Worst Miami Dolphins trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers in history
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers have not made many trades.
The trade for Minkah Fitzpatrick turned out o.k. for the Miami Dolphins on paper but history may remember it as a previous trade between the teams.
Lucky for the Miami Dolphins, the worst trade in history between them and the Steelers wasn’t a crippling blow to the organization. You need to travel all the way back to 1984 to dive into the details of that trade.
One year removed from drafting Dan Marino and only a few years removed from a Super Bowl appearance with David Woodley at the helm, Don Shula opted to trade the now back-up QB to the Steelers.
With Marino and Don Strock the new one and two QB’s, there was no need for a third. Miami traded Woodley to the Steelers for a 3rd round draft pick. That pick was used as trade bait for trade within the division.
A rare draft-day trade between the Buffalo Bills and the Dolphins came in round one when the Dolphins traded their own first-round draft pick, number 26 overall, their own third-round pick and the extra third they received from the Steelers for the Bills first-round pick, 14th overall.
With the 14th overall pick, Don Shula selected linebacker Jackie Shipp. It was not a great selection for the Dolphins. Shipp started only 41 games in five seasons with the Dolphins and didn’t make much of an impact. He spent his final season with the Raiders.
As for Woodley, the former Super Bowl starter stayed two years in Steeltown starting 13 of 16 games but his career in the NFL ended after that final second season. Tragically, Woodley battled issues with alcohol and died at the age of 44 from liver and kidney issues.
The trade wasn’t really good for either team but Woodley holds a place in Dolphins history as one of only three QB’s to start for Miami in a Super Bowl.