Xavien Howard trade talk speculation heats up as Dolphins camp nears

Xavien Howard, naturally, is back in the news for all the wrong reasons as the Miami Dolphins begin to prep for the start of training camp.

Howard skipped all of the off-season work, both mandatory and voluntary, as he wants a new deal on a contract that still has four more years on it. The issue for Howard is twofold. One, he is no longer the highest-paid corner on the team, Byron Jones, and two, he has no more guarantees left on his deal. The first really shouldn’t matter but the second is huge should he get injured again.

Now, it appears that Howard is once again finding himself a headline in trade speculations. Some are surmising that Cleveland and New Orleans, as well as Washington, could be top suitors but as of now, it is still more speculation than rumor. What we do know is that several in the media are saying that talks are occurring.

Of course, this has all led to internet speculation on compensation but for now, Dolphins fans may want to pump the breaks on anything imminent. For starters, they have not publicly given him permission to seek a trade and they are not publicly saying they are actively shopping him. It has been reported that Miami wants more than a first-round pick for him. But they also hold all the cards in this situation.

Miami owns Howard for four more years. It doesn’t matter if Howard wants a new deal or not. His only real option is to show up and play. If the Dolphins don’t get the compensation they want, then they can let Howard sit out and fine him every day of his holdout. If he sits out the year, his value in trade will rapidly reduce and his wanting of a new contract will also take a hit from other teams.

Howard’s only option that he controls outside of sitting out, is he could conceivably fake another injury after reporting and miss the season but that would absolutely ruin any chance of a new contract with any team. For now, his best hopes are on the shoulders of Chris Grier and finding a suitable trade partner but over the last few days and the messages that he has sent out on his Instagram account sure make it seem like he wants to be somewhere else and if that is the case, then get him the heck out of Miami.

The Dolphins will begin training camp in a couple of weeks on July 27th and that will be a tell-all for what we can expect from Howard.