The top corner available in the 2024 free-agent class has a new home.
Kendall Fuller is signing a two-year deal worth up to $16.5 million with the Miami Dolphins, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported, per a source.
The total value of the 29-year-old Fuller's contract tells you everything you need to know about the quality of this cornerback class. Once Jaylon Johnson re-signed with the Bears (to the tune of four years and $76 million) the best remaining corner was Fuller, who is drawing a maximum possible average annual value of $8.25 million. That number is nearly $12 million less than 2016 draft classmate Jalen Ramsey's average annual salary, and even falls short of Fuller's base salary in his final season with Washington, whose new regime let him walk to free agency a month after Fuller turned 29.
With all of this being said, Fuller is still a high-quality defender.
The veteran recorded two interceptions and nine passes defensed in 15 games as part of a league-worst Commanders defense that was routinely shredded by opposing offenses, and finished as the seventh-best cornerback in terms of overall defensive grade in 2023, per Pro Football Focus. Earning such a grade while being part of a terrible unit is an achievement, even if it feels more like a consolation than a headline.
Fuller's age understandably prevented teams from throwing him the keys to a bank vault in March, and he likely needs a better opportunity with a respectable defense to wash some of the stink Washington's putrid defense left on him as he walked out of their facility. He's finding a great fit in Miami, where he'll play alongside Ramsey in a very talented secondary that will provide him with chances to make key plays in a brighter spotlight.
The pressure will be on, though: Miami is signing Fuller to replace Xavien Howard, a ball-hawking corner whom the Dolphins cut to save $18.5 million in cap space. The expectations will be high for Fuller and the rest of the Dolphins, who reached the playoffs as a wild-card team in 2023 and will be aiming for greater goals in 2024.
