Was Miami’s acquisition of Byron Jones one of the best moves made this offseason?

As we march through the dog days of summer the dust continues to settle on what was an eventful offseason for the Miami Dolphins.

Head coach Brian Flores is looking to ride the momentum of a strong 2019 season in which the Dolphins topped expectations, despite finishing the year with a record of 5-11. In order to continue that growth, the Dolphins were active in both free agency and the draft as they continue to rebuild a franchise that has not won a playoff game on roughly 20 years.

One of Miami’s biggest moves, was probably their most unexpected move, signing cornerback Byron Jones to a five-year deal worth $82.5 million, including $57 million guaranteed. While Jones has gone 40 games without an interception, quarterbacks throwing toward receivers covered by the former first-round pick completed just 53 percent of those passes in 2019.

Add NFL.com writer Adam Rank to the list of people who loved Miami’s move to make a decent secondary even stronger. In his most recent column, Rank shared some thoughts on how Jones will perform in Miami.

“I really thought this was one of the best moves of the offseason,” Rank wrote. “ I mean, it’s not like signing the best corner on the market is typically a bad move. But this one suits the Dolphins perfectly. Obviously, Flores is trying to recreate some of the Pats’ magic down in South Beach, but pairing Jones with incumbent ace Howard is perfect.”

Rank added that the addition of Jones will allow the Dolphins to play more man defense, which coach Flores prefers and could help generate more sacks.

“Kind of like when Parks and Rec added Adam Scott and Rob Lowe to the cast,” Rank wrote. “It took a pretty good group and made it even better.”

With a loaded secondary at his disposal, Brian Flores, a talented defensive mind whose defense held the high-powered Rams to just three points in the 2018 Super Bowl, should have no problem turning Miami’s defense into one of the better units in the league.