The Miami Dolphins are just 23-25 over the last three years. As a whole, they appear to be stuck in a period of averageness, unable to break through to the upper rung of the AFC. That needs to change soon if head coach Joe Philbin wants to keep his job.
One way to go about that change is to keep good players in town. Specifically, 2012 draftees Lamar Miller and Olivier Vernon are entering the final years of their rookie contracts. Their futures with the team are up in the air at the moment.
"Both have proven well worth the investment - Vernon collecting 18 sacks over the past two seasons, Miller seizing a starting job and ranking among the league leaders in per-carry average in 2014," Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote.
"But with both players a year away from unrestricted free agency, questions about their futures will linger until resolution.
"The Dolphins, who open training camp on Thursday, prefer to keep both players but cannot say for sure if they will be able to, according to a club source."
Jackson goes on to say that the team has engaged in early talks with Miller but has not gotten to the meat-and-potatoes of contract details. There have not been any discussions with Vernon to this point.
The Dolphins are already above the 2016 salary cap, which may force them to restructure Ndamukong Suh's massive deal just one year after signing him in free agency. It also may force the team to make some tough decisions when it comes to personnel.
The Dolphins invested a fifth-round pick into Boise State running back Jay Ajayi this year. At 6-foot-0 and 221 pounds, Miami is confident Ajayi can eventually become a three-down back, making Miller a tad more expendable when negotiations start to ramp up.
As for Vernon, the young defense end could be looking for a contract similar to Cameron Jordan's five-year, $55 million deal with the New Orleans Saints. That number could rise if he has a big 2015 season. The Dolphins have the option of placing a $15 million franchise tag on him for the 2016 season, though that would further muddle Miami's salary cap situation.
It's clear that there are pros and cons to keeping Miller and Vernon in Dolphins uniforms. They are good players, but are they good enough to justify clogging Miami's salary cap space? We'll just have to wait and see.
