The Special Thing Jaylen Waddle Did Immediately After He’d Been Traded to Broncos

Waddle was drafted by the Dolphins in 2021. | Rich Storry-Imagn Images

When Jaylen Waddle officially leaves Miami to head to Denver, it will be with plenty of now-former teammates and Dolphins employees cheering him on.

At least, that's what you would expect, considering what the Fins' star receiver did immediately after he learned of his trade to the Broncos on Tuesday: Per NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, Waddle, at that point, immediately drove to the team headquarters to say "goodbye to the staffers and people he's gotten to know over the last few years."

Very, very touching from the 27-year-old wideout, who will now become a new target for Broncos QB Bo Nix.

Jaylen Waddle, with the #Dolphins since they drafted him in 2021, learned he was being traded and drove right to the team headquarters to say goodbye to the staffers and people he's gotten to know over the last few years. A smart football decision, but a tough personal one. https://t.co/fyMp3o5LlQ

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 17, 2026

At some point either soon after or before that, Waddle also gave future teammate and close friend Patrick Surtain III a call, as evidenced by the receiver's story on Instagram. In a screenshot of a FaceTime call with the Broncos CB, both players are smiling, clearly excited by the development. (The pair played together at Alabama, in case you forgot.)

Waddle shared a screenshot of a visibly geeked Surtain to his Instagram story. | @jaylenwaddle on Instagram

Surtain then followed up Waddle's post with one of his own, but on X (formerly Twitter). The social missive contained no text explicitly referring to the trade, but it was obvious what the corner was referring to.

pic.twitter.com/NtdQNOSP8d

— Patrick Surtain (@PatSurtainll) March 17, 2026

With Denver, Waddle now joins a receiver room headlined by Courtland Sutton, Lil'Jordan Humphrey and Marvin Mims Jr. He'll prove a strong asset to the group—in five seasons in the NFL, he has only finished one with fewer than 900+ receiving yards—and will likely emerge as the top option at the position.

As part of the trade, the Fins also sent the Broncos a 2026 fourth-rounder, while Denver coughed up a 2026 first-round pick, third-round pick and fourth-round pick. Sports Illustrated's Matt Verderame awarded Miami an A- for the deal, and Denver a C+.

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