Because the Dolphins changed coaches this offseason, they are holding an extra veterans minicamp this week.
Attendance is voluntary for the session and one player who has exercised his right to stay home is safety Reshad Jones. According to a report from Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald, it may be a while before Jones reverses course.
Salguero reports that Jones is “not content” with his contract and that he plans to sit out the offseason unless the Dolphins find a way to make him happier about the deal. Jones signed a four-year deal with the Dolphins in 2014 and has base salaries of $7.225 million and $7.060 million for the 2016 and 2017 seasons.
Those numbers put him among the top 10 safeties in terms of average annual salary. Jones is coming off the first Pro Bowl selection of his career and was named a co-MVP for the 2015 Dolphins along with wide receiver Jarvis Landry.
Jones will not be subject to fines until the team’s mandatory minicamp in June. It’s not clear if he’d follow Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor’s lead from last season and stay away from that work, training camp and beyond in hopes of landing the deal he wants.
Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald adds that defensive end Mario Williams and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh were also absent from Tuesday’s practice, although he adds it wasn’t a “huge surprise” that they weren’t in attendance.