Terron Armstead is the well respected, well established “OG” of the Miami Dolphins locker room.
While the term “OG” was originally used in gang culture, and stands for “original gangster,” in the sports realm it has morphed into an affectionate term used to describe an aged veteran, the old-head on the team who is filled with wisdom and dispenses guidance.
That’s why Armstead is the equivalent to an NFL Yoda for the Dolphins, with players, coaches, executives and media members hanging on his every word.
He’s always called on to express his wisdom, or to explain a situation. Plenty of which he recently shared on “Up and Adams Show with Kay Adams,” touching on his health entering his 12th NFL season, what excites him about this 2024 Dolphins team, and breaks down the contract stalemate between the Dolphins and Pro Bowl quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
”It’s going to happen. We stay out of the numbers and negotiations, but it’s going to happen,” Armstead predicted of the multiyear extension Tagovailoa and his camp seek, which puts him in the salary range of the new deals Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts got last offseason, and Jared Goff and Trevor Lawrence received this season.
Will Tua become a $50 million-a-year QB?
Tagovailoa’s camp is advocating for an extension that makes him the eighth quarterback whose new deal averages $50 million a season. But for contextual purposes, only Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson’s entire contract averages more than $50 million a season. The five-year, $260 million deal Jackson signed last year will actually pay him $52 million a season.
Goff’s new deal averages out to $49.1 million a season, and a fully guaranteed five-year, $229 million contract Deshaun Watson’s got from Cleveland two years ago puts him in third place, averaging $45.8 million a season.
Burrow is in fourth place with a $45.1 million-a-year average on his seven-year deal with Cincinnati, which is worth $315.8 million, then there’s Kirk Cousins, whose new contract with Atlanta averages $45 million a season, and Lawrence at $44.6 million on his seven-year deal.
“We need Tua to go anywhere that we’re trying to go. All our dreams, goals and aspirations are reliant on [Tua]. The Dolphins know that. The organization knows that. The city, the league [know it[,” Armstead said in the interview that took place at the O-line Mastermind workshop Armstead helps host for the NFL’s top offensive linemen. “The way they iron out the numbers, negotiations get tough in contract [talks]. Teams start to bring up bad plays, bad games, injuries. You start to get offended. ’Oh man, that’s how you really feel?’
“It’s leverage.,” Armstead continued. “When you peel back those layers and you keep it about the business, it will get done.”
Armstead’s sentiments reflect the public and private sentiments of the team, which sources say have discussed ways to support Tagovailoa in his push for a new contract if a deal doesn’t get done by July 24, which is the first day of on-field work.
It’s possible Tagovailoa will be the first quarterback to conduct a hold-in during training camp, limiting his participation.
Armstead credits stem cell procedure
As for Armstead, he claims he’s ready to work when training camp opens next week.
“I feel great. This is the best I’ve felt in some years,” Armstead said, pointing out he has undergone a few stem cell procedures, which is a cell therapy, also referred to as regenerative medicine, aimed at repairing diseased or damaged tissue.
Stem cell is the next chapter in organ transplantation, and muscle and tissue repair. It uses cells instead of donor organs to aid in recovery. It’s growing more popular in the athletic world, and Dolphins All-Pro receiver Tyreek Hill has previously admitted to using it this offseason as well to address his ailments.
“My routine has grown. I’m getting more into yoga. Being more mobile. Stem cell [therapy] has helped quite a bit,” Armstead told “Up and Adams .” “I’m a huge fan of that alternative as opposed to anything surgical. Stem cell has been great, and I feel amazing.”
However, that doesn’t guarantee that Armstead, who will turn 33 on July 23, will be an early participant in training camp.
The five-time Pro Bowler has annually trained on the side, avoiding football-specific activities during training camp in his two seasons in Miami, and hasn’t participated in an exhibition season game for at least the past five years.
Last year, when Armstead began to ramp up his camp participation, he sustained a foot injury during joint practices with the Houston Texans and began the season on injured reserve.
That’s likely why the Dolphins will treat him like he’s “Bubble Boy,” encasing the elite left tackle in figurative bubble wrap until a couple weeks before the regular season arrives.
The goal is to find a way to get Armstead, who took a substantial pay cut this offseason, reducing his salary (now $10 million) by $4 million, to play a full NFL season for the first time in his career.
Armstead hasn’t been shy admitting he pondered retirement, but didn’t because he views the Dolphins as a Super Bowl contender, and his goal is to win a ring before his playing career is over.
“We have a chance. We have a legitimate chance. At the beginning of training camp all 32 teams feel like they do, say that they do. In all honesty, maybe 12 have a legit chance,” Armsted said. “I strongly feel like we’re one of those 12, and that’s all you can ask for in July.”
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