The Miami Dolphins hosted free agent Michael Crabtree this week and the team could sign him after trading away Mike Wallace and this comes as Hakeem Nicks is also available on the market, while DeVante Parker and Kevin White could be potential draft targets for the team to give Ryan Tannehill more weapons after also losing Charles Clay.
The Dolphins have been one of the most active teams this offseason, signing Ndamukong Suh and Jordan Cameron while also trading for Kenny Stills. The team now could add Crabtree for depth, as they got rid of three of their top receivers in Brian Hartline, Wallace and Brandon Gibson. Hartline and Gibson were released and the team traded Wallace to the Vikings for a draft pick. According to ESPN.com, Crabtree had a visit with the team on Thursday and it comes as the 49ers have no plans to bring him back.
The market for Crabtree was slow to develop, but things are picking up now that most of the top free agents at his position have signed. Crabtree is 27 years old and has a serious injury in his past, but he could be a solid option alongside second year player Jarvis Landry and the newly acquired Stills. While Wallace is a very skilled player, he has had attitude issues in Miami and he reportedly was not getting along well with Tannehill.
According to John Clayton at ESPN.com, Crabtree could get $3.5-$4 million per year from Dolphins and there is also some tertiary interest from the Washington Redskins. Crabtree doesn't have the speed of Wallace, but he could help make up for some of that production after making 68 catches for 698 yards last season. Crabtree had his best season in 2012 with 85 catches for 1105 yards and nine touchdowns.
James Walker took a look at some potential free agent options earlier in the offseason and Crabtree was mentioned as one along with Ndamukong Suh and Jordan Cameron. The team signed Cameron ahead of Charles Clay leaving and they added Suh right when free agency started after he had demands of at least 50 million guaranteed and he ended up getting even more than that.
The Dolphins made some cuts to free up cap space by getting rid of Hartline and Gibson and they also traded away Dannell Ellerbe in the Kenny Stills deal. The team just brought back LaMichael James and that came after they had some interest in CJ Spiller earlier in the offseason. The team has Daniel Thomas as a free agent along with Knowshon Moreno, but they likely are not bringing Moreno back after he was injured for most of the season, while Ben Tate is also a potential target.
Walker wrote that Tate could serve as a good backup option for Lamar Miller and could come cheaper than some other players on the market. Tate was let go by the Browns last season and also played for the Vikings, rushing for 371 yards and four touchdowns. Stevan Riley could be a potential option on the free agent market, as he could fill the pass catching back role that Reggie Bush had in past years. Ridley is coming off of an injury and could be a low risk, high upside option.
