Report: Xavien Howard, Dolphins Agree to $50M Contract; Becomes NFL's Top Paid CB

Timothy Rapp @@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVApril 2, 2022

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - JANUARY 09: Xavien Howard #25 of the Miami Dolphins looks on during the game against the New England Patriots at Hard Rock Stadium on January 09, 2022 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)

Mark Brown/Getty Images

The Miami Dolphins and veteran cornerback Xavien Howard reportedly agreed to a five-year contract extension on Friday with $50 million in new money, per multiple reports.

Matt Verderame @MattVerderame
The Dolphins and Xavien Howard have agreed to a five-year deal with $50M in new money, per source. Howard now becomes the highest-paid CB in the league by APY, making over $24M annually

Field Yates @FieldYates
The Dolphins and Howard agreed to a restructured contract prior to last season with an understanding that a new deal would be discussed this offseason. Miami takes care of one of the best players in the league and has a core piece under contract for 5 more years. <a href="https://t.co/lZJorlmMXS">https://t.co/lZJorlmMXS</a>

Howard had been under contract through 2024 with a cap hit of $16.3 million in 2022, $16.3 million in 2023 and $13.5 million in 2024, per Spotrac.

The two years and $50.7 million added to his current deal—he's now under contract through the 2026 season—represents an average annual value of $25.3 million per year, the highest mark among cornerbacks.

It's also a bit of massaging of the concept of AAV from Howard's agent to suggest he's the highest-paid corner in the game, since over the totality of his now five-year contract he'll be averaging about $18 million per year.

Mike Garafolo @MikeGarafolo
So it's two years added to the deal for Xavien Howard and $50.7 million in money added so technically an extension at $25.345 million per year. It's a DeAndre Hopkins-esque contract sweetening that will muddle the notion of who the highest-paid CB is. For Howard, a nice bump.

Matt Schneidman @mattschneidman
Remember the new money APY for DeAndre Hopkins after he was traded skewing the WR market and leading to a standoff between the Packers and Davante Adams? Jaire Alexander's camp will surely use Xavien Howard's new money APY as a reference point instead of his "actual" APY. <a href="https://t.co/b4296OLF7N">https://t.co/b4296OLF7N</a>

Field Yates @FieldYates
The Dolphins’ spending spree includes: Tyreek Hill: 4-yr, $120M Xavien Howard: 2-yr, $50.7M Terron Armstead: 5-yr, $87.5M max Cedrick Wilson: 3-yr, $22.5M Connor Williams: 2-yr, $14M Chase Edmonds: 2-yr, $12.6M Teddy Bridgewater: 1-yr, $6.5M Raheem Mostert: 1-yr, $3.125M 🐬 💰

Los Angeles Rams star Jalen Ramsey previously held—or currently holds, depending on which agent's definition of AAV you subscribe to—the highest AAV at the position at $20 million.

Regardless of where Howard falls precisely on that scale, he's one of the highest-paid corners in the game, and for good reason. The 28-year-old is a three-time Pro Bowler and was a first-team All-Pro in the 2020 season after picking off 10 passes.

Joe Schad @schadjoe
The Dolphins are assembling a nice collection of talented core players. Tyreek Hill. Emmanuel Ogbah. Terron Armstead. Jaylen Waddle. Mike Gesicki. Byron Jones. Jerome Baker. Christian Wilkins. Jevon Holland. Xavien Howard is the Dolphins' best player.

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Last year he registered 50 tackles, five interceptions, 16 passes defended, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, a sack and a defensive touchdown, pairing with Byron Jones to give the Dolphins a solid one-two punch at the position.

Miami's secondary ranked as PFF's eighth-best last season, with Howard obviously playing a big part in that strong rating.