The best news that came out of the Miami Dolphins' training camp session on Wednesday was that they didn't lose another cornerback.
Wednesday started horribly for Miami, as Mike McDaniel announced that Kader Kohou's season is over after suffering a knee injury earlier in the week. The news on Ashtyn Davis was better, but a timetable for his return isn't yet known.
With Kohou injury and Artie Burns suffering season-ending injuries, Miami must continue to look for reinforcements, if only to get through training camp. There are options on the free-agent market, but the best targets may not become available until the end of August, when teams begin trimming their rosters to 53 players.
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Which free-agent cornerbacks are available? The top three choices continue to be Asante Samuel Jr., Rasul Douglas, and Stephon Gilmore. The Dolphins have not made an offer to anyone but Douglas.
Douglas has so far turned down Miami's offers, and general manager Chris Grier may have to turn his attention elsewhere at this point as injuries continue to mount.
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If not one of those three, the Dolphins' other top options continue to be thin, as seen by these top 10 options that are still available (not including Samuel, Douglas, or Gilmore).
Player | Age | Starts/Games |
|---|---|---|
James Bradberry | 31 | 124/125 |
C.J. Henderson | 26 | 32/49 |
Emmanuel Moseley | 29 | 33/48 |
MIchael Davis | 30 | 76/122 |
Fabian Moreau | 31 | 56/135 |
Jalen Mills | 31 | 91/115 |
Daryl Worley | 30 | 64/99 |
Christian Matthew | 28 | 3/20 |
Cameron Sutton | 30 | 58/110 |
The focus on who has the most interceptions is almost irrelevant at this point. Availability and experience are what need to be weighed, but there are exceptions. Christian Matthew lacks experience, but he comes from a system that Anthony Weaver coached and modeled his defense after. Matthew's experience came while with the Baltimore Ravens.
Grier needs the help, but overspending on free agents who won't provide much relief is not the way to go, despite the needs on the roster. While Miami can't wait until the season starts to find help, there will be an influx of cornerback help when teams start paring down their rosters in early September.
Between now and then, the list of available CBs will continue to ebb and flow around the league with players being added and released. Grier could look to make a bargain trade for a corner, but he doesn't have a lot of players who carry value in the trade market. That limits his options unless he dips into future draft picks, something no one wants to see him do.