An Outside-the-Box Cornerback Option

As the Miami Dolphins entered the final week of Phase Two of their 2025 offseason program, they still had more questions than answers at cornerback, to the point where any potential option should be considered.

One such option could be a former first-round pick trying to work his way back into the NFL after a series of legal issues, a former first-round pick who finished out the 2021 season on the Dolphins practice squad, hasn't played an NFL game in four years but is starring in the UFL after being given a second chance.

That player is Damon Arnette.

The 2020 first-round pick of the Las Vegas Raiders now is a member of the Houston Roughnecks, and NFL reporter Aaron Wilson of KPRC said a number of NFL teams have contacted the UFL team asking about Arnette.

While he's still relatively young at 28 (turning 29 in September), Arnette certainly isn't a sure thing as an NFL cornerback, but he may be the type of players worth bringing to camp for a team needing help at the position like the Dolphins.

That assumes, of course, that the Dolphins didn't have any issues with him during his time on the practice squad at the end of the 2021 season. The Dolphins brought him in after the Raiders waived him after a social media clip showed him flashing a gun and making threats.

That he finished out that season with the Dolphins is a positive sign, but the fact is Miami declined to sign him to a future contract afterward. Arnette did sign a future contract with the Kansas City Chiefs in January 2022, but they let him go a little more than a week later after more legal issues surfaced.

Per Wilson's report, Arnette wanted to play in the UFL in 2024 but was denied permission because of his background until he was allowed in this season.

“I’m 28 years old right now with three kids, with a mom and dad that loves me and has my back right now,” Arnette told KPRC 2 following community event where he read to and encouraged students at the Houston Public Library. “With coaches, I feel like I’ve proved a complete turnaround. All the coaches that have been with me right now, I feel like their words would be more valuable because I’ve said a lot of things in the past. What I would say is what they see on film, that’s me being out of commission for three years,

“I’m a dawg on the field. I’m more of a professional now than I ever was before. I wasn’t a professional before. I was just a dawg. I found professionalism and a calm state of mind. I feel like I’m the best version of myself that I’ve ever been.”

WOULD THE DOLPHINS CONSIDER ARNETTE?

If the Dolphins are satisfied that Arnette indeed is a changed man and no bridges were burned after the 2021 season, they definitely should consider bringing him as another competitor at cornerback.

The position group currently is filled with unproven players beyond Jalen Ramsey and Kader Kohou, and the expectation remains that Ramsey will be traded before the start of training camp.

While Arnette didn't stand out during his 13 games with the Raiders in 2020-21, he was the 19th overall pick in 2020 for a reason. Arnette, whose hometown is Fort Lauderdale, has 17 tackles, a sack and one interception on the season. He returned the pick for a touchdown.