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Mike Gesicki is probably wondering what types of offers he’ll get on the open market in 2022 in the NFL, but the Miami Dolphins aren’t too keen on him finding out. Having selected him in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft, they have seen him become a very effective weapon at the professional level, and they would like to see these good times continue in South Florida.
And with the franchise tag at the hard-to-reach ends being seen mostly as a deal this year, the team has now pulled the trigger by applying the tag to Gesicki just hours before the league’s Tuesday, March 8 deadline. Dolphins announced the move.
Talks between Gesicki and the Dolphins are likely to continue as they will have until mid-July to agree on a long-term deal. If they can’t, Gesicki will play under the tag and is guaranteed to make $10.931 million before becoming a free agent again in 2023.
However, this probably won’t please Gesicki in the slightest, given how the Dolphins actually use him.
Despite being listed as a tight end, hence the TE franchise tag payout, it lined up in a slot for 85% of its representatives in 2021 and considers itself a big slot getter rather than a tight end. The difference here isn’t all that negligible as far as it pertains to the franchise tag, because while the tag for TE is just under $11 million, the franchise tag salary for the general recipient in 2022 is much higher at $18.419 million. Gesicki could potentially file a complaint in an attempt to get the extra $7.5 million he thinks he owes, assuming a long-term deal doesn’t come through.
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The 26-year-old is completing a career-best season in receiving yards (780), trailing only rookie standout Jaylen Waddle, and has averaged over 10 yards per catch in each of the past three seasons. while rarely encountering a fall as a problem – his NFL career catch percentage hovers around 63%. With the Dolphins ostensibly going all-in on quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in 2022, the next step is to keep/get key offensive talents next to him, and Gesicki is seen as such a talent.
However, they will have to deal with the financial part.