You probably missed the salary cap move the Dolphins quietly made at the start of 2025 — but it serves as a testament to one leader's performance in Miami

Things aren't great in Miami right now — but the free agency signing of Aaron Brewer in 2024 has been an absolute grand-slam addition. Brewer was a delight to watch play in this system last season, which featured his range and athleticism on the second level and in space as a true weapon with his blocking assignments. He's quick, nimble, well-leveraged, and is well suited to play in the Dolphins' quick-trigger offensive system. He's off to another hot start in 2025.

He's also one of the select few recipients of a contract restructure from the Dolphins this offseason. Public salary cap tools such as Spotrac and OverTheCap now reflect Brewer with a salary cap charge of $3.882 million dollars in 2025. That's down from the original cap schedule in 2025 of over $8 million from the initial three-year, $21 million contract Brewer signed with Miami in March of 2024.

The maneuver shouldn't be considered an omen something to come or as a desperate move for Miami, either. It is reported on Spotrac's player page to have been processed on September 3rd — this was a move made before the season started and was likely exercised to create the space needed for Miami's practice squad budget throughout the 2025 season. It just simply wasn't reported...anywhere.

Maybe it's because he's a center. Maybe it's because it's only a reclassification of $5.29 million in finances. But there hasn't been so much as a peep about this. But there should be — because this is a significant endorsement for Brewer's play from this regime relative to how the rest of the roster has been handled.

There are powers that be within Miami's power structure that will likely survive a significant overhaul of football operations this offseason. That includes executive Brandon Shore, who is considered to be the "cap guy" in Miami. Shore was a prominent fixture in the conversations about Tua Tagovailoa's contract negotiations with the team and he's generally well-received as an effective cog for the Dolphins' upper management. Their contract structuring is a strength, even if they're not always choosing to give the right contracts to the right players. Shore's influence on the cap strategy for a team that entered this offseason with an uncertain future likely played a part in everything for the Dolphins — the lack of restructures, the strategic spending, and so on. He's got a role to play in the checks and balances of Miami's needs long-term alongside their attempt at a competitive roster in 2025.

Brewer being tabbed as the name to get the contract restructure for operating cap space is a complement. And thanks to the deferred cap commitments, it makes his an even stronger candidate to be here long-term in Miami. The play through 20 games has warranted that, too — even with a scheme change. If your scheme can't use a player like this, you need to take a long, hard look in the mirror regarding your scheme.

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