Breaking Down a Suggested High-Upside QB Trade for Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins need a new quarterback for this season, but their options are limited by an underwhelming free agent and draft class.

The grand prize in free agency is Malik Willis, but if the Dolphins can’t land him, there’s not a great fall-back option with legitimate upside. So, the team might have to get a little creative.

That’s exactly what Bleacher Report's Alex Ballentine recently did in a recent story where he named one trade he’d like to see for every team. For the Dolphins, he had them shipping pick 75 to the Seattle Seahawks for QB Jalen Milroe.

Is this a good idea? Let’s dive in.

Scouting Jalen Milroe for Miami Dolphins

The Seahawks selected Milroe 92nd overall out of Alabama in the third round of last year’s draft. The book on Milroe was pretty simple.

He had every physical tool imaginable, but he lacked consistency and polish. His arm strength was top-notch, allowing him to push the ball downfield consistently. There’s also a pretty good argument that Milroe was the fastest QB in the draft since Lamar Jackson.

Milroe could break any play into a big run because of his burst and vision as a ball carrier. That ability sets a reasonably high floor for his play, as long as the offensive coordinator buys in.

The problem is that Milroe’s accuracy, mechanics, and post-snap processing needed a lot of work. He missed too many easy throws in college and wasn’t great at beating defenses that challenged him with post-snap rotations.

That’s why he fell to the third round and was viewed as a long-term project. Milroe played just three snaps this past season, so he had time to sit and learn.

Ironically, his path to NFL success would likely have to look like Willis’. Like Milroe, Willis was an uber-talented QB who struggled with accuracy and processing. However, after a few years on the bench in Green Bay, he improved quite a bit.

Comparing Milroe to Other Trade Options

Milroe isn’t the only quarterback the Dolphins could trade for. There are backups like Davis Mills and Tyson Bagent, as well as former starters like Anthony Richardson and Will Levis.

Milroe is less proven than all of these players, but he’s also got fewer ingrained bad habits than players like Richardson and Levis. He’s also got more upside than names like Mills and Bagent.

The real question is how the trade compensation factors in. Ballentine had the Dolphins sending the 75th overall pick to Seattle for Milroe. That’s a little steep for a QB who hasn’t played a meaningful down of NFL football.

If that’s the price for Milroe, and the price of the aforementioned names is lower, then Miami should probably consider the other options.

On Seattle's side, it has a good QB room already. Sam Darnold just helped them to a Super Bowl victory, and Drew Lock is a capable backup. It would make sense for them to take some draft capital and try to add another piece to a roster that's trying to win more than one Super Bowl.

Milroe, Levis and Richardson are all dart throws — there are different advantages to each, but ultimately, they’re all based more on projection than production.

Should Miami Pursue Milroe?

The short answer is yes. If the team misses out on Willis in free agency, then exploring a possible trade for a young, uber-talented passer is the right way to go.

Miami needs to take some legitimate swings at the QB position this year. Not fake ones on veterans who have a zero percent chance of becoming the team’s long-term option. The Dolphins need to give as many chances as possible to young passers in 2026.

However, moving a Day 2 pick for one of these passers is probably a little too rich for our blood. Miami needs young, affordable talent at just about every spot on the roster. The 75th pick is a golden opportunity to get a player like that at a position of need.

If Milroe had a little more proven ability — like Willis showed with Green Bay — then trading a Day 2 pick would make more sense.

The Dolphins could offer their top Day 3 pick for Milroe (111th overall) and maybe throw in a future Day 3 pick to sweeten the pot.

Investing in a player like Milroe is the right idea, but he’s not quite worth sacrificing a top 100 selection.

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