Miami Dolphins make a Big Splash at the NFL Trade Deadline

The NFL trade deadline occurred on November 1st, which brought some wild trades into the NFL world. Some of the big stars that were moved include Roquan Smith, Chase Claypool, T.J Hockenson, and Christian McCaffrey. The Miami Dolphins were very active during the trade deadline, acquiring two key pieces for their contending roster. Even though the Miami Dolphins are 5-3 with some big come-back wins under their belt, the organization decides to make a final push to solidify the roster for the remainder of the season. The Dolphins have been amongst the lowest ranked team in terms of creating pressure. The first move that was made, brings in one of the league’s best pass-rusher to South Florida. This is done by trading a 2023 1st, 2024 4th, and RB Chase Edmonds for OLB Bradley Chubb and a 2025 5th. 

Dolphins’ Defence adds X-Factor

Bradley Chubb is a 26-year-old outside linebacker who had spent his whole career with the Denver Broncos. Chubb was drafted 5th overall in 2018 and has shown excellent promise ever since. Producing 26 sacks, 107 solo tackles, 6 forced fumbles, and an interception through 49 career games. Performing like this will add Pro Bowl talent to a defence that has several big names already. Chubb, going into the last year of his contract, will look to sign a long-term extension with the Miami Dolphins to stay with the team for the future. Getting a deal done would secure Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and Emmanuel Ogbah for the years to come. 

By acquiring a top-tier pass-rusher, the Miami Dolphins have added a talented player to fill in a missing piece in this defence. Pairing Bradley Chubb with Jaelan Phillips, Emmanuel Ogbah, and Melvin Ingram will bring this defensive unit to the next level. This defensive line should be able to create lots of problems for the opposing offences, with the amount of pressure they’re about to bring. Chris Grier and the Miami Dolphins will look to sign Bradley Chubb to a contract extension to keep the talented pass-rusher in South Florida. 

Creating a Two-headed Rushing Attack

The second trade the Miami Dolphins made was trading for San Francisco running back Jeff Wilson Jr for a 2023 5th-round pick. After trading away Chase Edmonds in a deal for Bradley Chubb, the Dolphins were missing a complementary back to pair with Raheem Mostert. Jeff Wilson is a 26-year-old running back who has played his whole career with the San Francisco 49ers. After going undrafted in 2018, he has had a chip on his shoulder and has shown great promise when given the opportunity. His career stats in his 45 career games include 2120 total yards and 15 touchdowns. Despite being given only 92 rushing attempts in 2022, he has still rushed for 468 yards. This gives him a 5.1 average yards per carry. He has also gotten 91 receiving yards off of only 10 targets. Jeff Wilson is a very versatile back that will be used very creatively by HC Mike McDaniel.  

The Miami Dolphins had some other options in terms of available running backs. Kareem Hunt, running back for the Cleveland Browns has been rumoured to be available for the right price. Hunt has had an impressive career totalling 5575 total scrimmage yards and 48 touchdowns. However, the price for Hunt is presumed to have been higher than Wilson’s. Hunt ended the trade deadline still on the Cleveland Browns roster for the remainder of the season.  Another potential target could have been Nyheim Hines. The Indianapolis Colt’s running back has totalled 2930 total scrimmage yards, as well as 17 total touchdowns during his 5-year career. Hines ended up being traded to the Bills for Zack Moss and a 2023 6th-round pick. The last option that the Miami Dolphins could’ve pursued is LA Ram’s running back, Cam Akers. The sophomore running back has had some issues with the team in Los Angeles and is looking for a fresh start. Akers ended up staying put due to the Rams not getting an offer they liked.

Jeff Wilson has worked with Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel for the past few years when the two were in San Francisco. This level of familiarity will help the Dolphins plug Wilson into the offence almost immediately. Wilson and Mostert should be a formidable running back tandem for the buzzing Miami Dolphins offence. Chase Edmonds was dealing with drop problems and a lack of running efficiency the past few weeks, so it is a very smart move to upgrade to the undrafted stud in Jeff Wilson. Coach Mike McDaniel has confirmed that both Chubb and Wilson will suit up against the Chicago Bears on November 6th. However, the amount they are going to play is still up in the air. 

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