Miami Dolphins’ Reshad Jones may have played his last game for team
By Brian Miller
He was electric, exciting, and one of the best at his position, now, the future of Reshad Jones as a Miami Dolphins is in question.
It wasn’t that long ago that the Miami Dolphins found their anchor for the secondary, Reshad Jones proved he was at or near the top in the NFL has a safety. He proved his value and his worth and he was signed to a big extension. He was to become the face of the defense.
Following his contract extension in 2017, however, injuries began to add up and eventually he wasn’t on the field as much as the Dolphins had hoped. In 2016, Jones missed 10 games but that didn’t sway the Dolphins from an extension. In 2017 he made all 16 games before missing two games in 2018 and all but four in 2019.
Missing time on the field wasn’t his biggest issue. His production on the field was. It started to drop and heading into the 2018 off-season many believed that Jones might be traded. The same was speculated this past off-season.
He became a 5th round steal in 2010 and has spent his entire career with the Dolphins. Now, he may have played his last game in Miami.
Jones was placed on season-ending injured reserve on Wednesday and while his season is no longer in question, it is his future that will now be questioned.
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Jones is the highest-paid player on the Dolphins roster this year. His cap number comes in at just over $17 million and change. His dead cap number would have been a little over $25 million if he had been released during the Dolphins’ early roster purge. Instead, Jones stayed as a veteran leader for a young defense. But he has only played four games this year.
Next year Jones will count $15.6 million against the cap but his dead cap amount drops to $8 million and the Dolphins would save $7.5 million in space leaving only a $500k differential.
The biggest factor, however, may be the focus of the team to get younger. Miami has committed to rebuilding and with Jones’ body starting to show the wear and tear of a 10-year veteran, it is very likely that barring an accepted reduction in his salary, that Jones will have played his final game in Miami.
Jones, if he is indeed released after the season, will finish his career with two Pro Bowl’s, 2015 and 2017, and will have ranked 12th all-time in Dolphins history for interceptions with 21.