In the wake of Shaquil Barrett‘s surprising retirement announcement, the Dolphins could be reuniting with a familiar face. As the NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reports, Miami will host free agent edge defender Emmanuel Ogbah tomorrow.
Ogbah, 30, was selected by the Browns in the second round of the 2016 draft. He played in Cleveland for three seasons and was traded to the Chiefs during the 2019 offseason. After one injury-shortened year in KC, he signed a two-year, $15MM contract with the Dolphins in March 2020.
His first two years in South Beach were the best of his career, as the Nigerian defender tallied nine sacks and over 20 QB hits in each campaign and parlayed that success into a four-year, $65.4MM deal in March 2022. Unfortunately, a torn triceps sustained midway through the 2022 season altered Ogbah’s career trajectory, as he ultimately suited up for just nine games that year and played in just 25% of the Dolphins’ defensive snaps last season.
The cap-strapped Miami outfit released Ogbah in February, and although he managed to record 5.5 sacks in his limited action in 2023, there were no reports of interest in him before today. Still, with Barrett no longer in the fold and with Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb recovering from major injuries, the ‘Fins certainly need a veteran reinforcement or two, and Ogbah fits the bill.
There are a few other rotational types on the market, including players like Carl Lawson and Markus Golden. The Dolphins have the cap space to add some free agent talent, as they are expected to recover Barrett’s $5.5MM signing bonus and $6.8MM cap hit.
Well, Oof, you called it in the Shaq Barrett article. They haven’t signed him yet, but I’d say that it counts.
Sometimes things just make straightforward sense (and every once in a while those things actually happen).
The second part of that statement being rarer than the first…