3 surprise cuts the Dolphins could make this offseason
As the Miami Dolphins look to take the next step in 2021, these three players could be surprise cuts this offseason.
The Miami Dolphins followed a strong finish in 2019 with a 10-6 record in 2020. They didn’t make the playoffs, but that next step is on the doorstep for 2021. Two first-round picks, including the No. 3 overall pick courtesy of a trade with the Houston Texans, is a nice luxury among a lot of draft capital. Of course there’s the lingering idea they’ll trade for Deshaun Watson.
The Dolphins devoted a lot of cap space to their defense last offseason, and the results showed as they went from 32nd to sixth in scoring defense from 2019 to 2020. This offseason, with $22.8 million in cap space right now (via Over The Cap), it looks like it’ll be the offense’s turn.
Even though they’re in good shape, the Dolphins could try to create even more cap room. In that effort, these three players could be surprise cuts.
3 surprise offseason cuts the Miami Dolphins could make
3. DE Emmanuel Ogbah
Ogbah led the Dolphins in sacks (nine) and quarterback hits (21) last season. But a closer look shows eight of those sacks came in the first nine games, and the eight came within eight games from Week 2-Week 10. Some of that might just have been dumb luck (or lack thereof), as he was credited with five quarterback hits in Week 13 but didn’t get a sack.
Most pressures among edge players from Weeks 13-16:
— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) December 29, 2020
1) Carl Lawson (23)
2) Haason Reddick (22)
3) Olivier Vernon (20)
4t) Emmanuel Ogbah (18)
4t) Markus Golden (18)
6) Shaquill Barrett (17)
7) #Jaguars DE K'Lavon Chaisson (16)
Ogbah’s snap rates remained pretty steady across all 16 games in 2020, with a dip below 70 percent (but still 60 percent or above) twice. So the production drop-off points to a possible hidden injury, but late in the season he was still generating plenty of pressure. So maybe it was simply bad luck his sack production dried up.
But if Miami is disheartened by the inconsistency, and saw deeper reasons why it happened upon checking out “the film,” Ogbah’s $7.5 million cap hit in the final year of his contract is ripe for the picking on their otherwise well-situated balance sheet. The Dolphins can clear all that money, with no dead money left behind, if they cut Ogbah.