Miami Dolphins will have money in ’22 because they don’t spend on Oline

Dec 20, 2020; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; New England Patriots linebacker Josh Uche (53) reaches around Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Austin Jackson (73) to sack quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2020; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; New England Patriots linebacker Josh Uche (53) reaches around Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Austin Jackson (73) to sack quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Miami Dolphins are expected to be one of the teams with the highest amount of cap space in 2022 if not the most of any team. With their spending on the offensive line, it isn’t a surprise.

The Dolphins are ranked second in the NFL in the least amount of money spent on their offensive line. Only the Steelers at $15.1 million are lower. The Dolphins? They come in at $20 million and change for their offensive line.

While that is very low, Miami does have Robert Hunt, Solomon Kindley, Michael Dieter, Austin Jackson, Liam Eichenberg, and Larnel Coleman all on their rookie contracts. Jesse Davis, at $4.5 million, is the highest paid lineman, and we can all agree that he is overpaid this season.

The Dolphins are expected to have somewhere over $80 million in cap space next year and they have to spend on offensive lineman. The problem is that many fans don’t believe Chris Grier puts that same value on the positions.

Consider that Brian Flores is a Bill Belichick disciple and the Patriots are the 10th team on the list of low end allocation of funds on offensive lineman. The Patriots have developed their line over the years and have no problems watching them leave when it comes time to pay them. It appears that the same philosophy is in play now in south Florida.

If Brian Flores and Chris Grier want to keep their jobs beyond the 2022 season, they will need to get better on the offensive line. If they believe that the players are fine and only need developed then they need to hire a new line coach. Regardless, they need to figure out what they are doing because the play is atrocious. After the game on Sunday, Robert Hunt said the linemen unit is “pissed off” at how they played against the Texans. We all are.