Where Howard’s new deal is ranked
A look at biggest contracts Dolphins have ever given out
The fact that Xavien Howard got the largest deal for a cornerback in NFL history from the Miami Dolphins this month shouldn’t be too surprising because the Dolphins have a long history of doling out recordsetting contracts the past few decades.
Whether it was making Ndamukong Suh the highest-paid defender in NFL history at the time, creating a pace-setting deal for a contract given to a rookie offensive lineman, or the two receivers Miami made the highest-paid players at their position, the Dolphins’ history shows that the franchise isn’t scared to write big checks.
Here is a look at the 15-largest contracts the Dolphins have signed players to:
15. Pass rusher Cameron Wake — $33.5 million
Wake signed a five-year contract extension with the Dolphins that was worth a total of $33.5 million, with $20 million of it guaranteed. Wake also got two one-year extensions worth $8 million apiece, which brings his total haul from the Dolphins to $53 million for the past 10 seasons. Wake wasn’t re-signed by the Dolphins this offseason and
landed a three-year,
$23 million deal with the Titans, which guaranteed him $10 million.
14. Offensive tackle Vernon Carey —
$42 million
Carey signed a six-year, $42 million deal ($15 million guaranteed) with Miami in 2009. That contract made the former University of Miami standout the NFL’s highest-paid right tackle at the time. Carey would play his entire career with the Dolphins, serving as a starter for 107 games, before retiring in 2012.
13. Linebacker Karlos Dansby — $43 million
Dansby signed a fiveyear, $43 million deal ($22 million guaranteed) as a free agent in 2010. Dansby earned $27 million in his three seasons in Miami before being released after the 2012 season. He played five more seasons at a relatively high level for the Cardinals, Bengals and Browns before retiring in 2018.
12. Pass rusher Jason Taylor — $45 million
Taylor, a Hall of Fame pass rusher, got a six-year, $45 million deal ($10 million guaranteed) from Miami in 2004. That was Taylor’s second mega deal from the Dolphins. It followed a six-year, $42 million deal he signed in 2001, which was restructured after three seasons to give Miami cap space.
11. Offensive tackle Branden Albert —
$47 million
Albert got a five-year, $47 million deal ($26 million guaranteed) from Miami in 2014. Albert would net $28.5 million from the Dolphins for the next three seasons before Miami traded him to Jacksonville in 2017 on a deal that didn’t produce a draft pick because Albert subsequently retired before playing a game for the Jaguars.
10. Defensive tackle Daryl Gardener — $49.5 million
In 2000, the Dolphins signed Gardener to an eight-year, $49.5 million extension. After signing the extension, the franchise’s 1996 first-round pick played two seasons in Miami before being released because of back issues, and off-thefield trouble he got into that summer. He signed with Washington as a free agent but only spent one season with the Redskins before ending his eight-year career with the Denver Broncos.
9. Receiver Brandon Marshall — $50 million
In 2010, the Dolphins traded a second-round pick for Marshall and signed him to a five-year,
$50 million deal ($24 guaranteed). At the time, the deal made Marshall the NFL’s highest-paid receiver. He only spent two seasons with the Dolphins before getting traded to the Bears for a two third-round picks in 2012 because former coach Joe Philbin didn’t want him on the roster. He spent two seasons in Chicago before he was traded to the Jets, where he spent another two seasons.
8. Center Mike Pouncey — $52.15 million
Instead of having Pouncey play on the fifthyear option of his contract, the Dolphins signed the Pro Bowler to a five-year extension worth $52.15 million ($22 million guaranteed) the summer of 2015. Pouncey would earn $28 million from the Dolphins for the next three seasons before getting released in 2018.
7. Cornerback Sam Madison — $54 million
In 1999, the Dolphins agreed to an eight-year, $54 million deal with Madison, which at the time was the richest deal in team history. Madison, a fourtime Pro Bowler, received an $11 million signing bonus. After doing the deal, Madison played seven seasons for the Dolphins then played three more seasons for the Giants before retiring.
6. Offensive tackle Jake Long — $57.75 million
As the first overall pick in the 2008 NFL draft Long received a five-year, $57.75 million deal
($30 million guaranteed). At that time, the contract made the rookie the highest-paid offensive lineman in the NFL. Long played all five of those seasons in Miami, but wasn’t resigned in 2013 because of his injury history. He played for the then St. Louis Rams, Falcons and Vikings before retiring in 2017.
4. (tie) Safety Reshad Jones — $60 million
Jones signed the second of his two substantial deals with Miami in 2017, landing a five-year, $60 million extension ($35 million guaranteed). Jones, who will earn $13.1 million this coming season, will have earned $56 million from the nine seasons he has played for the Dolphins at the end of this year.
4. (tie) Receiver Mike Wallace — $60 million
Wallace signed a fiveyear, $60 million deal ($27 million guaranteed) in 2013. Wallace got $37 million over the first three years of the deal before Miami traded him and a seventh-round pick to the Vikings for a 2015 fifthround pick because of Wallace’s relationship with former quarterback Ryan Tannehill and Philbin turned sour. Wallace lasted one season with the Vikings before being released. He spent the next two seasons with the Ravens, and last season with the Eagles.
3. Cornerback Xavien Howard — $75.25 million
The Dolphins recently signed Howard to a fiveyear extension worth $75.25 million, which is the largest contract given to an NFL cornerback in league history. Howard will receive $39 million over the first three seasons of the six-year deal (which includes the final year of his rookie contract), and the final three years feature opt-in seasons for Miami that will pay him $12,975,000 in 2022,
$12 million in 2023 and $12,250,000 in 2024, which happens to be the season he’ll turn 31.
2. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill — $96 million
Tannehill got a five-year, $96 million deal ($45 million guaranteed) the summer of 2015. The deal was one of the first contracts done by former executive Mike Tannenbaum when he was named the vice president of football operations. Miami could have made Tannehill, their 2012 first-round pick, play out the final year of his rookie deal, and then his fifth-year option in 2016 and saved a ton of money. Tannehill made $67.5 million in the seven seasons he spent in Miami before being traded to the Titans this offseason.
1. Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh — $114.4 million
Suh signed a six-year, $114.4 million contract with Miami that featured a $25.5 million signing bonus, guaranteed the defensive tackle $60 million over the first three years, and made him the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history in 2015. And those three seasons are exactly how long Suh lasted in Miami before being released and eventually signing with the Los Angeles Rams.