According to longtime NFL personnel guru Gil Brandt, the Dolphins are really going to miss kicker Cody Parkey, who signed a four-year contract with the Bears.
In a photo essay on NFL.com, Brandt ranks Parkey fourth on a list of departed free agents that will be missed most by their previous teams.
Cody Parkey celebrates after making a field goal last season in a game against the Chiefs.
"The Dolphins couldn't realistically match the offer Chicago made to Parkey and thus currently don't have a kicker on their roster," Brandt wrote. "The strong-legged, 24-year-old is coming off his best season, having made 21 of 23 field-goal attempts and 26 of 29 extra-point tries. Chicago did a fabulous job in free agency, and Parkey will be an asset in Soldier Field, where you're kicking into the wind half the time."
Parkey joins the Bears having converted 76 of 88 field-goal attempts (86.4 percent) in four NFL seasons with the Eagles (2014-15). Browns (2016) and Dolphins (2017).
He was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2014 with the Eagles when he set an NFL rookie scoring record with 150 points, eclipsing Kevin Butler's mark of 144 he established while playing for the famed 1985 Super Bowl XX champion Bears.
After missing most of the 2015 season with a groin injury, Parkey was waived by the Eagles. He joined the Browns in 2016, playing for Bears special teams coordinator Chris Tabor, who held the same position in Cleveland.
Parkey was clutch last season with the Dolphins. He beat the Chargers 19-17 with a 54-yard field goal with 1:05 to play, tied and beat the Falcons with a 49-yarder in the fourth quarter and a 36-yarder in overtime, and beat the Jets 31-28 with a 39-yarder with :22 to play.
The first three free agents on Brandt's list who will be missed most by the teams they left are left tackle Nate Soldier (Patriots to Giants), cornerback Patrick Robinson (Eagles to Saints) and receiver Sammy Watkins (Rams to Chiefs).
