about $16 million, or the average of the league’s top five wide receiver contracts in 2018.
But it also keeps one of their best pieces on the roster and, crucially, out of the locker rooms of the league’s other 31 teams.
The news is sure to be met with disappointment around the league. Landry is the kind of player who can take an offense into overdrive from Week 1, and receiver-needy teams such as the Chicago Bears, Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers will now have to look elsewhere.
Some may consider Landry a winner in this deal ($16 million!), while others will see it as a loss (he has to stay in Miami).
Regardless of the team’s ability to contend (or not), Landry gets a windfall. Remember, this is a player who made less than $3.5 million on his rookie contract.
The 25-year-old had 112 receptions in 2017, which led the league.
Perhaps the biggest winner in this whole situation is quarterback Ryan Tannehill. After suffering two ACL tears in back-to-back seasons, Tannehill is running out of chances to prove to the Dolphins that he can be their starter of the future. And just in case he can’t, it’s likely that Miami brings in another arm this offseason.
But keeping Landry in a stable of weapons that already includes Kenny Stills and DeVante Parker gives Tannehill the starpower he needs to prove to the Dolphins that he can get the job done.
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With Landry off the market, Sammy Watkins, Allen Robinson, Terrelle Pryor and Mike Wallace are the names who will attract the most attention at wideout, though some of them (Watkins and Robinson especially) are also bound to be franchise tagged.