The Dolphins traded Jarvis Landry to Cleveland. Now they’re playing almost as much per year for a pair of veterans who’ll replace him. They’ve agreed to deals with Albert Wilson and Danny Amendola.
Wilson made Kansas City’s roster as a undrafted free agent in 2014, and other teams were interested in him. Miami landed him, but not without agreeing to pay $24 million over the next three years.
Amendola is 32 and has been plagued by injuries during his career, but he’s a steady pro who made a lot of clutch catches for the Patriots. In his last four playoff games for New England (including two Super Bowls) Amendola caught 34 passes and 3 TDs. He signed a two-year contract worth up to $12 million, with over two thirds of that money guaranteed.
Landry operated exclusively out of the slot, and Wilson and Amendola should now absorb those snaps. The Dolphins used three receivers almost exclusively last year, and they’ve still got Kenny Stills and DeVante Parker lining up outside. With Jakeem Grant and Leonte Carroo, they seem to have a serviceable enough receiving group.
Wilson and Amendola didn’t come cheap. Their salaries averaged about $14 million per year. That’s almost as much as the $16.2 million franchise tag they placed on Landry. But they come without the headaches – Adam Gase was frustrated by Landry late last year, and the receiver wasn’t happy with a short-term contract.
There were 85 wide receivers in the league last year with at least 50 targets. Only 18 of those receivers caught over two thirds of the passes thrown their way, and the Dolphins (even after losing Landry) are now one of only two teams (Saints) with two of those receivers.
Not saying that Amendola and Wilson are necessarily great. Both have benefited from playing in good offenses with good quarterbacks. Tom Brady makes everyone look good, and Alex Smith had a great year in 2017. But the Dolphins seem to have cobbled together a decent enough receiving corps. Parker is the key player – they need him to start playing like the franchise guy they thought he would be when they selected him in the middle of the first round.
I don’t think Kansas City will miss Wilson at all. With Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and Travis Kelce, they’ve got what they want in terms of pass catchers.
With the Patriots, they lose some depth. They’ve still got Brandin Cooks, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan and others – maybe Malcolm Mitchell comes around – but Amendola offered a nice safety net to cover for injuries. A good player, but not a guy who was worth $6 million to them.
| WIDE RECEIVER CATCH RATES | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Player | Tgt | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | Pct |
