Alec

Ingold

Ingold was released by the Dolphins amidst their roster purge Friday, lasting only two days on the free agent market. The average annual value of his new deal keeps him as the highest-paid fullback in the league as he follows former head coach Mike McDaniel to Los Angeles.

Ingold was the highest-paid fullback in the league at the time of his release and will now be looking for a new home. The 29-year-old vet has spent the last four seasons with the Dolphins and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2023. His release will clear just over $3 million in cap space for the Dolphins, who are attempting to get under the salary cap before the start of the season.

Ingold went down in camp while the offense was working on plays near their own goal line. Tyreek Hill reportedly signaled for trainers to tend to Ingold immediately after the play ended, and it was reported shortly after that the veteran fullback is now in concussion protocol. Ingold should have plenty of time to clear protocol before the Dolphins take on the Colts.

There are no major surprises here as Fuller could not make it back from a concussion he suffered in Week 10. 2023 second-round pick Cam Smith should see more snaps in his absence. The big names for Miami are the ones that are not here as both Alec Ingold and Terron Armstead will be active, which should be a big boost for De’von Achane and the running game.

Ingold is now the highest-paid fullback in the league, just narrowly beating out the Ravens’ Patrick Ricard for the title. Ingold has been a staple in Miami’s backfield since joining the team in 2019 and is one of the few coveted fullbacks in the league. While he’ll help pave the way for touchdowns, he won’t be handling the ball enough to be fantasy-relevant — which should not come as a surprise to anyone.

“You have to have an athletic player that is smart, can understand a lot of schemes and can read on the fly. When that position player plays fast, it can be pretty disruptive to teams that are not used to going against it,” McDaniel added. The Dolphins made Alec Ingold the second-highest paid fullback in the NFL this offseason, but this comment didn’t specifically address Ingold in those terms. The Dolphins could have a narrow usage tree if they lean into Ingold plays. The 49ers led the NFL in 21-personnel plays at 425 snaps (34%) in 2021 per Sharp Football Stats.

The deal makes him the second-highest paid fullback in the league behind Kyle Juszczyk, who new Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel coordinated in San Francisco. Ingold is coming off three years with the Raiders in which he touched the ball 43 times in total. He is a solid blocker, however, and can offer some juice in the Juszczyk role. Ingold did suffer a torn ACL in November, so he might be up against it to be ready for Week 1.

The Patriots were not allergic to using fullbacks during McDaniels’ time with the team, but it was not part of the approach in 2021. It does not help that Ingold is recovering from a torn ACL. Ingold is decent as far as these things go, but he still played under 150 snaps before getting hurt last season. That, coupled with his injury could make it a difficult time for him on the open market.

Ingold is one of the best fullbacks in the league and a Raiders team captain. He will undergo further testing on Monday to confirm Las Vegas’ suspicion that it’s a season-ending ACL tear. While he wasn’t on the fantasy radar, it would be a horrible blow to the Raiders from a real-life football perspective.

Now this is an interesting one. Ingold is one of -- if not the -- best fullbacks in this class, and we’ve seen the Saints employ players of this ilk in a variety of different ways. He could be an excellent lead-blocker for Alvin Kamara who also can catch the (many) dump-off passes from Drew Brees. On paper, seems like a pretty good fit.