Miami Dolphins biggest problem is money

It was nice to see the little feature on Andre Branch and his mom a couple of weeks ago. He bought her a house after signing his new contract but Branch is nowhere near worth $10 million he will be paid in 2018. A cap hit that would actually increase by $1.1 million if he is released. This was not a smart move.

Miami loves Branch so much that they not only are paying him double-digit millions but they also drafted a defensive end in round one and traded for a defensive end (William Hayes).

Kiko Alonso is one of my favorite players (I like his energy) but honestly, I realize that he is a liability in a lot of situations. He struggles in coverage and at times will take the wrong pursuit angles as well. He had a very solid 2016 season and thanks to the play last year and Miami’s horrible linebacker situation, Miami rewarded Alonso with a contract that will cost the team $13.1 million should they cut him. While they save $5 million, his actual 2018 cap number will be just south of $10 million.

Perhaps the biggest question regarding salary is what the Dolphins did with Koa Misi. Misi could have been released and Miami would have saved almost $2 million in cap space. Instead they guaranteed the money for the season without knowing if he would play at all. He was never cleared to play in time for training camp and was place on IR.

These are the problems with the Dolphins front office. Making decisions that make little sense. Another example was cutting the contract of William Hayes from two seasons to one. This makes him a free agent at the end of the year and gave Miami no real relief in cap clearance.

Fans love Cameron Wake and Wake is a face of this franchise. As such it’s clear why you pay him a premium. His production on the field is strong as well. At over $7 million this season it is money that is well spent. In 2018 that number climbs to over $8 million. Miami has the cap relief by cutting him saving almost all of it but can they really release the teams most popular player?

Kenny Still has been productive this year and it was reported that he opted to accept a little less money to stay in Miami but his contract again would cost the Dolphins $13 million in 2018 if they released him. What if Stills didn’t work out? Miami has a lot of money tied into a wide-receiver with no way out until at the earliest 2019.

Building for the future and securing players for the future is always a good idea but when you are paying a large amont of cap space to two players (Tannehill and Suh) you are really not afforded an opportunity to spen frivolously on other players. More to the point, taking risks with big money contracts like Branch, Stills, and Alonso.