The Miami Dolphins continue to make offseason moves, re-signing one of their homegrown talents in cornerback Nik Needham, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Nik Needham Returns to Miami Dolphins
Needham was signed last season to a one-year deal worth about $1.8M, even though he was recovering from an Achilles tendon injury that he suffered in October. But, with the impeding release of Xavien Howard, the Dolphins need some depth.
Once he returned from the PUP list, he only played in 10 games where he was limited to 71 snaps on defense. However, in the past five seasons as a Dolphin, he’s started in 27 of the 51 total games he’s played.
Though he might be returning to the team, he’ll need to compete for a starting role against Cam Smith, a 2023 second round pick, and Kader Kohou, both who played very sparingly, but are looking for some playing time behind Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
Needham was used by Miami as their primary nickel corner in 2020 and 2021, but it looks like Kohou has solidifed himself in the role of Miami’s nickel cornerback, even with his struggles in 2023. However, Needham was never really given the opportunity to prove himself as he was coming back from injury and Miami had other options.
Details on the Needham Deal
While no details of Needham’s deal, first reported by the Miami Herald, have been revealed, based on his $1.8M deal last season, it’s likely that this new deal won’t be anything substantial, especially after he contributed very little to the team last year.
On defense and special teams, Needham played a total of 102 snaps, which was about 400 lower than what he had contributed in his first three seasons. In his five seasons with Miami, he’s contributed six interceptions, three sacks, 99 tackles, and broke up 25 passes. He’s primarily a cornerback, but he’s been called on to play both a cornerback and safety in the last three years.
Needham becomes the sixth player re-signed or added by the Dolphins just this week. This comes after Miami signed tight end Jonnu Smith to a two-year, $10M deal, and also re-signed punter Jake Bailey and safety Elijah Campbell. The team also added two defensive tackles in Isaiah Mack and Daviyon Nixon, who will be helpful in renovating last year’s roster.
What’ll happen with the Dolphins defense moving forward is still a huge question mark. However, re-signing Needham was a step in the right direction in terms of keeping Miami’s defense a strong force.
Wednesday begins the free agent frenzy. Miami is still $25 million over the salary cap and will have to make some tough decisions and cut some players and renegotiate some cap-friendly contracts with those they want to keep around in order to have the room to welcome new players and offer some new contracts.
If they want to make competitive offers, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald said that the Dolphins need to clear at least $40 million in space; Teams can start talking with other teams’ free agents starting at noon on Monday, but they can’t actually sign anyone until Wednesday afternoon.
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