| 1. | Golden Tate, Det. | 120 | 92 | 1,003 | 10.9 | 5 | 76.7% |
| 2. | Ted Ginn, N.O. | 70 | 53 | 787 | 14.8 | 4 | 75.7% |
| 3. | Adam Humphries, T.B. | 83 | 61 | 631 | 10.3 | 1 | 73.5% |
| 4. | JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pitt. | 79 | 58 | 917 | 15.8 | 7 | 73.4% |
| 5. | Randall Cobb, G.B. | 92 | 66 | 653 | 9.9 | 4 | 71.7% |
| 6. | Trent Taylor, S.F. | 60 | 43 | 430 | 10.0 | 2 | 71.7% |
| 7. | Tyreek Hill, K.C. | 105 | 75 | 1,183 | 15.8 | 7 | 71.4% |
| 8. | Danny Amendola, N.E. | 86 | 61 | 659 | 10.8 | 2 | 70.9% |
| 9. | Sterling Shepard, NYG | 84 | 59 | 731 | 12.4 | 2 | 70.2% |
| 10. | Michael Thomas, N.O. | 149 | 104 | 1,245 | 12.0 | 5 | 69.8% |
| 11. | Mohamed Sanu, Atl. | 96 | 67 | 703 | 10.5 | 5 | 69.8% |
| 12. | Allen Hurns, Jac. | 56 | 39 | 484 | 12.4 | 2 | 69.6% |
| 13. | Jarvis Landry, Mia. | 161 | 112 | 987 | 8.8 | 9 | 69.6% |
| 14. | Ryan Grant, Wash. | 65 | 45 | 573 | 12.7 | 4 | 69.2% |
| 15. | Terrance Williams, Dall. | 78 | 53 | 568 | 10.7 | 0 | 67.9% |
| 16. | Albert Wilson, K.C. | 62 | 42 | 554 | 13.2 | 3 | 67.7% |
| 17. | Larry Fitzgerald, Ariz. | 161 | 109 | 1,156 | 10.6 | 6 | 67.7% |
| 18. | Stefon Diggs, Minn. | 95 | 64 | 849 | 13.3 | 8 | 67.4% |
| 19. | Seth Roberts, Oak. | 65 | 43 | 455 | 10.6 | 1 | 66.2% |
| 20. | Cooper Kupp, LAR | 94 | 62 | 869 | 14.0 | 5 | 66.0% |
| 21. | Robert Woods, LAR | 85 | 56 | 781 | 13.9 | 5 | 65.9% |
| 22. | Nelson Agholor, Phil. | 95 | 62 | 768 | 12.4 | 8 | 65.3% |
| 23. | Eric Decker, Tenn. | 83 | 54 | 563 | 10.4 | 1 | 65.1% |
| 24. | Kendall Wright, Chi. | 91 | 59 | 614 | 10.4 | 1 | 64.8% |
| 25. | Taylor Gabriel, Atl. | 51 | 33 | 378 | 11.5 | 1 | 64.7% |
| 26. | Doug Baldwin, Sea. | 116 | 75 | 991 | 13.2 | 8 | 64.7% |
| 27. | Keenan Allen, LAC | 159 | 102 | 1,393 | 13.7 | 6 | 64.2% |
| 28. | Adam Thielen, Minn. | 142 | 91 | 1,276 | 14.0 | 4 | 64.1% |
| 29. | Jamison Crowder, Wash. | 103 | 66 | 789 | 12.0 | 3 | 64.1% |
| 30. | Jermaine Kearse, NYJ | 102 | 65 | 810 | 12.5 | 5 | 63.7% |
| 31. | Tyler Lockett, Sea. | 71 | 45 | 555 | 12.3 | 2 | 63.4% |
| 32. | Davante Adams, G.B. | 117 | 74 | 885 | 12.0 | 10 | 63.2% |
| 33. | Tyrell Williams, LAC | 69 | 43 | 728 | 16.9 | 4 | 62.3% |
| 34. | Antonio Brown, Pitt. | 163 | 101 | 1,533 | 15.2 | 9 | 62.0% |
| 35. | Chris Godwin, T.B. | 55 | 34 | 525 | 15.4 | 1 | 61.8% |
| 36. | Kelvin Benjamin, 2 tm | 78 | 48 | 692 | 14.4 | 3 | 61.5% |
| 37. | Rishard Matthews, Tenn. | 87 | 53 | 795 | 15.0 | 4 | 60.9% |
| 38. | Jordy Nelson, G.B. | 88 | 53 | 482 | 9.1 | 6 | 60.2% |
| 39. | Pierre Garcon, S.F. | 67 | 40 | 500 | 12.5 | 0 | 59.7% |
| 40. | Martavis Bryant, Pitt. | 84 | 50 | 603 | 12.1 | 3 | 59.5% |
| 41. | Julio Jones, Atl. | 148 | 88 | 1,444 | 16.4 | 3 | 59.5% |
| 42. | DeVante Parker, Mia. | 96 | 57 | 670 | 11.8 | 1 | 59.4% |
