Don’t expect Buffalo Bills to pursue Xavien Howard

Xavien Howard is one of the latest NFL stars to skip mandatory minicamp.

Miami Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard has made his intentions known about where he stands on his contract by skipping the team’s mandatory minicamp. Howard led the league in interceptions last season with 10, the first time that had been done since 2007 when Antonio Cromartie did it for the San Diego Chargers.

With Howard dealing with being extended from his original contract and now at the end of another one, the Dolphins are in a tricky situation. Would the Buffalo Bills swoop in and try to grab last year’s interceptions leader from a divisional rival? The short answer is no.

According to Spotrac, he carries at least a $12M cap hit the next three years, including a $13.5M punch this season. The Bills only currently have about $10.8M in cap space for this year alone, and that’s even after the Stefon Diggs restructure happened. The chances of the Bills trading for Howard are slim to none at this point.

Now maybe there is a way that somehow they could make this work that only those who work in the cap management department would know. Adding another sure-fire corner to play opposite of Tre’Davious White would help this team tremendously, especially the young pass rushers drafted in the first two rounds this year.

Coverage sacks would become more common to see for the Bills, and Xavien Howard could finally help the war effort to shut down teams like the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I highly doubt the Dolphins will let him walk, even though he’d only have a dead cap hit of only $2.8M if let go after this season.

The Dolphins certainly have some decisions to make. But it’s always fun to dream about taking away your division rival’s best players and making them a part of your team, right?