The Miami Dolphins have agreed to a deal with Ndamukong Suh and now players like Michael Crabtree, Shane Vereen, CJ Spiller and Ryan Mathews could be potential free agent targets for the team, as they are prepared to spend money and that could signal a willingness to make a Mike Wallace trade after releasing Brian Hartline.
The Dolphins missed the playoffs last season and the franchise has pressure to win from owner Stephen Ross, which makes the Suh signing not much of a shock. According to ESPN.com, Suh is signing a six year deal worth over $110 million and it will have $60 million guaranteed in the deal. The Dolphins have Ryan Tannehill coming back from a strong season and they will be looking to give him more weapons on offense with Hartline gone and Knowshon Moreno likely not re-signed in free agency.
According to ESPN.com, the Dolphins may look at a trade with Mike Wallace this offseason, as he is set to be a $9 million plus cap hit in 2015. The team released Hartline, Brandon Gibson and Dannell Ellerbe and that frees up a nice amount of cap space with the Suh deal coming in. Adam Schefter reports that CJ Spiller, Shane Vereen and Michael Crabtree could be potential targets for the Dolphins, with Spiller likely to be chased by a number of teams on the market.
Spiller is hitting free agency from the Bills and he is not returning after the trade for LeSean McCoy, who just signed a new deal in Buffalo. According to NFL.com, Spiller is a target for the San Francisco 49ers, Dolphins, NY Jets and Arizona Cardinals, while the Indianapolis Colts also could be a fit. Spiller is now one of the top names on the market with Frank Gore signed to the Eagles and he could be a nice pick up for the Dolphins, who now have immense pressure to win after signing Suh. Suh signed a record contract and is now the highest paid defensive player in football.
Yahoo Sports reports that "at least seven teams" are looking into Spiller and that includes the Dolphins, Jets, Arizona Cardinals, Washington Redskins, New England Patriots and 49ers. The Jets are considered the favorites right now because of their cap space and also because Spiller's former coach Chan Gailey is now with the Jets as offensive coordinator. Spiller had his best season under Gailey and he could be an option for the Patriots as well, as they may lose Shane Vereen in free agency.
Vereen is another player that is getting targeted by numerous teams, as Manish Mehta of the Daily News reports that the Jets, Dolphins and Patriots are all in the mix. The Patriots would like to retain Vereen, but with him asking for $3 million to $5 million per season, there is a chance they could let him go. Vereen caught a career best 52 balls last season and led the Pats in receptions in the Super Bowl. The Dolphins reportedly will look at trading Mike Wallace this offseason and if that happens, expect Michael Crabtree and Cecil Shorts to be targets on the free agent market.