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The Miami Dolphins are starting their final mandatory workout in the offseason, but cornerback Xavien Howard has yet to show up. Head coach Brian Flores did not seem to be really surprised at all in Howard’s no-show on Tuesday, though, saying that when it comes to the player’s situation, it’s something that is unusual in more ways than one.
“Brian Flores says Xavien Howard is a “very unique” situation in terms of a player asking for a contract renegotiation essentially after one year on new portion of deal. Says it’s never been done before though he’s not “drawing line in the sand” on a new deal.”
It was not that long ago when the Dolphins inked Xavien Howard to a huge five-year extension deal worth $75.25 million back in 2019, but apparently, he wants a new contract. It’s possible that Howard is trying to fully capitalize on his incredible performance in the 2020 NFL season in which he paced the rest of the league with 10 interceptions. It was also just the second time in his career that he played 16 games and expecting him to repeat that in 2021 can be a risky bet, considering that he has a history of having difficulties in staying healthy for a full campaign.
Howard was a big reason why the Dolphins were fourth overall in 2020 in scoring defense (21.1 per game) and second in opponents’ interception thrown percentage (3.3%). The 27-year-old Baylor product is slated to earn $12.075 million in 2021, $12.3 million in 2022, $11.4 million in 2023, and $11.6 million in 2023.