DeVante Parker is unreliable but financially good for Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins have been rumored to be shopping DeVante Parker as late as the Senior Bowl but financially, he makes sense.

DeVante Parker is not a reliable option for the football field on Sunday. When he is healthy, Parker can be an elite receiver but getting on the field consistently is a problem. He has one full season in his career.

Miami could part ways with him this year but if they do, they will lose a supporter of Tua Tagovailoa. That isn’t a huge deal but Miami would need to replace him and that is likely going to cost more money unless they go the draft route.

Parker isn’t cheap but he makes sense in a fiscal manner. He carries an $8.7 million cap hit this year and if the Dolphins released him, they would save only $3.3 million while carrying $5.4 million in dead money.

In 2021, Parker appeared in only 10 games, starting 8 of them. He was targeted only 73 times and had 40 receptions. His 515 yards receiving was his lowest since 2018 when he played in 11 games. Naturally, Parker should be viewed as a liability given his availability.

In 2020 however, Parker played in 14 games and posted 793 yards on 63 receptions. and the year before that he posted 1,202 yards on 72 receptions. So there is at least some history of him performing well. When he is healthy, and by that I mean near 100%, he is hard to stop.

Parker may be gone this year but if he stays, he will be rather inexpensive considering Miami paid around $3 million each for Albert Wilson and Allen Hurns last season.

Miami has Parker under contract for the 2022 and ’23 seasons. In 2023, the Dolphins would gain $6 million in cap space if they cut him.

What the Dolphins do with Parker in the next month will be interesting. If they can trade him, what could they possibly get in return. A former first round pick who still has that level of talent but can’t stay on the field to showcase it.

8.7 million cap – 5.4 million dead money – 3.3 mill savings