2:00pm: Misi and the Dolphins have now finalized an agreement on a restructured contract, tweets Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. According to Cole (via Twitter), the new deal won’t tack on any extra years beyond 2017.
11:55am: The Dolphins are nearing an agreement with Koa Misi on a restructured contract for the 2016 season, reports Alex Marvez of FOX Sports. The terms of the new deal aren’t yet known.
Misi, 29, played nearly 750 defensive snaps for the Dolphins in 2015, the most of any of the club’s linebackers. In 13 games, the former second-round pick recorded 77 tackles and one pass defended, and while his traditional stats weren’t overly impressive, he was viewed as a strong run defender by Pro Football Focus’ grades. PFF ranked Misi 22nd out of 97 qualified linebackers.
Still, Misi’s lack of playmaking ability (he had no sacks, interceptions, or forced fumbles in 2015), and his inability to stay healthy for a full season (he has missed eight games over the last two seasons) made him a candidate to be released this winter as the Dolphins explore potential upgrades at linebacker.
Misi had been in line for a $4.275MM base salary to go along with a $4.878MM cap hit for the coming season, so a restructured contract with the Dolphins would likely reduce both of those figures, while guaranteeing him a modest chunk of money up front.
Even if Misi returns to Miami on a new deal, the Dolphins are expected to bring in a couple new linebackers this offseason to compete for starting roles and to challenge Misi and Jelani Jenkins for playing time.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.