The Dolphins reached out to free agent OT Taylor Lewan over a month ago, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). There have been no conversations between the two sides since that time.
Lewan, 32 in July, was released by the Titans earlier this year after nine seasons in Tennessee. He made three consecutive Pro Bowls from 2016-18 and maintained his usual high standard of play in 2019. Unfortunately, injuries began to take their toll thereafter.
Lewan suffered ACL tears in 2020 and 2022, and he said before his release that he was contemplating retirement. Shortly before this week’s draft, the blocker himself indicated that the Dolphins had “called” him (via Omar Kelly of SI.com), but as noted by Jackson, that communication was some time ago and appears to have been more exploratory in nature.
Nonetheless, assuming Lewan does want to continue his playing career, he could begin to receive more interest now that the draft is in the books and teams have a better idea of what their offensive lines will look like in 2023. For their part, the ‘Fins had just four selections in this year’s draft and used their seventh-round pick on Michigan OT Ryan Hayes. That will hardly preclude GM Chris Grier from continuing to look for veteran upgrades if he is so inclined.
Though Grier recently indicated that the team still views 2020 first-rounder Austin Jackson as its starting right tackle, Miami reportedly showed interest in free agent OT George Fant this offseason. And, given that he played just two games in 2022 and has generally underperformed relative to his draft status, Jackson is not exactly a sure thing at this point.
Lewan has never taken a snap at right tackle in his career, but with southpaw Tua Tagovailoa under center, the RT on the Dolphins’ line operates as the club’s blindside blocker. In light of Tagovailoa’s concussion concerns, that role is especially critical.
Last year’s free agent acquisition Terron Armstead earned Pro Bowl acclaim in his first year in South Beach and is entrenched as Miami’s left tackle.