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Xavien Howard was released by the Miami Dolphins this offseason, allowing the All-Pro cornerback to hit the market at 30 years old. Howard, who played in the fewest games of his career in 2023, could make an impact for a contending team as a veteran. Of the potential landing spots, Zack Cook of SportsGrid predicts the Dallas Cowboys will sign Howard.
Cook questions if Howard can return to being a lockdown corner in 2024, a fair question after allowing the highest completion percentage of his career in seasons he played more than five games in.
“Xavien Howard was released by the Miami Dolphins this offseason. Howard’s health was a question mark in 2023, but we know what he’s capable of when he’s on the field. Did he lose a step, or can he return to being a lockdown corner in 2024? The talent didn’t go anywhere, but we know what can happen when a defender loses a step.”
Why the Dolphins Released Howard
The Miami Dolphins released Howard to create cap space. Releasing Howard saved $18.5 million on the salary cap by making his release a post-June 1 designation.
Howard expected it to happen, according to Kevin Patra of NFL.com.
“I was expecting it to happen,” he said. “In this business you know how it goes. You feel it. Eight years here, and I’ve seen the business side of it so many times. … Me and my agent talked about it before we signed our last deal that that’s how it was gonna happen, and it ended up happening. I wasn’t surprised at all.”
The Dolphins already found their replacement in Kendall Fuller, a Super Bowl champion with the Kansas City Chiefs who most recently for with the Washington Commanders.
Fuller signed a two-year deal worth $15 million, so the deal also saved the Dolphins money.
How Howard Would Help the Cowboys
While Howard has dealt with injuries during his time with the Miami Dolphins, he’s still a four-time Pro Bowl selection and finished top three in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2020. In that 2020 season, Howard led the league in interceptions with 10, two seasons after leading the league with seven.
The Dallas Cowboys or any team that signs him would hope to get half of that, but Howard has just two interceptions in the past two seasons combined.
Matthew Lenix of Blogging The Boys writes that the Cowboys can show they’re all in by pursuing Howard.
“Things are a little different these days, or so says team owner Jerry Jones. After retaining head coach Mike McCarthy despite another early exit in the playoffs, Jones says the team is ‘all in’ for the 2024 season. We’ll, they can show that by pursuing one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks, Xavien Howard.”
Lenix also writes that due to Trevon Diggs’s ACL injury, it’s uncertain how long it’ll take for him to get back to himself.
“The Cowboys will get Trevon Diggs back next season, but coming off a torn ACL, there’s no telling how long it will take for him to get back to himself although a year will have past once he’s back at it.”
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