None of the 42 restricted free agents has signed an offer sheet with a new team. But two more of them have decided to stay with their current team.
The Dolphins have announced that defensive end Philip Merling and tackle Lydon Murtha have signed their restricted free agency tenders.
Merling was the first pick in the second round of the 2008 draft. Since the Patriots didn’t have a first-round pick that year, Merling was the 32nd overall selection -- which ordinarily would be a first-round selection.
A four-year veteran, a non-football injury in 2010 ultimately stripped Merling of an accrued season toward free agency, even though he also has concluded his four-year contract with the team.
Murtha, a 2009 draft pick of the Lions, was signed off Detroit’s practice squad that same year.
Both players had been tendered at the second-round level, and both players reportedly signed the tenders upon receiving them. Regardless, the Dolphins announced the moves on Tuesday.