What Wilkins’ Departure Got the Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins lost a core piece and emotional leader when Christian Wilkins left in free agency, but they gained something very significant this offseason: financial flexibility.

After the first wave of NFL free agency, it’s clear that the Dolphins’ ability to add a large number of players was due to their willingness to let Wilkins go, even though it was painful.

“I’d be the first to say, I absolutely love Christian Wilkins as a player and his game,” head coach Mike McDaniel said at the NFL owners meetings. “But there is this whole thing about the salary cap, and when money goes to one place, it doesn’t go to another. … The bottom line was we’ve never doubted Christian as a player, but you have to make some tough decisions when you’re thinking of the whole scope of the team. Realistically, it’s a lot more difficult than we want all the best players. There are times like that when you have good players on your team, something that you’re hoping to – a problem derived from drafting a good player and developing him is that we’ve made a multitude of moves with our relationship towards the salary cap, that it probably wouldn’t have existed with that.”

THE CHRISTIAN WILKINS “REPLACEMENTS”
Of course, the Dolphins’ ability to add so many players this offseason was aided by how they structured those new contracts, with vacant years becoming prevalent to reduce the first-year cap amount.

The Dolphins have brought in 13 new players, not including the two defensive tackles signed before the start of free agency, Daviyon Nixon and Isaiah Mack. LB Jordyn Brooks, TE Jonnu Smith, LB Shaquil Barrett, C Aaron Brewer, CB Kendall Fuller, S Jordan Poyer, CB Siran Neal, T Jack Driscoll, DT Benito Jones, DT Neville Gallimore, DT Jonathan Harris, LB Anthony Walker Jr., and tight end Jody Fortson.

According to Over The Cap, none of these players have a 2024 cap number that exceeds $2.8 million.

Wilkins, meanwhile, will cost the Las Vegas Raiders $10.3 million after signing a four-year, $110 million contract, with his cap figure exceeding $30 million each of the next three years.

Looking only at 2024, the Dolphins acquired Brooks, Fuller, Barrett, and Brewer for $10.5 million in salary space.

The Dolphins’ choice not to use the franchise tag on Wilkins was also questioned, and it will be fascinating to see how it impacted what they were able to do with that cap space.

The franchise tag for defensive tackles this year was $22 million, which Wilkins would have counted against the cap unless a new agreement was in place.

With the same amount of cap space, the Dolphins signed their ten most costly free agency acquisitions (by cap number): Brooks, Fuller, Barrett, Brewer, Smith, Poyer, Neal, and three of four from Driscoll, Jones, Gallimore, and Harris.

Call it quantity over quality or bargain shopping if you want, but it’s impossible to argue that the Dolphins were better served by being able to add so many players rather than ensuring the retention of Wilkins, a very good player but not quite good enough to justify the kind of sacrifice he would have required.