$12.6 million cut from recently acquired TE Thomas’ contract

Newly acquired Miami Dolphins tight end Julius Thomas restructured his contract, eliminating $12.6 million from the deal to facilitate his trade from Jacksonville earlier this month.

Thomas, who was acquired in exchange for a seventh-round pick in next month’s draft, turned his contract into a two-year deal worth $12.2 million. According to a league source, $7.5 million of it is fully guaranteed.

He will earn $5.5 million in base salary this season, which is fully guaranteed. And in 2018, the seven-year veteran, who turns 29 in June, will earn $6.5 million in base salary, of which $2 million is fully guaranteed. He also has $100,000 workout bonuses in both years.

For comparison sake, the Dolphins gave Jordan Cameron a two-year, $15 million deal in 2015 before restructuring last year, paying him $7.5 million in 2016 and $6 million last season. Cameron retired from the NFL last month because of his concussion history.

The Jaguars gave Thomas a massive five-year, $46 million contract in 2015 to lure him from Denver as a free agent.

Before redoing his contract, Thomas carried an $8.6 million cap hit for 2017 and was guaranteed $3 million of his $7.1 million salary for 2017, which included a $100,000 workout bonus. He was slated to make $8.6 million in 2018, and $9 million in 2019.

His salary dropped $1.5 million this season, $2.1 million in 2018, and he will no longer receive that $9 million in 2019.

Thomas, who caught 24 touchdown passes in the two years he started in Denver where Dolphins head coach Adam Gase was the offensive coordinator, says he’s healthy, ready to play at “a high level” and be a key part of the Dolphins’ remodeled offense.