Jason Pierre-Paul is ‘back home,’ eyeing a quick start and Super Bowl with Dolphins

Jason Pierre-Paul was back in the No. 90 jersey he donned for the first 12 seasons of his career.

The colors are different, with aqua taking the place of the dark blue and red he had with the New York Giants and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, respectively.

But the number he wore during his ascent to becoming one of the most feared pass rushers in the NFL was perhaps as a reminder of his roots. So, too, is the city where he’s now pursuing a third Super Bowl title.

Pierre-Paul, a Deerfield Beach native and Deerfield Beach High alumnus who finished his college career at the University of South Florida in Tampa, practiced with the Dolphins on Wednesday for the first time since signing with the team Tuesday.

“I’m back home, man,” he said after his first practice. “I’m born and raised here, not in Miami but Broward County. It was basically home for me. I was in Tampa, but this is basically home for me. So big things coming.”

He called leaving the New Orleans Saints, with whom he was a member of the practice squad for two weeks, a tough decision. With the Dolphins, though, there was an ideal fit on and off the field.

“When I thought about it, my daughter, she was like, ‘Daddy, when are you coming to pick me up?’” Pierre-Paul, 34, said. “Like, ‘I can’t come pick you up. You’ve got to fly.’ So it basically led down to here, and now I’m with my family and they’re excited for me to be here. It’s going to keep me even more going.”

In his prime, Pierre-Paul was one of the most disruptive pass rushers in the league. In 14 seasons, he has recorded 94.5 sacks, the eighth most of any active player in the NFL. He was named to a pair of Pro Bowls, was a one-time All-Pro selection and won two Super Bowls with New York and Tampa Bay.

He now joins a Dolphins defense that has been among the league’s best units in recent weeks but is grappling with the loss of outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips, who sustained a season-ending torn Achilles on Black Friday.

Pierre-Paul, who recorded three sacks in 14 games with the Baltimore Ravens in 2022, was without a team to start the season. He signed to the Saints’ practice squad in mid-November and made his season debut in Week 12, recording two tackles in 17 snaps.

Phillips’ injury made depth at edge defender a need, and the Dolphins’ quickly moved to bring in reinforcements, signing Pierre-Paul to a one-year deal worth the league minimum of $1.165 million.

Pierre-Paul said there are some schematic differences he will have to adjust to in Miami. There’s some rust he has to shake off too, having just played one game this season.

“But when it’s all said and done,” he added, “it’s all the same thing. It’s all football. I know how to play football. When it’s all said and done, just be physical. But the defensive terminology, it’s all the same thing. You just got to pattern them and put them in certain spaces that you can remember it. I’m doing a great job right now. My coach is giving me the calls and he’s filling me in. The players in my room are filling me in too, so shoutout to those guys.”

Multiple reports stated that Pierre-Paul was seeking to join a contender in hopes of chasing another Lombardi Trophy. He gets that opportunity with the Dolphins, who are 8-3, hold a 2.5-game lead in the AFC East and are in pursuit of a top seed in the conference.

Pierre-Paul was noncommittal on making his team debut against the Washington Commanders on Sunday. The responsibility of replacing Phillips won’t fall just on him, however. Andrew Van Ginkel is the likely replacement as a starter and Emmanuel Ogbah should also get more playing time.

But the addition of Pierre-Paul, an ascending Dolphins’ defense looking to move forward without one of its best players, gives Miami an accomplished vet with a championship pedigree.

“I’m pumped for the team to add a player of his experience, of his esteem,” coach Mike McDaniel said. “He’s a force on the edge, and I’m just pumped for him to get in the mix with the entire team. This is a team that’s been working diligently together for a long time. So he’ll be getting up to speed, studying really all day and trying to get comfortable in what we’re asking him to do. It’ll be exciting. I’m just pumped to have the depth that we have really on this team. Adding a player like him is just more of that.”