Minkah Fitzpatrick Trade Grades: Jets Get Needed Secondary Help, Dolphins Continue Rebuild

New York is in desperate need of defensive playmakers, and it got one in the 29-year-old.

The Dolphins sent Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Jets in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Trade grades: Rashan Gary | Maxx Crosby | Zaire Franklin | Garrett Bradbury | DJ Moore | David Montgomery | Tytus Howard

Minkah Fitzpatrick is changing teams within the AFC East. 

The Jets sent a 2026 seventh-round pick to the Dolphins in exchange for the three-time All-Pro safety, hours before the legal tampering period opened Monday to begin free agency. The trade can’t be officially finalized until the new league year opens at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday.

Additionally, the Jets will hand Fitzpatrick a new three-year $40 million contract to add help in an area where they desperately need it after failing to record an interception the entire 2025 season.

Fitzpatrick had one year remaining on his contract with the Dolphins, but with a nonguaranteed salary of $15.6 million. Fitzpatrick started his career in Miami as a 2018 first-round pick and spent two years there before being traded to the Steelers ahead of the ’19 season. The Alabama product was traded back to the Dolphins last season after spending six years in Pittsburgh. 

Let’s assess this latest Fitzpatrick trade from all sides. 

Jets get much-needed help in the secondary 

It’s worth mentioning again that the Jets became the first team in NFL history last year to go an entire season without an interception. From that standpoint, this trade is a win for the organization. 

But agreeing to a new deal with an average yearly salary of $13.3 million seems risky for a player in the back end of his career. Fitzpatrick, who turns 30 in November, has been inconsistent in coverage the past few seasons, but he’s still a quality playmaker.

Similar to last year in Miami, Fitzpatrick will join an inexperienced secondary in New York (remember this team traded two-time All-Pro corner Sauce Gardner at the deadline last season). It’s a good sign that Fitzpatrick’s production didn’t drastically decline when he played with a bad Dolphins team last season, recording 82 total tackles, one sack and one interception in 14 games played.

Earlier this offseason, the Jets landed defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat after trading edge rusher Jermaine Johnson to the Titans. 

Grade: B

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Dolphins make it clear that they’re rebuilding 

The Dolphins could be in the running for the No. 1 pick in 2027.

It appears Miami is aiming to tear down the roster after cutting Tyreek Hill last month, trading Fitzpatrick on Monday morning, and now reports indicate the team will soon release quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. 

If the plan is to start from scratch, the Dolphins’ goal for 2026 should be to acquire as many picks as possible. They gained a seventh-rounder for Fitzpatrick, but that’s a low return for one of the better safeties in the league. Perhaps the market wasn’t as robust for an aging player in need of a new deal. 

Grade: B-

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