How the Waddle Trade Keeps Looking Better and Better for the Dolphins

One of the Miami Dolphins' biggest moves of the offense was sending Jaylen Waddle to the Denver Broncos

Denver Broncos wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (17) warms up before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Empower Field at Mile High. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Miami Dolphins sacrificed the present for a better future when they moved Jaylen Waddle in the offseason, but their big trade with the Denver Broncos continues to look good in the moment.

While Waddle had yet another uneventful outing in the Broncos' ugly Thursday night overtime victory against the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night, the main piece the Dolphins in the trade got some national love Friday morning.

In short, a trade we liked very much from the start has become one we downright love at this point.

To refresh everyone's memory, the Dolphins traded Waddle and a 2026 fourth-round pick (111th overall) to Denver for the 30th overall pick, and picks in the third (94th overall) and fourth rounds (130th overall).

The Dolphins then moved the 30th overall along with the 90th overall selection to the San Francisco 49ers for the 27th overall selection and the 138th overall pick in the fourth round.

With the 27th pick, the Dolphins selected cornerback Chris Johnson, then took wide receiver Chris Bell with the 94th pick, linebacker Trey Moore with the 130th pick and safety Kyle Louis with the 138th pick.

So looking at the complete deal, it comes down to the Dolphins trading Waddle, the 90th pick and the 111th pick for Chris Johnson, Chris Bell, Trey Moore and Kyle Louis.

Oh, and the Dolphins cleared Waddle from their books moving forward, though they did take a $23 million dead cap hit for him in 2026.

WADDLE'S WOES IN DENVER

It probably will take a couple of years before a final verdict can be rendered on this trade, but the early indications are that it was a big win for Miami.

Regardless of what happened, it helped accomplished the goal of clearing the books beyond this one year of pain, but Waddle's production in Denver through the first six games has eliminated any buyer's remorse.

In Denver's 17-14 victory against Seattle, Waddle had four catches for only 24 yards, the fifth time in six games he failed to top 35 receiving yards.

Since his one big game, a 138-yard performance in Week 2 against Jacksonville, Waddle has recorded 13 catches for 88 yards in the past four games combined.

That four-game stretch is the worst of his career in terms of yardage, not even remotely close to his previous four-game low of 135 yards during the 2024 season.

Waddle was expected to provide the big-play element to a Denver team that reached the AFC Championship Game last year, but instead their offense has faced little but criticism this season even though the team still has a 4-2 record.

Meanwhile in Miami, we also could make the argument that Johnson has performed better, particularly considering he's a rookie.

While the start of his NFL career was bumpy, he has been impressive of late, enough that Sports Illustrated draft analyst Justin Melo mentioned him among his five rookies on the move.

Bell is off to a slow start in his first NFL season, but that's somewhat to be expected considering he's coming back from a serious knee injury and the Dolphins offense as a whole has been dysfunctional.

Moore and Louis are on injured reserve and it's safe to wonder how much they will contribute, if at all, in 2026.

But Moore looked like he was ready in camp to become a major contributor, and Louis will be given a chance at a new position when he returns.

Either way, this trade is looking very good indeed at this time.