Emmanuel

Ogbah

Miami worked out EDGE options after Shaquil Barrett recently announced his retirement from the NFL and the team settled on Ogbah, who has played for the Dolphins since 2020. The team released Ogbah, 30, in February, saving $13.7 million against the salary cap. He has just 6.5 sacks over the past two season while battling various injuries.

Ngakoue totaled 22 tackles and four sacks while playing with the Bears last season and has amassed 23.5 sacks over the last three years. The 29-year-old EDGE is currently in search of his sixth team since 2020 and could be a nice fit for a Dolphins team that saw their pass-rushing corps get decimated by injuries last season. In addition to Ngakoue, the Dolphins also worked out Emmanuel Ogbah, who remains unsigned after spending the last four years with the Dolphins. Ogbah totaled 5.5 sacks in 15 games for the Fins in 2023.

The news comes following EDGE Shaquil Barrett’s retirement announcement. Barrett’s March signing part of a front-seven depth reset after the unit suffered multiple season-ending injuries last year. The 30-year-old Ogbah played the last four seasons as a Dolphin but was cut as a cap-saving move in February. He most recently turned an 8.6 percent pass-rush win rate into 5.5 NFL sacks and remains a capable pass-rush contributor.

Ogbah signed a four-year, $65 million deal with the Dolphins in 2022, with an opt-out for the team after the 2023 season. Ogbah can be released without a dead cap hit, saving the Dolphins up to $13.7 million in cap space. Ogbah totaled 19 tackles and 5.5 sacks in 15 games last season and managed just one sack through nine games in 2022. The veteran will be 30 years old at the start of next season and has two nine-sack seasons on his resumé. With so many teams in need of pass rushers, Ogbah should have no trouble finding a new home before next season.

Ogbah suffered a torn triceps in mid-November and missed the rest of the season, drastically lowering the ceiling of the Miami pass rush down the stretch. It sounds like he should be ready for 2023 if he’s going to be available in OTAs. Ogbah will play on a $17.1 million cap figure on 2023 unless the Dolphins restructure him to create more cap space for this offseason.

After back-to-back nine-sack years in 2020 and 2021, Ogbah had only one in eight starts coming into today. Miami’s Bradley Chubb trade will ensure that they don’t feel this loss quite as badly as they could have, but this will also limit some of the pressure packages that Miami could have created with their best four rushers. It’s a real loss for the Dolphins despite the sack count. Ogbah has a $17.3 million cap number in 2023, and the Dolphins could only realize real savings on that with a trade. He’s probably likely to be back next season.

Suffering through an ineffective season after re-signing for four years and $65 million last spring, Ogbah was announced as questionable in the first half then ruled out after the break. “Elbow” could mean a number of ominous injuries. Ogbah entered Week 10 with only one sack.

The deal reportedly includes "$32 million fully guaranteed.” The 28-year-old was near the top of a good-not-great pass-rusher market, but those are still huge numbers. They could quickly become regrattably huge for the Dolphins. Ogbah had been becoming something of a journeyman before landing in Miami in 2020. He has tallied 18 sacks over the past two seasons, leading the team both years. Ogbah was playing for an elite defensive coach in Brian Flores, though new head man Mike McDaniel retained most of Flores’ staff. Ogbah should remain in position to succeed.

Ogbah has been setback-free in his recovery from a torn pec — an injury that comes with a 3-4 month timetable. He was healthy enough for the Dolphins to give him a two-year, $15 million deal with $7.5 million guaranteed earlier this month. Ogbah likely won’t participate in offseason workouts with OTAs suspended but he should be ready for the start of training camp.

The deal includes $7.5 million guaranteed. Miami’s front-seven makeover continues as Ogbah, fresh off a career-high matching 5.5 sacks across 10 games last year, joins Kyle Van Noy and Shaq Lawson among the Fins’ defensive additions since the legal tampering window opened. Miami is purely betting on the 26-year-old’s upside as he’ll hit free agency again at the ripe age of 28.