Explaining All Sides of the Surprising Minkah Fitzpatrick Trade

On the day the Miami Dolphins said goodbye to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, they were not done making high-profile moves.

The Dolphins are trading safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to the New York Jets in exchange for just a seventh-round pick (originally from the Chargers), according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Jets are also giving Fitzpatrick a three-year, $40 million extension.

Fitzpatrick has been on the trade block for a couple of weeks, so that’s not overly shocking to see him get traded. What is a little surprising is that this was an intra-divisional trade, and that Miami is receiving just a seventh-round pick in return. However, the price of giving Fitzpatrick an extension is likely one reason the Dolphins got just a seventh.

This is the second time the Dolphins have traded Fitzpatrick. The team originally sent him to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a first-round pick in 2019 before acquiring him again ahead of last season in a deal involving Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith heading back to Pittsburgh.

Fitzpatrick played well for the Dolphins in 2025, mostly operating in the slot due to various cornerback injuries. In 14 games, he recorded one interception, six passes defended, one forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries.

Making Sense of Dolphins Trading Minkah to Jets

A seventh-round pick is basically the Dolphins getting nothing in return for Fitzpatrick. This is usually what happens when a team is about to cut the player, but another team throws a pick out there to avoid bidding against other teams.

Veterans who want extensions don’t usually go for much, so in a way, this isn’t overly shocking. Fitzpatrick is 29, and the Jets just extended him through his age 32 season.

He still played well for Miami last season, but he’s not the player he was just a few seasons ago.

While the return is disappointing, it’s hard to argue with the Dolphins’ decision to trade Fitzpatrick in the first place. The trade drops Miami’s cap commitment to Fitzpatrick from $18.8 million to $12.9 million, so the team should add roughly $6 million in cap space to its total of $3.2 million, according to Over The Cap.

That is assuming the Dolphins didn’t pay down any of Minkah’s money in the deal, which, given the extension and the compensation, seems unlikely.

Miami needed that cap space to operate effectively in free agency this week. While there’s no expectation the team will sign a big name, it does need to add a few depth players just to take snaps. The Dolphins also need to maintain enough cap space to sign a draft class that now includes nine picks.

Moving past the cap of it all, some will be upset the Dolphins moved Minkah inside the AFC East. On the surface, that’s reasonable. The Dolphins just made their roster worse, and the Jets’ roster better.

The teams will play twice a year, and Minkah could be an impact player for New York this season, assuming he maintains something close to his 2025 level of play.

However, the simple truth is that Miami isn’t really competing in 2026. And although Minkah is still good, he’s not a young player who will haunt them for an entire career.

If the options were releasing Fitzpatrick or getting a seventh-round pick, then Miami should take the seventh-rounder, even if it’s from the Jets.

While it might sting a little more if Minkah makes a play against the Dolphins, Miami’s new front office, led by GM Jon-Eric Sullivan, is proving it won’t shy away from deals that benefit the Dolphins just because it doesn’t want to see that player twice a year.

In a vacuum, that’s the way a rebuilding team should be operating. This one is just somewhat harder to stomach because all Miami got back was a seventh-rounder.