| 43. | Demaryius Thomas, Den. | 140 | 83 | 949 | 11.4 | 5 | 59.3% |
| 44. | Brandon LaFell, Cin. | 89 | 52 | 548 | 10.5 | 3 | 58.4% |
| 45. | Marqise Lee, Jac. | 96 | 56 | 702 | 12.5 | 3 | 58.3% |
| 46. | Chris Hogan, N.E. | 59 | 34 | 439 | 12.9 | 5 | 57.6% |
| 47. | Michael Crabtree, Oak. | 101 | 58 | 618 | 10.7 | 8 | 57.4% |
| 48. | Cole Beasley, Dall. | 63 | 36 | 314 | 8.7 | 4 | 57.1% |
| 49. | Brandin Cooks, N.E. | 114 | 65 | 1,082 | 16.6 | 7 | 57.0% |
| 50. | Marvin Jones, Det. | 107 | 61 | 1,101 | 18.0 | 9 | 57.0% |
| 51. | Devin Funchess, Car. | 111 | 63 | 840 | 13.3 | 8 | 56.8% |
| 52. | Mike Wallace, Balt. | 92 | 52 | 748 | 14.4 | 4 | 56.5% |
| 53. | Will Fuller, Hou. | 50 | 28 | 423 | 15.1 | 7 | 56.0% |
| 54. | Sammy Watkins, LAR | 70 | 39 | 593 | 15.2 | 8 | 55.7% |
| 55. | DeSean Jackson, T.B. | 90 | 50 | 668 | 13.4 | 3 | 55.6% |
| 56. | Jeremy Maclin, Balt. | 72 | 40 | 440 | 11.0 | 3 | 55.6% |
| 57. | Robby Anderson, NYJ | 114 | 63 | 941 | 14.9 | 7 | 55.3% |
| 58. | Kenny Stills, Mia. | 105 | 58 | 847 | 14.6 | 6 | 55.2% |
| 59. | DeAndre Hopkins, Hou. | 174 | 96 | 1,378 | 14.4 | 13 | 55.2% |
| 60. | Deonte Thompson, 2 tm | 69 | 38 | 555 | 14.6 | 2 | 55.1% |
| 61. | Paul Richardson, Sea. | 80 | 44 | 703 | 16.0 | 6 | 55.0% |
| 62. | Travis Benjamin, LAC | 62 | 34 | 567 | 16.7 | 4 | 54.8% |
| 63. | Rashard Higgins, Clev. | 50 | 27 | 312 | 11.6 | 2 | 54.0% |
| 64. | Torrey Smith, Phil. | 67 | 36 | 430 | 11.9 | 2 | 53.7% |
| 65. | Marquise Goodwin, S.F. | 105 | 56 | 962 | 17.2 | 2 | 53.3% |
| 66. | Dede Westbrook, Jac. | 51 | 27 | 339 | 12.6 | 1 | 52.9% |
| 67. | A.J. Green, Cin. | 143 | 75 | 1,078 | 14.4 | 8 | 52.4% |
| 68. | Corey Davis, Tenn. | 65 | 34 | 375 | 11.0 | 0 | 52.3% |
| 69. | T.Y. Hilton, Ind. | 109 | 57 | 966 | 16.9 | 4 | 52.3% |
| 70. | Dez Bryant, Dall. | 132 | 69 | 838 | 12.1 | 6 | 52.3% |
| 71. | Mike Evans, T.B. | 136 | 71 | 1,001 | 14.1 | 5 | 52.2% |
| 72. | Bennie Fowler, Den. | 56 | 29 | 350 | 12.1 | 3 | 51.8% |
| 73. | Emmanuel Sanders, Den. | 92 | 47 | 555 | 11.8 | 2 | 51.1% |
| 74. | Bruce Ellington, Hou. | 57 | 29 | 330 | 11.4 | 2 | 50.9% |
| 75. | Keelan Cole, Jac. | 83 | 42 | 748 | 17.8 | 3 | 50.6% |
| 76. | Amari Cooper, Oak. | 96 | 48 | 680 | 14.2 | 7 | 50.0% |
| 77. | Roger Lewis, NYG | 72 | 36 | 416 | 11.6 | 2 | 50.0% |
| 78. | J.J. Nelson, Ariz. | 61 | 29 | 504 | 17.4 | 2 | 47.5% |
| 79. | Alshon Jeffery, Phil. | 120 | 57 | 789 | 13.8 | 9 | 47.5% |
| 80. | Jaron Brown, Ariz. | 69 | 31 | 477 | 15.4 | 4 | 44.9% |
| 81. | Josh Doctson, Wash. | 78 | 35 | 502 | 14.3 | 6 | 44.9% |
| 82. | Ricardo Louis, Clev. | 61 | 27 | 357 | 13.2 | 0 | 44.3% |
| 83. | Corey Coleman, Clev. | 58 | 23 | 305 | 13.3 | 2 | 39.7% |
| 84. | John Brown, Ariz. | 55 | 21 | 299 | 14.2 | 3 | 38.2% |
| 85. | Zay Jones, Buff. | 74 | 27 | 316 | 11.7 | 2 | 36.5% |
—Ian Allan