Dolphins Claim RB Phillip Lindsay

Phillip Lindsay‘s one-year contract did not last long on the waiver wire. Near the top of the priority list, the Dolphins submitted a successful claim, according to the running back’s agent (on Twitter).

The Dolphins will take on what is left of the $3.25MM Lindsay signed for in March. This continues a complex year for the former Broncos starter, who will now aim to contribute in Miami ahead of a likely free agency bid in 2022. The Dolphins were the only team to submit a claim on Lindsay, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.

Houston waived Lindsay on Tuesday, but the fourth-year back did not make it far down the wire. At 4-7, the Dolphins moved to add to their backfield. Miami has used former seventh-round pick Myles Gaskin as its top back this season — one that has not featured a strong run game around Tua Tagovailoa. The Dolphins, who have continued to tinker with their offensive line, rank 31st in rushing.

Lindsay’s would-be free agency springboard season has not gone the way he’d hoped. The former UDFA success story is averaging a meager 2.6 yards per tote this season, which comes after an injury-plagued 2020. This has dinged Lindsay’s stock a bit, but the ex-Colorado Buffalo still attracted interest on the wire — likely due to his historic NFL entrance. Lindsay is the only UDFA to begin his career with consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

While Lindsay was expected to negotiate an extension with the Broncos after the 2019 slate, Denver hired a new OC in Pat Shurmur and signed Melvin Gordon to a two-year, $16MM deal. That created a logjam in the Broncos’ backfield and eventually led the team to rescind its original-round RFA tender on Lindsay in March, making him a free agent. The Texans signed him but also added Mark Ingram and Rex Burkhead to the mix. Although they traded Ingram to the Saints, the Texans used Burkhead and David Johnson as their top backs in Week 11.