Dolphins waive Jordan Howard after running back was a healthy scratch in Week 10 win

The Miami Dolphins cut bait with the Jordan Howard experiment, releasing the two-time 1,000-yard running back just nine games into his first season with the team. Head coach Brian Flores said the decision to waive Howard was a “mutual parting” in his press conference Monday. Howard was a healthy scratch in the team’s Week 10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. 

Howard struggled to get on the field in his first season with the Dolphins, having just 28 carries for 33 yards with four touchdowns. The former fifth-round pick had 10 carries for 19 yards and a touchdown in his last game with the Dolphins — a Week 9 win over the Arizona Cardinals, his first game action since Week 4. Howard was replaced in the running back rotation by Matt Breida and Myles Gaskin prior to their injuries, only to later be replaced by Salvon Ahmed — who has 28 carries for 123 yards and a score over the past two games. 

The Dolphins signed Howard to a two-year, $9.75 million contract this past offseason, only to see little results. Miami had an out year in 2021 with no cap hit if it chose to move on from Howard after the season. Any team that claims Howard on waivers would owe Howard $2.08 million for the rest of the season. 

Howard has 3,928 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns in five seasons, the first three with the Chicago Bears before a 2019 trade to the Philadelphia Eagles. Since a shoulder injury in the middle of the 2019 season, Howard has just played in six of a possible 16 games with just 33 rushing yards and four touchdowns — all this year with Miami.