Xavien Howard holdout headed to trade consideration. Why and what will solve issue

Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores this week called the Xavien Howard mandatory minicamp contract holdout a “unique situation,” because it’s practically unheard of for any NFL player to want to renegotiate his contract with four seasons remaining on a deal that fully kicked in only one year before.

On it’s face it sounds like crazy stuff for any player to do this.

And it would generally be thought a crazy response for any team to make the issue go away by bowing to the player’s renewed contract demands. Because contracts are supposed to mean something and Howard, like it or not, agreed to his current deal and took the upfront $14 million in 2019 during the final year of his rookie contract.

But, again, this is a “unique situation.”

The problem for the Dolphins is they authored this “unique situation.” They supplied the kindling for this fire. So they should not be surprised that it’s burning now.

And it could get very much hotter before the regular-season opener arrives in September because, barring a resolution, the next step is a training camp holdout and the end game after that is likely going to be Howard requesting a trade sometime in August ...

... Or the Dolphins making Howard available in trade on their own.

And none of that seems to advance the cause of the Dolphins reaching the playoffs in the coming season.

But that’s where we’re headed unless the Dolphins somehow give Howard more money or Howard agrees to walk back his request for more that his agent has been making since February.

A trade scenario will eventually be in play here, folks. No matter what the interested parties admit in public, that’s going to be a serious consideration for all sides.

And, yes, that sounds kind of more serious than a player holding out from a minicamp.

Because it is.

The Dolphins can fine Howard $93,085 for missing their three-day minicamp — he’s already missed two of those days — and he apparently is jeopardizing another $25,000 for missing the team’s OTA sessions as well.

So Howard is invested in his stand.

And that stand is about being the highest-paid player at his position on his own team and being perhaps the highest-paid (or close to it) cornerback in the NFL.

To understand what Howard wants we must know he signed a $75.25 million extension in 2019 that included $27,185,641 fully guaranteed.

But one year after the Dolphins gave Howard that extension, they signed Byron Jones in free agency to a five-year, $82.5 million deal with $46 million fully guaranteed.

The issue?

Howard is more productive than Jones but is making less than Jones.

Jones came to Miami having picked off two passes in five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. Howard signed his deal the year before having 11 interceptions in three seasons for Miami.

Then last year, as Miami teammates, Jones had two interceptions and Howard led the entire NFL with 10 interceptions and was named to the All-Pro team.

So Howard doesn’t love making less than his less productive teammate.

And the Dolphins apparently didn’t think that would be a problem when they signed Jones. So the Dolphins are reaping from a situation they created.

And, yes, that is “unique situation” because teams typically don’t sign less productive players for more money than what the more productive players on their roster are making.

The Dolphins probably don’t see it this way. Their viewpoint, as articulated by Flores this week, is the club signs players one year and the next year other players often set the financial bar higher by signing bigger deals.

“It’s a renegotiation of an extension after one year and it’s honestly something that hasn’t been done before,” Flores said. “I’m not saying that we’re drawing a line in the sand, but different players set the market every year.”

One would expect the coach to defend the team’s bargaining position. It’s part of his job. Plus, Flores and general manager Chris Grier own this situation because the Howard extension in 2019 and the Jones signing last year came on their watch.

But the idea that a renegotiation one year into a new contract is unique is debatable.

Because the Dolphins themselves recently renegotiated multiple contracts one year after signing.

The team signed Kyle Van Noy to a four-year, $51 million contract last year — an average of $12.75 million per season. And in March the club effectively renegotiated that deal by cutting Van Noy one year into his deal.

Van Noy is now in New England playing for half what he signed to get this year in Miami.

The Dolphins did something similar with guard Ereck Flowers. They signed him to a three-year deal to play in his hometown. And when the club’s thinking changed after one season, the Dolphins traded Flowers back to Washington.

More?

Flores hired multiple coaches his first two years, signing all of them to contracts with Miami. And after one year, Flores renegotiated one of the basic terms of those deals — where you work — by firing those guys.

In the case of offensive line coach Pat Flaherty the firing happened mere days into the coach’s first training camp with Miami, so Flores didn’t wait a year to renegotiate.

All those were a “unique situation,” but it didn’t stop the Dolphins from making the moves.

So what’s the problem making a move to keep the NFL’s most productive cornerback in the fold and avoiding a bunch of drama?

For the Dolphins to make this issue disappear they would have to make Howard the highest-paid corner on his own team.

That’s going to take maybe $10 million in fully guaranteed money during the next four seasons to get him past Jones, who the Dolphins signed last year to a deal that averages $16.5 million with $46 million of his deal fully guaranteed.

(Before anyone thinks of it, Jones isn’t going to complain about Howard suddenly getting more money than him because, logically, the defensive back with more interceptions should get more money.)

Making Howard the highest-paid player at this position leaguewide would be a steeper mountain because Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey averages $20 million per season. So Howard, averaging around $15 million per season, is about $20 million short of equaling that mark during the next four seasons.

That would be difficult for Miami to do, and it seems that’s where the negotiation portion of any renegotiation has to factor.

So why is this important?

The Dolphins base much of their defense on the idea their high-quality cornerbacks can lock down outside receivers, allowing defensive coordinator Josh Boyer to double receivers elsewhere or bring extra pressure on the quarterback.

But the whole approach generally collapses if the cornerbacks cannot usually win against receivers in one-on-one situations. The whole approach suffers if the Dolphins don’t have 2020’s most productive NFL cornerback.