Advertisement

Sources: Dolphins, Colts expected to make strong runs at Ndamukong Suh

The Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts are expected to make the strongest pushes for impending free-agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh when the early negotiating window opens on Saturday, multiple league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The guarantees in Suh's next contract could approach, and potentially exceed $60 million, those sources said. A deal in that neighborhood would top Houston's J.J. Watt, who got a $100 million deal that guaranteed a reported $51.8 million, a record for a defensive player. As free agency nears Tuesday, a source close to Suh's camp indicated Suh had a slight preference for Miami, though the Detroit Lions and Colts aren't far behind.

[Check out Shutdown Corner's full 2015 free agent rankings – click here for offensive players, and click here for defensive players and specialists]

One selling point the Dolphins are likely to push is that Florida has no state income tax. Robert Raiola, a senior group manager at the tax firm O'Connor Davies, said a potential deal in Florida would allow Suh to keep more of his earnings than in all but three other states (Washington, Tennessee and Texas). Of the teams that are currently expected to be most heavily in the hunt for Suh’s services, only the Dolphins are located in a state without income tax.

Suh has stated his aspirations of becoming a billionaire. The dominant lineman is widely expected to get one of the biggest pay days among the 2015 free agents. Last season, he had 8.5 sacks, 46 tackles and made his third first-team All-Pro team in five seasons.