NFL Rumors: A Branden Albert Update [UPDATED]

Jan 4, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tackle Branden Albert (76) during the 2013 AFC wild card playoff football game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Are we one day closer to Branden Albert signing with the Arizona Cardinals? Not if the Miami Dolphins have anything to say about it.

The Albert market has been thought to consist of two primary suitors: Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins. Yes, other teams have expressed interest in one way or another, including the Chiefs, but it has been thought the true market for his services are between those two teams, each of whom pursued Albert via trade last off-season.

Yesterday we noted a tweet from Darnell Dockett who said Albert was going to sign with the Cardinals. He later deleted the tweet and then went on a small rant about how the Cardinals are going to sign all of the free agents. It isn’t uncommon for players to try to recruit free agents via Twitter but this one was a little different because Albert and Dockett train together in the off-season. It isn’t out of the question Albert would have been keeping Dockett up to date about his pending free agency.

Today we have a report from the Miami Herald which says Albert is at the very, VERY top of their list.

"Branden Albert (who appears to be very, very high on Miami’s wish list) and Eugene Monroe aren’t the only veteran offensive linemen attracting Dolphins interest early in free agency. Two other names have emerged today. … One NFL source not affiliated with Albert called Miami the clear front-runner for Albert. But it’s still early in the process, and there’s certainly a chance Miami could be outbid. We’ll see."

We know Albert is gone, it is just a matter of which team he signs with at this point.  It was rumored Albert was seeking a four-year, $36 million last March so it’ll be interesting to see what he ends up signing for next week.

UPDATE:

Ian Rapoport says Albert is the Cardinals number one target. The bidding war between Arizona and Miami should be interesting.

"NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport has reported the Cardinals are placing a “high priority” on left tackle Branden Albert in free agency.Somers confirms Albert is the team’s No. 1 target, with versatile St. Louis Rams lineman Rodger Saffold as the fallback option."