Who will be the next UDFA star for Miami?
The Miami Dolphins have had some success with undrafted free agents (UDFA) contributing to the team quickly.
Will Miami find more UDFA’s who can make huge impacts on the roster? Only time will tell. Here are a few current Dolphins who have made an impact.
His body of work and relentless pass rushing ability has dominated offensive linemen and quarterbacks in the AFC East since 2009. Although Wake was signed to a UDFA contract after the 2005 NFL Draft, he was released by the New York Giants in June of that year. He then signed a free agent contract the CFL team the BC Lions in May 2007. After his 2008 season, Wake commanded attention from many NFL teams and ended up working out for several. In the end, Wake decided to sign an UDFA contract with the Miami Dolphins. It was a four-year deal with a $1 million signing bonus and could be worth up to $4.9 million.
John Denney was a UDFA in 2005. Miami signed the UDFA rookie after the 2005 NFL Draft. John Denney is still signed to the Miami Dolphin’s 53-man roster and is the longest tenured Dolphin. His primary role as the long-snapper for the Miami Dolphins. Denney will definitely go down as one of the Dolphins’ greats and one day an NFL legend for his tenure to one team being a UDFA.
In 2008, Dan Carpenter and Davone Bess were signed to UDFA contracts. Bess worked wonders for Chad Pennington as a slot receiver who stepped up for injured WR Greg Camarillo that season. He ranked third among rookies in receptions with 54, and today it is still the second most in NFL history for a Rookie UDFA wide receiver, behind Wayne Chrebet.
Honarable Mention UDFAs: Jonathan Freeny – 2011. Jonas Gray – 2012. Derrick Shelby – 2012. Jordan Kovacs – 2013. Sam Brenner – 2013. Damien Williams – 2014. Matt Darr – 2015. Andrew Franks – 2015
2015 – 2016 UDFAs
Mike Hull, Neville Hewitt, Akil Blount, James Burgess, Rashawn Scott, Lafayette Pitts.
The 2017 UDFAs:
Joby Saint Fleur, DE, Oklahoma State – Cameron Malveaux, DE, Houston – Chase Allen, ILB, Southern Illinois -Praise Martin-Oguike, OLB, Temple – Larry Hope, CB, Akron – Torry McTyer, CB, UNLV – Maurice Smith, FS, Georgia – Matthew Haack, P, Arizona State
Eric Smith, OG, OT, Virginia – De’Veon Smith, RB, Michigan – Malcolm Lewis, WR, Miami – Francis Owusu, WR, Stanford – Drew Morgan, WR, Arkansas – Damore’ea Stringefellow, WR, Ole Miss
I don’t see a punter knocking off Matt Darr for a long time. I’m not sure if there is any more room for another WR, however don’t sleep on any of the UDFA group at this position. They all have play-making abilities and have fight in them. De’Veon Smith is an abusive runner with size, look for him to one day start making some buzz. Just not with Miami. The RB group is packed for now. Rookie training camp starts this weekend. Let’s find out who makes an impact #TheNewMiami.