Dolphins Have Competition for Jonnu Smith
News of tight end Jonnu Smith visiting the Miami Dolphins certainly merited a lot of attention, but his agent cautioned Wednesday against assuming a partnership between the two sides is a done deal.
Smith was released by the Atlanta Falcons last week and is free to sign with any team at any time.
"Jonnu, who is absolutely one of the most attractive free agent tight ends on the market right now, he had a good meeting with the Dolphins," Rosenhaus said on the Joe Rose radio show Wednesday morning. "We have had discussions, but that's really the most that I can say about that one right now. It's a fluid situation. There are other teams involved and we'll just have to see how it shakes out here over the next period of of days and such."
With the Houston Texans having re-signed Dallas Schultz, Smith absolutely is among the most desirable tight ends available this offseason, particularly for teams looking for a receiving specialist at the position.
The Dolphins certainly would (or should) fit that category after not getting a single touchdown from their tight ends in 2023.
The Dolphins have three tight ends signed for 2024 — Durham Smythe, second-year player Julian Hill and Tanner Conner, who spent all of last season on the practice squad.
If the Dolphins are serious about adding a receiving component at the position, Smith would be a great fit.
Other notable tight ends available in free agency this year including Hunter Henry, Gerald Everett, Noah Fant and Mike Gesicki, who we can't imagine the Dolphins would bring back.
Smith caught 50 of the 70 passes thrown his way last season, and turned those receptions into a career-high 583 yards and three touchdowns.
Smith is a pass-catching weapon
Throughout the course of his NFL career, which began as a pass catching specialist with the Tennessee Titans, the athletic receiver has caught 219 passes and scored 20 touchdowns.
If added, Smith would be a perfect complement for Smythe, who has primarily been used as a blocking expert throughout his six seasons in the NFL.
But the Dolphins would have to find a way to make a contract work for both sides, especially since the Dolphins have $19 million in cap space to clear before the March 13 start of the league's new year. They could sign Smith before then, but that would just add to the amount they'd need to clear to get at or under the cap limit.
Smith has a past in the AFC East
New England signed Smith to a four-year, $50 million contract during the team's spending spree in 2021. The deal included a impressive $31 million in guaranteed money, as the Patriots tried to revamp their offense in the post-Tom Brady era.
But Smith did not live up to that contract, catching just 28 passes for one touchdown in his first season with the team. In 2022 Smith caught just 27 passes (on 38 targets) for 245 yards (his lowest total since his rookie season) and zero touchdowns.
He was traded to Atlanta before the 2023 season, and while New England received just a seventh-round pick in return, the Falcons picked up the rest of his guaranteed money in the swap.
At this point it's hard to figure out what the 28-year-old is looking for outside of an opportunity, but it seems as if returning to South Florida, where the Ocala native played collegiately, is a priority.
