Dolphins CB Status: What Happens with X?

The Miami Dolphins are coming off what overall could be considered a successful season, which ended with an 11-6 record and a second consecutive playoff appearance, but there is work to be done for the team to reach the next level.

The major first step in the roster-building process will be free agency, which will kick off with the start of the new league year March 13 after the Dolphins go over their season-ending roster and decide how to proceed at each position moving forward.

With that in mind, we examine where the Dolphins stand at each position heading into free agency, with contract status of each player, a quick review of the 2023 performance and an analysis of what to expect in the offseason.

We continue with the cornerbacks.

MIAMI DOLPHINS CORNERBACKS IN 2023

On the roster: Jalen Ramsey, Xavien Howard, Kader Kohou, Eli Apple, Nik Needham, Cam Smith, Justin Bethel, Keion Crossen (spent season on IR)

2023 season: This was supposed to be a position of strength for the Dolphins and it was for a brief time in the middle of the season, but not before Ramsey returned from his training camp knee injury and after Howard was done with a foot injury in the late-season game at Baltimore. Former first-round pick Eli Apple had his moments as the main replacement at outside cornerback even if his performance was uneven, but the season at this position will be remembered (along with the injuries) for Kader Kohou taking a step back in his second season and for rookie Cam Smith being an absolute non-factor on defense when the Dolphins could have used the help.

Stats that stand out: Ramsey's opponent passer rating when targeted (per Pro Football Reference) of 51.1 was the sixth-best in the NFL and the best of his six-year career. ... Per PFR, Kohou allowed an 81.9 completion percentage in coverage, the third-worst figure in the NFL among cornerbacks targeted at least 30 times in the season. ... Howard had one interception for a second consecutive season after he had 15 combined in 2020-21. ... Smith's 19 snaps on defense were by far the least (second-lowest total was 83) that any rookie second-round pick in the NFL played on offense or defense in 2023.

THE OFFSEASON AMONG THE CORNERBACKS

Contract status: Apple, Bethel and Needham all are scheduled to become unrestricted free agents. Howard and Smith are signed through the 2026 season. Ramsey is under contract through 2025. Crossen and Kohou are signed through 2024.

Notable pending free agents around the NFL: La'Jarius Sneed, Kansas. City; Chidobe Awuzie, Cincinnati; Stephon Gilmore, Dallas; Kendall Fuller, Washington; Sean Murphy-Bunting, Tennessee; Jaylon Johnson, Chicago; Michael Davis, L.A. Chargers

Offseason outlook: There probably isn't a position on the roster where there's likely to be more activity in the offseason, and it's going to come in all forms. We can with the strong possibility that the Dolphins will restructure the contract of Ramsey to reduce his current 2024 cap number of $32.5 million. Crossen is a likely target as a cap casualty because the Dolphins easily can save $3 million that way. There will be decisions to be made with the three players scheduled to become UFAs, though none of them should be considered locks to be back. And then there's the biggest decision of all, and that's what to do with Xavien Howard. He's currently scheduled to have a $23 million cap number in 2024, which is awfully for a player who hasn't been the same the past couple of seasons (mainly because of injuries). Howard has no more guaranteed salary left and the Dolphins could save $18.5 million of cap space by making him a post-June 1 cut, though they couldn't use that space until then. Since the Dolphins would have to carry $23 million of dead space while saving only $2.8 million if they were to cut him pre-June 1, that doesn't make any sense. Of course, there's always the possibility of a restructure or pay cut, but the question then would become whether Howard would be agreeable to that and what those financial terms would look like. The best guess at this point is that Howard indeed will be released post-June 1, which then would create the need for a starting cornerback to line up opposite Ramsey. And then the Dolphins would have to decide whether that guy needs to be a free agent acquisition or somebody already on the roster, with the draft as an outside possibility.

MIAMI DOLPHINS CORNERBACKS IN 2023

THE OFFSEASON AMONG THE CORNERBACKS

Howard Preparing Himself to Move on from Dolphins