Trade Talk and More Trade Talk
After a regular season like no other, this already is shaping up as an unprecedented offseason as well for the NFL.
And we're referring specifically to the number of high-profile players who could be changing teams by the way of trade, with the yet-to-become-official swap of former first overall picks Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff starting things off.
The Miami Dolphins already have been discussed as potential trade partners with the Houston Texans should they decide they have no choice but to deal quarterback Deshaun Watson, and they've even been given odds as a potential new team for Russell Wilson in light of recent comments suggesting he could end up leaving the Seattle Seahawks.
But it's not just Watson and Wilson. Baltimore Ravens Pro Bowl selection Orlando Brown could be on the trading block after he took to social media voicing his desire to play left tackle, where he lined up for the final 10 games after 2019 All-Pro Ronnie Stanley went down with a season-ending ankle injury.
Then there's Raiders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota, who has been generating some trade interest around the league, according to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport. And we, of course, can't forget about Carson Wentz. And Sam Darnold.
It just doesn't end.
It's interesting to note that the Dolphins are listed as tied for seventh-most likely to be the next team for either Wilson or Darnold, according to BetOnline.
Darnold would seem to be the least plausible candidate to land in Miami because it's just hard to see the Jets trading him to a division opponent and there's also the issue of whether he'd actually constitute much of an upgrade, if at all, at quarterback for Miami considering opinions on him vary greatly.
Brown is intriguing because he's young, he's talented and he's ascending, but the question would become what the Dolphins are willing to give up. Raven Central publisher Todd Karpovich suggested Miami's second of two first-round picks, the 18th overall.
Interestingly, it's the exact same draft spot where the Dolphins selected tackle Austin Jackson just last year.
The Dolphins also used a second-round pick last year on guard/tackle Robert Hunt and a fourth-round pick on Solomon Kindley, so will they want to devote more assets for another offensive lineman?
And one who's going to be entering his contract year in 2021 and no doubt will be looking for a big raise after arriving as a third-round pick and making the Pro Bowl in third season?
It just doesn't seem like a good fit for Miami.
We've already discussed Watson ad nauseum and why the Dolphins owe it to themselves to explore the possibility of landing him if the Texans do decide to trade him — because he's 25 and already established as a bona fide franchise quarterback.
Acquiring Mariota certainly would address a major issue heading into the offseason: finding a backup quarterback.
Ryan Fitzpatrick logically will be looking for a starting opportunity in 2021 — he pretty much said as much during his Super Bowl radio hits — and the Dolphins need to land a proven backup.
RELATED: Fitzpatrick Assesses His Future
Mariota would fit the bill, above and beyond the fact he's a Hawaii native like Tua Tagovailoa and has a connection with the Dolphins 2020 first-round pick.
Mariota looks like a clearly better option as a backup than pretty much all the quarterbacks scheduled to become unrestricted free agents, except for Dak Prescott, who obviously is not a backup.
The issues with Mariota involve the compensation the Raiders would ask in return and his base salary for 2021, which exceeds $10 million.
While it's entirely possible that the Dolphins don't end up making a trade at all in the offseason, it's also silly to dismiss the possibility of a big move.
The evidence: In the two years since Chris Grier and Brian Flores have led the organization, the Dolphins have made 17 trades involving at least one player.
