After an impressive first season with the Miami Dolphins that saw him set a career-high in rushing yards (891), running back Raheem Mostert was ready to hit the market along with Jeff Wilson, Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed.
However, before the legal tampering period began, Mostert agreed to a two-year deal to return to the Dolphins through 2024. While the money is decent ($5.6 million in total), that wasn’t the only reason the former Boilermaker wanted to come back to Miami.
“One of the biggest things for me is my family, so I planted my roots here, as you may know, but also I just want to be back in with the team,” Mostert said during his Tuesday media availability. “As far as we’ve gone along last year, I’m itching and ready, especially the pieces that we’ve added during the offseason as well as in the draft. It’s a great time to be a Dolphin, and I’m excited to help as much as I possibly can to get to where we need to get to.”
For the Dolphins to commit two years to a running back over the age of 30, that meant a lot.
“Yeah, it definitely pleased me,” Mostert said. “The fact that you’re able to get two more years in an organization that really is taking a chance on you. It’s unbelievable, but being in this league, there’s so many years now, you’re starting to see guys, especially in my area that are doing one-year deals or anything like that. It’s a good moment right now and I can’t be thankful enough.”
Mostert wasn’t the only back to return to Miami this offseason. Actually, the entire room from the 2022 season is back, and they’ve added rookie Devon Achane to the mix as well. That camaraderie is something that’s tangible and gets him excited.
“I was having talks with ‘Studes’ (Eric Studesville) about the before free agency, and I was like, ‘Hey, man, you know what would be nice, is if we’re able to get everybody back in this building, in this room,’ because the chemistry is just unmatched in any other place that I’ve been a part of,” Mostert explained. “There’s a lot of guys in this room that really, really want to be great. There’s a lot of guys that want to go out there and put their best foot forward. And that just makes you – and I’m speaking in regards to me – makes me want to go out there and play my best and put my best foot forward.
“So to be able to have Jeff (Wilson), Salvon (Ahmed), Myles (Gaskin), John Lovett and Alec (Ingold); we’re all in this thing together. It’s definitely exciting and I just can’t wait.”
There’s a real bond and family feeling going on in South Florida, and it may just help them take their game to the next level.