Dolphins strike deal with Jonathan Harris, the fourth defensive lineman added in two days
Continuing to load up on reasonably-priced defensive linemen, the Dolphins on Thursday night struck a deal with Jonathan Harris, a part-time starter for Denver over the past two seasons.
The agreement, first reported by NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, gives the Dolphins another option to handle some of the snaps that must be accounted for in the wake of Christian Wilkins’ departure to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Harris, who’s 6-5 and 295 pounds, joins former Dallas Cowboys backup Neville Gallimore as options to replace Wilkins. The Dolphins could acquire additional players at the position as the offseason continues.
On Thursday, Miami also signed Detroit’s Benito Jones and re-signed Da’Shawn Hand to compete for snaps at nose tackle following Raekwon Davis’ departure to the Indianapolis Colts.
Harris appeared in 17 games and started five for Denver last season and had 43 tackles (including four for loss) and a sack, his only sack in 33 games over four NFL seasons.
He played 529 snaps last season -- equal to 47 percent of the Broncos’ defensive snaps.
Pro Football Focus ranked Harris’ performance 96th among 130 defensive tackles last season. Gallimore was rated 69th and Wilkins 29th.
Harris started four games and appeared in eight for Denver in 2022 and had 20 tackles.
He began his career with Chicago in 2019 as an undrafted free agent signing out of Lindenwood. He appeared in two games for the Bears before being released that season.
Denver claimed him off waivers on Oct. 23, 2019, and he went on to appear in 31 games and start nine for the Broncos.
The Broncos did not tender Harris as a restricted free agent, so he won’t impact the Dolphins’ desire to secure multiple compensatory picks in the 2025 draft.
