The trade deadline is in the rearview mirror. Miami was part of the deadline moves, as they shipped top pass rusher Jaelan Phillips to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Dolphins are a franchise in turmoil, and a former Vikings defender is now part of them in an attempt to help replace Mr. Phillips.
Dolphins Enlist a Former Viking for Battle
It was in the 2023 draft that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, then in his second draft, used to bring wideout Jordan Addison to the Twin Cities. His big coup was still hiring Ivan Pace as an undrafted rookie. Though he has seemingly lost his starting job now, he had that gig for over two seasons, which is a big win for any undrafted player.
He certainly headlined the UDFA group in 2023, but had to share the immediate spotlight with edge defender Andre Carter II.
While Pace has remained with the Vikings for the entire standard three-year undrafted rookie contract, Carter was cut ahead of his second season with the Vikings on August 27, 2024. Just over 14 months later, he’s joining the Miami Dolphins, the team announced on Wednesday.
The former Army defender was kept around on the 53-man roster in his rookie season, as the Vikings evidently saw some potential.
Coming out of college, most pundits viewed Carter as a mid-round draft pick; some even thought he could sneak into the first two rounds. A horrendous Senior Bowl and subpar pre-draft measurements dropped him into the undrafted free-agency pool.
The defender had a productive 2021 season at Army, registering 16.5 sacks and 47 tackles. His numbers dropped (41 tackles and 3.5 sacks) in 2022 as offenses started to focus more on him.
He appeared in 13 games that year, making two tackles on 68 defensive snaps and 142 on special teams. Once Carter was released in August of 2024 and passed through waivers unclaimed, the Vikings signed him to the practice squad.
Last December, the Las Vegas Raiders stole him, signing him to their 53-man roster. In the final stretch of the season, Carter appeared in three games and registered the first (half) sack of his career.
He stayed with the Raiders throughout the offseason and preseason, but was waived again on cutdown day. The Detroit Lions subsequently added him to their practice squad. He didn’t suit up for the Lions, but he has a shot with the Dolphins, as Phillips is in Philadelphia and sophomore Chop Robinson is in concussion protocol.
Dolphins Wire’s Adam Stites was caught off guard by the decision to add Carter, “While Carter is a pass rusher who fills the spot on the active roster left by the trade of Jaelan Phillips, it’s still a bit of a surprising move. The Dolphins have 29-year-old veteran Quinton Bell, who played all 17 games last season and started three, on the practice squad. But instead of making an in-house promotion by signing Bell or promising young rusher Derrick McLendon to the active roster, Miami signed another team’s practice squad player.”
Carter was quite explosive in the preseason, where he tabulated a couple of sacks and seven QB pressures. The Dolphins might want to see if he can replicate that in a real NFL contest.
Carter is 25 years old. His first chance to make his season debut will be on Sunday, when Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills come to Miami.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.
