2015 Dolphins grades: Branden Albert

Branden Albert had his best season since joining the Miami Dolphins as a free agent prior to the 2014 season. 2015 saw him healthy most of the year after he returned from his knee injury that knocked him out of the 2014 season.

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Branden Albert – left tackle

2016 salary – $10.1 million

Albert was back to being his solid self after he returned from his knee injury. ProFootballFocus ranked him as the 29th tackle in the league which encompasses both left and right positions. He received a 75 overall grade and graded out better against the pass, 83, than against the run where he struggled at 39. Albert needs to get better on the edge and he needs to hold his blocks longer in the running game.

Miami needs Albert to stay healthy and after interim head coach opted to not practice Albert all week, he got better. It’s a practice schedule he may not be afforded with the coaching changes in place. When Albert is healthy he plays well sans the running game but Miami tends to run the other way. With the Dolphins primarily a passing team in 2015, Albert did well to hold the blindside of Ryan Tannehill.

Albert is under contract for the next three seasons but it’s very possible that he doesn’t see those seasons unless he can improve in both aspects of his game. 2016 will be an interesting year for Albert who needs to stay healthy. The Dolphins could release Albert after the 2016 season and save over $6 million in cap space but releasing him in 2017 would save $9 million with minimal dead money.

Albert’s play in 2015 earned him an alternate spot on the Pro-Bowl roster and he made the trip to Hawaii showing there was no injury issues that needed addressed this off-season.

2015 grade – B

Why a “B”?

Despite his lack of production in run blocking, Albert played well when he was on the field and the Dolphins passing game, specifically the hits on Ryan Tannehill mostly came from the inside where the guard play also drove down Albert’s ratings in the rushing game. Fixing the guard position will add more production and life to Albert’s future.