Mid-May NFL moves don't tend to move the needle very much, but Miami made a transaction that could end up making a sizable impact on the team's 2022 season. The Dolphins inked free agent defensive end Melvin Ingram to a one-year, $4 million deal -- including $3.32 million guaranteed.
The pluses: A three-time Pro Bowler, Ingram plays angry, racking up 10.5 sacks per season in 2015 and 2017, then adding nine in 2019. He's been rated as high as No. 48 in the NFL's list of top 100 players (2019), and last year proved that he can still make an impact. Pro Football Focus rated Ingram as the No. 13 edge defender in the league (out of 108), putting him No. 8 against the run and No. 22 as a pass rusher and assigning him his best overall defensive grade (80.9) since 2017. PFF credited him with 42 quarterback pressures, with Pro Football Reference counting 11 quarterback hits.
The negatives: Despite the impressive ratings and rankings, Ingram had just two sacks a season ago, after a season that saw him shut out in that category. His six games with Pittsburgh ended in a contentious fashion, with the Steelers trading him to the Chiefs for a sixth-rounder. Now 33 years old, knee injuries have taken a toll, and one wonders how an undersized (6-2, 247 pounds) end will make up for an inevitable loss of speed.
The bottom line: I was hoping the 'Fins would sign him last year, as I felt a lack of proven pass rush would eventually catch up with Miami. Adding the former Chargers first-rounder in the post-draft timeframe is a nice pickup for a franchise that had dedicated next to nothing to the defense in free agency to that point. With 51 sacks, 74 tackles for losses, and 119 quarterback hits in 128 career games, Ingram is a proven factor on the defensive front. Even on a rotational basis, it seems likely that he can be a significant force while providing veteran leadership to a young Dolphins "D" in 2022.
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