The injury-ravaged Miami Dolphins are signing veteran pass rusher Justin Houston to shore up their seriously depleted front seven.
Houston is expected to play for his new team against his old one on Saturday. Houston spent his first eight NFL seasons playing for the Kansas City Chiefs — the Dolphins’ opponent in the Wild Card round.
UPDATED (2:10 p.m.): The Dolphins added two more pass rushers to their locker room Tuesday, signing Bruce Irvin, plus Malik Reed to their practice squad.
Irvin, 36, has 56.5 caeer sacks but just 4.5 in the last four years. Reed spent training camp with the Dolphins before his late-summer release.
Miami Dolphins Add Justin Houston
NFL Media first reported Houston’s signing on Tuesday.
Houston has been available since the Carolina Panthers cut him last month after seven non-impactful games in 2023. He totaled a half-sack, three quarterback hits, and two tackles for loss in 180 snaps.
So it’s fair to wonder just how much of an impact Houston will have on a Dolphins defense that has lost its top three edge pass rushers (Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and Andrew Van Ginkel) to injuries this year.
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Off-ball linebacker Jerome Baker, who would have been part of Vic Fangio’s plan in pass-rushing situations, is also done for the year with an injury.
Expect Houston, the 34-year-old whose 112 sacks are third among active players, to be the team’s No. 3 EDGE option behind Emmanuel Ogbah and Melvin Ingram.
The Dolphins will also presumably promote Quinton Bell from their practice squad for Sunday’s game. Don’t be surprised if Fangio also uses Christian Wilkins at defensive end in some situations.
“At this time of the year, that’s why you stay prepared,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Monday. “That’s why Chris [Grier] and his department work the way they do. So we have conversations about people that we were bringing up today that we were sorting through last week just to stay adept at that.
“It’s a thing if you make it a thing. I think the main focus is transitioning from a game where guys really laid it on the line and fell short. We fell short of our goal going into the season to win the AFC East.
“But at the same time, does that matter? No. We’re one of the 14 teams that still have games. So you try to harness all of your emotion, focus, and really thought towards coming together for that goal.”
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