Miami CB Howard at practice, hopes for contract resolution

Published Jul. 31, 2021 7:28 p.m. ET

Associated Press

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard returned to practice on a limited basis Saturday and said he's hoping for a resolution to his contract dispute to remain with the team.

Howard took to Instagram on Tuesday night to request a trade over his displeasure about his contract. Howard was an All-Pro selection in 2020 after leading the NFL in interceptions with 10.

A second-round pick in 2016, Howard signed a five-year, $75 million contract extension in May 2019 that has four years remaining. The deal made him the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL at the time, but he has since fallen to sixth.

One of the players who passed him: teammate Byron Jones, who the Dolphins signed to a five-year, $82.1 million contract during the 2020 offseason.

“Sure, I hope it will get better,” Howard said. “It’s a process. I’m hearing this and hearing that, but nothing is getting done right now. Right now, I’m just out here every day supporting the team and out here working.”

Howard, who skipped the entire offseason program and subjected himself to fines in excess of $90,000 by missing the mandatory minicamp, said he would see when the time come whether he’d be willing to play in preseason games.

“In any relationship, there’s issues at times, but we’re working through them and we’ll continue to have dialogue and communication,” Dolphins coach Brian Flores said Friday morning during an appearance on NFL Network. “Hopefully, we can work through this. We’ll just continue the dialogue and communication. That’s just part of this right now.”

Asked whether he was more optimistic about getting his contract redone since his Instagram post, Howard said: “That’s up to the Dolphins. I’m just here with my teammates enjoying every moment with the teammates.”