Dolphins Potential FA Target: WR Kenny Golladay
Because of the Miami Dolphins' clear need for playmakers on offense, they have been associated with some of the top wide receivers who will become free to sign with another team March 17.
At the top of the list is Kenny Golladay of the Detroit Lions, who SI writer Conor Orr chose him as the one free agent who represents the best fit for the Dolphins.
We break down Golladay as a potential free agent option for the Dolphins.
CAREER OVERVIEW
Golladay spent the past four seasons with the Lions after being a third-round pick in the 2017 NFL draft out of Northern Illinois. ... Golladay started 39 of 47 games for Detroit, including all 16 in 2019 but only five in 2020 when he was sidelined by a hip injury. ... Golladay had 1,063 receiving yards in 2018 and followed that with 1,190 yards in 2019 when he averaged 18.3 yards per reception, scored 11 touchdowns and was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time.
MARKET VALUE AND PROJECTED CONTRACT
5 years/$85 million, $17 million annually, per spotrac.com.
Golladay has been extremely impressive ever since entering the league. The wideout proved that he wasn’t just a big guy with athleticism early in his career with Detroit. The tall and smooth wide receiver has put up tremendous numbers since entering the league (47 games, 183 catches, 3,068 yards, 21 touchdowns). Golladay has shown excellent ability to win on contested balls, using outstanding body control and strong hands as well as elite concentration. He has also proven to be a very smooth mover for his size. At 6-foot-4, he has proven to be able to separate from corners with movement alone using solid knee flexibility to bend in routes. Golladay’s major flaw is that he is not an elite separator. He needs a quarterback that can trust the amount of space he has created and trust that he will come down with the ball. Matthew Stafford did trust him in these situations, but with Stafford traded and the arrival of Jared Goff, either way if Golladay leaves, he will have to build that trust with another quarterback. As long as Golladay is used as a top option in an offense, he is worthy of big money for the position and should be in high demand as a top-three free-agent receiver.
POTENTIAL FIT WITH THE DOLPHINS
Read Golladay's scouting report carefully and please tell us who that sounds like. Take a minute. OK, here's a hint: tall, "excellent ability to win on contested balls," not an elite separator. Sure sounds like DeVante Parker, doesn't it? So here's the thing: If Parker can stay healthy, is Golladay really an upgrade? Does he bring something different to the offense? The answer is not really. And based on the projected deal Golladay might get, it sure seems like unnecessary spending ... unless, of course, the Dolphins decide to move on from Parker, which they could do with a post-June 1 designation that would save them $9.2 million against the cap with $2.7 million of dead space. But maybe it also would just make more sense to go for a different type of wide receiver, either a sure-handed slot guy like JuJu Smith-Schuster or a speedy outside type like John Brown or T.Y. Hilton.
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Alain Poupart has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 as an editor for Dolphin Digest, write for miamidolphins.com and now publisher of SI All Dolphins. You can follow him on Twitter at @apoupartFins.
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