The Dolphins waited a lot longer than their peers to start signing draft picks
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Shortly after word that sixth-round pick Cornell Armstrong agreed to his deal came multiple reports that first-round pick Minkah Fitzpatrick has also signed with the team. Fitzpatrick’s deal is for four years with a team option for a fifth season.
Fitzpatrick, who was the 11th overall pick, won the Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in the country in recognition of his work at Alabama last season. Fitzpatrick saw time at both cornerback and safety for the Crimson Tide and showed a knack for rushing the passer as well, which should lead to work in a variety of roles with the Dolphins as well.
The Dolphins were likely waiting for June 1 to start signing picks because of the salary cap ramifications involved with Ndamukong Suh‘s release earlier this offseason. Suh was designated a post-June 1 cut, which meant the team had to had to wait to realize the cap space associated with the move.
Miami has six draft picks left to sign with their mandatory minicamp taking place next week.
Eli Apple is vowing to mend his ways after being given a second chance by the New York Giants.
The 22-year-old cornerback who was the 10th pick in the 2016 draft on Monday promised to be a better player, a better person, and a better teammate as the Giants start a rebuilding process under new coach Pat Shurmur after a 3-13 season.
It was a year Apple would like to forget, both on and off the field. He started only seven games
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It was ugly and highlighted a year in which Apple dealt with a crisis at home: His mother had brain surgery.
”Was I embarrassed? Of course,” Apple said after the Giants held a two-hour practice at the first of their 10 organized team activities. ”Nobody wants to go out the way I went out. I mean, it was all over the place, so of course.
Many wondered whether the Giants would want Apple back after his second season, one that many had forecast would provide a great leap forward for him.
What changed, though, was the Giants shaking up things after last season. Dave Gettleman was hired to replace Jerry Reese as general manager and Shurmur replaced interim coach Steve Spagnuolo, who had taken over when Ben McAdoo was fired in early December.
One of the first things Gettleman did was tell him everyone was starting with a clean slate.
