Why Tom Brady could help the Miami Dolphins land Tua Tagovailoa

Believe it or not, the Miami Dolphins may have to root for Tom Brady, or at least where he goes in free agency to help them land Tua Tagovailoa. 

There are very strong feelings in New England that Brady is as good as gone. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the Patriots are letting Brady get to free agency for the first time in his career. I think both sides are ready to part ways. By letting Brady reach free agency the team is letting him find his own situation and get the contract he wants. By leaving via free agency the team avoids having to cut or trade their legendary quarterback.

Tom Brady is the first domino that needs to fall when it comes to the quarterback free-agent market.  How does this affect the Dolphins? Well the obvious way is Brady will finally leave the AFC east, something Dolphins fans have been waiting for for a long time.  But Brady’s decision could also go a long way in determining how/if the Dolphins acquire Tua Tagovailoa in the draft.

The Dolphins currently hold the number 5 overall pick in the draft and it’s no secret that Tua Tagvailoa is the player they covet. Many experts feel the Dolphins will have to trade up if they want to get him.  If that is the case, Brady could help lower the cost to do that. Detroit, who sits at number three, seems to be the team most talked about when it comes to a potential trade partner.

The Dolphins competition for Tua may come from Los Angeles who recently cut ties with Philip Rivers and currently sit at number 6 overall.  They would be the most logical team to try and jump the Dolphins and move up to number 3. If the Lions are shopping their pick, they certainly wouldn’t want to drop too far back from where they are.

Should Brady choose to continue his career in San Diego, I’m hard-pressed to think the Chargers would spend draft capital to move up for a quarterback.  A signing of Brady would put San Diego in a win-now mode thus their draft picks would be spent to improve other areas thus pushing the quarterback need back another year or two.

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The other team that could possibly want to move up for a quarterback could be the Carolina Panthers but just last week new Panthers coach Matt Ruhle was quoted by Panthers.com

as saying “from my perspective, I’m unbelievably excited to get to work with Cam.”  It doesn’t sound like a guy who’s ready to trade up for a quarterback.

Outside of those two teams, I don’t see another team in the top 10 that would trade up nor do I think the Detroit Lions would want to fall that far back.  The Lions at that point would lose much of their bargaining power, so if the Dolphins still do think they need to trade up then the cost should be lowered by a Brady to San Diego move.

So, as a Dolphins fan, I’m rooting for Brady to the Chargers.  If that happens then I think the Dolphins can sit at number 5 and get Tua Tagovailoa, because if either Washington or Detroit want Tua, then they aren’t trading their pick anyway.