We heard over the weekend that the Dolphins were about to release linebacker Philip Wheeler, and fellow linebacker Dannell Ellerbe has long been viewed as a potential cap casualty as well. For now though, both players remain on Miami’s roster. According to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports (via Twitter), the reason the Dolphins haven’t cut either player is that the team continues to try to trade both linebackers before the new league year begins.
Of course, technically, trades can’t be finalized until after the new league year gets underway, but I’d expect the Dolphins hope to reach an agreement on a deal by this afternoon and then make it official shortly thereafter.
While Miami may be holding out hope for a taker for one or both of the linebackers, the odds of a deal appear slim. After all, the club’s intention to release Wheeler has already been reported, so it seems unlikely that any team would give up anything of value for a part-time player with a 2015 salary of nearly $3MM. As for Ellerbe, his base salary for the coming year is $8.425MM, and he spent almost the entire 2014 season on injured reserve with a hip injury, so his trade value isn’t exactly through the roof either.
By the sounds of it, the Dolphins are a good bet to move on from both players whether or not they find a suitor on the trade market.