Earlier this week, the Miami Dolphins and guard James Daniels agreed to terms on a reported three-year, $24 million deal that is now official. Daniels is a seasoned and proven player at his position but missed almost the entirety of his 2024 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers thanks to an injury.
Specifically, a torn Achilles limited Daniels to four appearances last season.
But it seems as if the Dolphins did their due diligence on Daniels prior to adding him in the sense that they studied his medicals, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
“We’re told Miami studied Daniels’ medicals regarding his Achilles recovery before signing him this week,” Jackson wrote.
Daniels went down with the Achilles injury in a Week 4 bout against the Indianapolis Colts in September of last year. He suffered the injury in the first quarter of the contest and had to be helped off the field.
His 2024 injury-riddled season was abnormal because he’s done a solid job of staying away from the injury bug over the course of his NFL career. In five of his seven seasons in the league, he’s logged 15-plus appearances. He suited up in 15 games with Pittsburgh in the 2023 season.
The 27-year-old started out his NFL stint with the Chicago Bears after the team selected him with the No. 39 overall pick back in the 2018 NFL Draft. The Bears and Steelers are the only two NFL teams Daniels has played for to this point.
Daniels is joining a Dolphins squad that wants to get back to its winning ways in the 2025 season after the team missed out on the playoffs a season ago. Miami finished the 2024 campaign with more losses than wins after the team qualified for the playoffs in each of the previous two seasons.
With any luck, Daniels’ recovery process in the coming months will go smoothly, and he’ll be ready to make an impact when the 2025 season arrives. He could prove to be quite a smart signing for the Dolphins if he can simply stay on the field.
In the meantime, Miami will look to continue touching up its roster.
