The Miami Dolphins appear to be in salary cap hell.
But clever teams have proven it can be escaped.
I don’t just mean that the team just waited for a bad wave of massive dead-cap hits.
I mean, the team showed the ability to compete and win despite the dire credit card deficit.
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Among the 10 teams with the highest death cap hits in 2025, five Entering the playoffs.
The Saints and Jets lead the way in dead cap space, with $109 million and $108 million respectively.
Yes, they stink.
As a reminder, dead cap space is money you can’t use against the annual cap because players who have been cut, traded or retired are left with prorated bonuses.
Now here’s the amazing thing:
The 49ers (No. 3), Seahawks (No. 4), Eagles (No. 5), Jaguars (No. 6) and Texans (No. 10) all overcame high rankings in 2025 cap space to have successful seasons.
The 49ers have $103.6 million in cap space this season (and a ton of injuries), but they still found a way to go 12-5 in the regular season.
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We bring all this up because the 2026 salary cap situation is going to be devastating for general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and team executive and salary cap guru Brandon Shore.
We’re told Shore wasn’t enthusiastic about at least some of the big raises and contract extensions executed by fired general manager Chris Grier.
(After all, Rose fired Grier but retained Shore.)
Therefore, JES and Shore will work together to resolve this issue.
Tua Tagovailoa to take massive death cap hit
Check out these dead-cap hits the Dolphins are looking forward to in 2026:
Tua Tagovailoa $67.4 million (possible cut)
Jalen Ramsey $20.7 million (trade)
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Tyreek Hill $15.9 million (possible reduction)
Bradley Chubb $10.9 million (possible reduction or restructuring)
Terron Armstead $10.7 million (retired)
Tagovailoa’s total fixed salary cap hit of $99.2 million (unless Miami can miraculously trade him) will likely be spread over 2026 and 2027, although they could theoretically take the entire salary in 2026.
This is a crucial blow. But consider that after the Broncos cut Russell Wilson in 2024, their total salary will be as high as $89 million, leading the entire NFL. They recovered quickly. So fast.
Wilson has a dead cap hit of $53 million in 2024 and a total dead cap hit of $85 million. But Denver still led 11-6. Then 14 wins and 3 losses this season.
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Spotrac projects the Dolphins’ 2026 salary cap hit at $18 million, near the bottom of the league, but that’s even before they make trades for some of the players listed above. When a player is cut, it usually leaves dead cap space (bad news) and clears cap space (some good news).
But no matter how you adjust those numbers, Miami is underperforming.
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA – DECEMBER 21: Miami Dolphins No. 1 Tua Tagovailoa waves to fans after the team’s 45-21 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals at Hard Rock Stadium on December 21, 2025 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
The Dolphins were in contention for a championship, but they didn’t even win a playoff game.
So now Sullivan (and the genius Shore) have to reset. That means there will be a ton of draft and undrafted rookies in 2026. That means there will be a plethora of young veterans on minimum salary in 2026.
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Four of the eight teams that advanced to the divisional round of the NFL playoffs have highly paid veteran quarterbacks, and four have rookie quarterbacks.
Any team with a quality quarterback on a rookie contract can afford to spend more on tackles, receivers, edges, cornerbacks, etc. This is a big advantage if you don’t have elite, superstar signal-call veterans.
Although the 49ers gave Brock Purdy a massive contract extension, his salary cap hit for this season is still only $9.1 million. You can see how this helps the team.
San Francisco will adjust their strategy in 2028, when Purdy’s cap hit jumps to $57.6 million.
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Dolphins could try to emulate sharp 49ers
The Dolphins swung and missed Tua, who had a lot of successful games but led the team to no playoff success. He appears to be physically and/or mentally broken.
That contract was a mistake. But through a series of very smart moves, the new Dolphins general manager can recover.
Quinn Ewers and Cam Miller are two quarterbacks expected to be on the Dolphins’ roster in 2026. And it helps that they have a club-friendly rookie contract.
The 49ers have had success this year despite big hits from Deebo Samuel (traded), Arik Armstead (released), Charvarius Ward (vacant year), Leonard Floyd (released) and Javon Hargrave (released).
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They don’t have tanks. They reloaded with quality draft picks and smart, well-priced free agent signings.
The Dolphins may look to increase draft capital. They may look to restructure or extend the contract in the near future in a way that actually lowers the cap number.
It’s not easy, but it is doable. It’s done.
That’s a priority for new Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan.
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Joe Schad is a reporter covering the Miami Dolphins and NFL for The Palm Beach Post. You can contact him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe’s free weekly Dolphin Pulse newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.
This article originally appeared in The Palm Beach Post: Miami Dolphins salary cap mess, but 49ers, Broncos show way