The worst trade between the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills
By Brian Miller
It is rare that the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills make trades but it has happened.
They are rivals in the AFC East and like the Patriots and the Jets, the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills rarely make trades between them.
The first trade ever made between the two clubs is actually a case of nepotism on the part of the Miami Dolphins and didn’t work out too well for Miami. George Wilson, Sr. was named the coach of the then expansion Miami Dolphins and one of his first trades came in 1966 when he sent a 1967 13th round pick to the Bills for his son, quarterback George Wilson, Jr.
Wilson didn’t do much in the NFL.
He was drafted by the Lions in 1965 but opted to sign with the AFL Buffalo Bills instead. Remember there was no merger between the two leagues yet. He has no recorded stats while with the Bills in 1965 and played only one season with the Dolphins. In 1966, Wilson started 7 of 14 games and completed 46 of 112 attempts with five touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Hardly a number you would want on your small NFL resume.
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It obviously wasn’t enough to impress his father. In 1967, the elder Wilson traded his son to the Denver Broncos along with three other players, DE Earl Faison, RB Cookie Gilchrist, and guard Earnie Park for running back Abner Haynes, LB Jerry Hopkins, DE Danny LaRose, and a future draft pick in 1968. It’s pretty bad when your dad doesn’t see a future for you.
The trade is more interesting when you look at it. A year prior to shipping Wilson, Jr. out to Denver, Wilson, Sr. sent 3rd and 5th round picks to Denver for Gilchrist. A one-year rental that he ended up moving back to Denver. More irony to the whole series of events? Gilchrist spent his first three years of professional football with the Bills before going to the Broncos. In his first four seasons, he made the Pro Bowl but couldn’t replicate that success in Miami.