Pros and Cons of the Dolphins Extending Jordyn Brooks

The Miami Dolphins won’t have a ton of cap space this offseason, but there are a few ways to clear some more.

One way is for the Dolphins to extend All-Pro linebacker Jordyn Brooks. Brooks is in the final year of his three-year deal, so an extension would also allow the Dolphins to keep their best players and leaders for a few more seasons.

Just like we did with Aaron Brewer, we’ll be looking at what a possible extension for Brooks could look like, as well as the pros and cons of signing such a deal.

What Could Jordyn Brooks’ Extension with Dolphins Look Like?

Brooks free agent contract with the Dolphins was a three-year, $26.25 million deal, which is $8.75 million in average annual value. That places Brooks 21st in AAV among off-ball linebackers.

Given that Brooks was an All-Pro and led the NFL in tackles this season, he’s clearly due for a sizable raise.

Linebacker is a position whose AAV has been creeping up in recent seasons. Fred Warner ($21M), Roquon Smith ($20M), Tremaine Edmunds ($18M), Zach Baun ($17M), and Nick Bolton ($15M) occupy the top five.

Another thing to consider is a few upcoming free agents who could push the market slightly higher. Devin Lloyd and Nakobe Dean are both set to hit free agency, and they’re both young, budding stars at the position.

It would behoove the Dolphins to extend Brooks before they sign what free agent contract they get on the open market, because one, if not both, of them likely will increase the LB market value.

Back to Brooks, I don’t think it’s reasonable to pay him more or the same as Warner and Smith. Baun feels like a more adept comparison since he was also a breakout on his second team.

Another three-year deal would also make sense since Brooks is 28. That wouldn’t put the Dolphins on the hook for any crazy cap hits when he’s past his prime.

So, something like a three-year, $52.5 million deal would make sense as a starting point. That would put Brooks’ AAV at $17.5 million, so just ahead of Baun but behind the top two.

I’d be willing to climb to $18 million to get the deal done, but I probably wouldn’t budge on the years.

Pros of Extending Brooks

Of course, extending Brooks could allow the Dolphins to clear some cap space for this offseason. It’s unlikely to be much, but the team needs all the help it can get.

The more important benefit is that locking down an All-Pro talent for the next couple of years is good team-building process. Brooks is a stalwart run defender, capable of stacking and shedding or shooting gaps to make plays in the backfield.

He performed well early in the season despite the interior defensive linemen in front of him struggling a ton.

Brooks racked up 13 tackles for loss and a missed tackle percentage of just 4.3, according to Pro Football Focus. It’s impossible to imagine a linebacker having as many tackles as Brooks did and only missing 4.3% of the time.

Plus, he’s a valuable leader in the locker room. There were so many times when he was praised throughout the 2025 season for how he led the defense, and he was a team captain, so it’s hardly surprising.

That becomes especially valuable for a Dolphins team that is likely to flip a chunk of the roster this offseason. Miami was super young last year, and it’ll likely stay that way in 2025.

Having someone who can help a young defense in the middle would likely accelerate the Dolphins’ rebuild a little bit.

Also, the linebacker position is incredibly important in new head coach Jeff Hafley’s defense. He asks a lot of those players, so investing in that spot makes sense.

Cons of Extending Brooks

There aren’t a ton of great arguments for not extending Brooks. However, the two that make the most sense are his age and position.

He’s only 28, but any meaningful extension would push past his age-30 season. Miami’s new leadership might not want to invest in a player who would be on his third contract with an extension.

It depends on how much of a “rebuild” General Manager Jon-Eric Sullivan wants. If he’s blowing everything up, then not extending Brooks would make sense.

The other argument is positional value. Linebacker is not really viewed as a premium position across the league. That’s mostly because it’s incredibly difficult to find one who is a true game-changer, but much easier to find one who is good enough.

I’d argue that Brooks is a game-changer and that Hafley’s defense likely values linebackers more than most teams. The Packers spent two first-round picks at the position in recent years.

Still, getting one on a rookie contract is different than signing an extension that would carry the player slightly past their prime.

While it’s important to acknowledge that these roadblocks exist, extending Brooks feels like a no-brainer for the Dolphins.

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