Why Miami Dolphins fans will hear more trade rumors this off-season

The Miami Dolphins fans will hear more trade rumors than in year’s past, bank on it.

When the off-season finally begins for all 32 teams and the NFL league new year gets closer, the Miami Dolphins will be mentioned a lot.

Trading in the NFL takes a lot of work. You have to have a team with a need for that player’s talent, a desire to add that player, assets to trade for that player, and of course, cap space to sign them or take on their contract. The Miami Dolphins have the cap space and they have the assets should they want to part with them. The question is do they have the desire to fill their needs in the form of a trade.

As fans, we can speculate all day long about what the Dolphins will do and who we believe they should target but the reality is we don’t have eyes and ears inside the facility. That is also the case with 98% of the media who have no clue what is going on inside and the information that they are fed is often wrong.

This year, the Dolphins who have needs, money to spend, and draft capital, will be a popular team to fill in the rumors of “interest”. We already are seeing this with Deshaun Watson who is not on the trade block and not a free agent.

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This year I expect a lot of trades once the league new year kicks off on March 17th. I would also expect to hear about trades within 24 to 48 hours of that start date. The reason is simple, there are a lot of teams that are way over the cap, and with the salary cap dropping this year after the COVID situation in 2020, teams are going to have to dump salaries but also are going to want to get something for the players they need to let go.

This is what is expected to happen with teams like the Saints and Texans. Both teams are way over the cap and will need to shed salaries to get below the league number.

The season isn’t over but we already hearing speculation and in some cases rumors that these players may be available for trade and in many of these instances, I believe they will indeed be moved. Whether Miami will be involved or not, you can bet that speculation will include them in almost all of the trade talk.

Julio Jones: The Falcons need to cut salary and Jones has a lot that can be taken off the books. He is no longer the Falcons’ top receiver, Calvin Ridley, but at 31 he is too expensive to make sense for the Dolphins.

Ezekiel Elliot: Once the top running back in the NFL, Elliot has struggled and while he could be a big addition in a trade, the Cowboys have to make big decisions with their salary cap issues. Miami needing an RB will naturally be mentioned in rumors. Still, it would be shocking to see the Cowboys move Elliot and if they do, it will be costly for the buyer.

J.J. Watt – At the age of 31 don’t buy into the hype and I can’t see the Dolphins taking on that one-year rental for that price. Add the recent yearly injury issues and Watt’s value has diminished considerably.

Carson Wentz – The Eagles are getting younger and moving on from Wentz and handing the keys to Jordan Love. If the Eagles can turn Wentz into draft compensation, they will do it but Miami is not likely the landing spot even with questions as to who will back up Tua Tagovailoa.

Deshaun Watson – There are plenty of rumors already starting with Watson’s name linked to the Dolphins. Maybe “speculation” is a better word. No one is saying that there is any firm rumor on the subject because the rumors are simply about him wanting a trade out of Houston.

These are just a few players that could be switching teams as the league new year starts in March but there will be other players that will likely get traded that are not considered “blockbuster” deals. I expect the Dolphins to make a few deals during March and April leading up to the draft but I don’t expect them to move any of their first four draft picks to do so. I do, however, think they will hear their name linked to just about everyone.

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