NFL Free Agency: Miami Dolphins waive RB Jordan Howard
The Miami Dolphins had something of a logjam at running back, but things are clearing up a bit following the team's move to waive veteran Jordan Howard on Monday.
Four different running backs have led the Miami Dolphins in carries in a game this season: Myles Gaskin, Matt Breida, Salvon Ahmed and Jordan Howard. Gaskin, the second-year pro who was a seventh-round draft pick in 2019, had emerged as the team's No. 1 back, but he went on the injured-reserve list following Miami's Week 8 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
Howard led the team in carries in Week 9 against the Arizona Cardinals, but he only produced 19 yards on those 10 carries. (Howard did score a touchdown in the Dolphins' victory.)
In Week 10, Howard didn't touch the ball, and the bulk of the workload went to Ahmed, an undrafted rookie (who happened to come from the same University of Washington program as Gaskin). Ahmed ran for 85 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries.
The next day, Howard was gone in what Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores said was a "mutual parting."
Howard had signed a two-year contract with the Miami Dolphins in the offseason.
NFL Free Agency: Where will Jordan Howard land next after the Miami Dolphins?
The natural fit for Howard would appear to be the Chicago Bears.
Howard entered the league in 2016 with the Bears as a fifth-round draft pick out of Indiana University. In his rookie year, he made the Pro Bowl after rushing for 1,313 yards. Howard cracked the 1,000-yard barrier again in Year 3, and gained 935 yards on the ground in Year 3.
Before his fourth season, however, the Bears traded Howard to the Philadelphia Eagles. Injuries limited him to 10 games with the Eagles, and earlier this year he signed with the Dolphins.
The Bears are currently struggling to run the ball and have some injuries in the backfield. The team ranks 32nd out of 32 teams in rushing yards (82.3 yards per game); leading rusher David Montgomery has a concussion that will keep him out of Chicago's "Monday Night Football" game against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10, and Tarik Cohen is out for the season with a torn ACL.
A reunion with Howard could be the right move for the Bears and the best fit for the running back whose best success happened in Chicago.