How Did the Dolphins Do in Their 2022 Trades?
It wasn't long after the Kansas City Chiefs had won Super Bowl LVII that a tweet surfaced proclaiming they had won the Tyreek Hill trade.
It was an expected reaction, to be quite honest, because that's the way things go in this instant-reaction world.
But was it accurate? Or fair?
Wasn't the Hill trade a win for the Dolphins also?
And what about the Dolphins trades for Bradley Chubb and Jeff Wilson Jr., which certainly are topical now because they both will affect the team's haul of draft picks.
WHO WON THE TYREEK HILL TRADE?
Yes, the Chiefs (and their fans) can say they won the trade because they won the Super Bowl, because their offense really didn't miss a beat without Hill, and because moving on from him freed up money they used to acquire other key pieces.
Of course, it always helps making a trade like this when your quarterback is Patrick Mahomes, but that's beside the point.
But in no way, shape or form should the Dolphins be viewed as having "lost" this trade because K.C. won the Super Bowl.
Yes, getting Hill was expensive, both in terms of long-term financial commitment and draft pick expenditure, but it's not like Hill wasn't the best player on the team in 2022 — as evidenced by his being voted team MVP and making first-team All-Pro — and it's not like he didn't transform the Dolphins offense with his crazy speed, which opened up the field for fellow wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and greatly helped Tua Tagovailoa take a big step forward.
Quite frankly, the Dolphins got pretty much all they could have expected from Hill in his first season — and then some.
If it's a necessity to find a loser in this trade — because that's how some folks view things — it just might be that the only answer (or the closest) is Hill himself.
Yes, he got the huge contract he wanted and which he wasn't going to get from the Chiefs, but he also missed out on a second Super Bowl title and maybe that would have been worth the extra millions he got in his Miami contract.
Of course, any second thought Hill might have about the trade would disappears if he could help the Dolphins get a Super Bowl title of their own.
If that happens, then absolutely everybody will have won this trade.
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THE EARLY RETURNS ON THE BRADLEY CHUBB TRADE
Like the Hill trade, acquiring Bradley Chubb from the Denver Broncos cost the Dolphins a package that included a first-round pick.
Unlike Hill, though, Chubb did little in 2022 to justify the price the Dolphins paid in draft capital and with the big extension to which they signed him.
The hope is that the arrival of defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, who was the head coach in Denver in 2020 when Chubb made his first Pro Bowl, will make a big difference next season.
It's way too early for a final grade on this trade, but it wouldn't be a high mark at this point.
EVALUATING THE JEFF WILSON JR. TRADE
Unlike Hill and Chubb, Wilson didn't cost the Dolphins a first-round pick because the price to get him from the San Francisco 49ers was only a fifth-round selection.
But the one snag here is that Wilson is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next month, so he could wind up having been only a rental.
Wilson rushed for 392 yards in eight games with the Dolphins in 2022 and scored four touchdowns, with one 100-yard rushing performance.
More importantly, Wilson averaged 4.7 yards per rushing attempt, a major upgrade over the 2.9 average by free agent acquisition Chase Edmonds before he was sent to Denver as part of the Chubb trade.
Was it worth a fifth-round pick?
Generally speaking, we'd be inclined to say "absolutely," though the Dolphins have had good success with fifth-round selections through the years, most recently with LB Andrew Van Ginkel, DT Davon Godchaux, DB Bobby McCain and RB Jay Ajayi.
Bottom line here is that the Dolphins really needed a No. 2 back after trading Edmonds and Wilson was a major upgrade. So this was a solid trade, even for a rental.
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