You graded the Dolphins trades and predicted the AFC East finishing position

Jacksonville Jaguars v Miami Dolphins — Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images

How did the fans react to the Miami Dolphins’ two trades this week? We asked and you answered.

The Miami Dolphins had a busy week heading into the Independence Day weekend. While the coaches and players are enjoying the break between minicamp and the start of training camp, the front office was busy adjusting the roster. Miami made two trades during the week, with four Pro Bowl players on the move following the deals.

Earlier this week, we asked you to grade those trades and to predict where the Dolphins will finish in the AFC East this year. You responded, voting in our SB Nation Reacts poll, and we now have the results. What did you think of the Dolphins’ trades?

Dolphins fans grade two trades

Cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who spent the offseason disgruntled and looking for a new team, and tight end Jonnu Smith, who wanted a pay raise after his first career Pro Bowl appearance last year, both had been rumored to be on the trade market. This week’s roster moves proved those rumors true. The Dolphins packaged the two players, along with a conditional 2027 seventh-round draft pick, to acquire safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 fifth-round pick from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Dolphins created a hole at tight end with the trade, sending away Smith, and reinforced the team’s need to add cornerback help with the official move on from Ramsey; still, they were able to add to their defensive secondary in bringing Fitzpatrick back to South Florida. Miami selected Fitzpatrick with the 11th overall pick in 2018. Still, after spending his rookie season under then-head coach Adam Gase and making the change to then-head coach Brian Flores in his second season, Fitzpatrick’s frustration with how the team was using him led to a trade with the Steelers. A little over five seasons later, he returns to Miami under current head coach Mike McDaniel.

Miami was not done, however. With the tight end position now a need, the Dolphins made a second trade, picking up tight end Darren Waller from the New York Giants the next day. Waller sat out the 2024 season, having decided to retire, but rumors indicated that this year he was considering a return, with a desire to play in Miami. Miami included a conditional 2026 sixth-round draft pick in the trade and received back a 2027 seventh-round pick.

What did fans think of these moves? Our first question in this week’s survey provides us an answer:

The fans give the trades a B, with nearly two-thirds of them giving it either an A or a B mark. Overall, the fans seem to think this is good for the Dolphins, with some optimism emerging from it.

We also asked you to discuss your grades in the comments of the survey. Here are some of the responses you gave:

AussieFin

Given our circumstances, the trade was as A. Did anyone here think that we would get that much in the Ramsay trade. The Smith part of the deal, was really no big deal as we were never going to pay him as much as he got. For once I am happy that the FO didn’t throw extra money for no good. Good luck to Smith, but in a way his success in Miami came at the expense of 2 down performances from our top WR’s and limited what we can do with the offense.

lpad

The Dolphins traded a 30 year old former pro bowler and a F TE for a 28 year pro bowler. Anyone thinking this trade is a D or F is wrong

Francesco ITA

Its a C regarding the value… a B- because of where we put ourselves …

It makes our team worse, so probably improving the draft position (but then was better to get a pick) and thats nice

Also it doesnt harm much our future cap space

Miami can unfortunately finish 2nd because of schedule and because how bad are the Jets and the Patrios… let’s hope not…

JPeay

The Ramsey/Smith trade: I don’t know how it can’t be anything other than an A, B+ at the minimum. To get one of the best safeties in the league back for someone who is a locker room poison and way too expensive, is an excellent trade. It sucks to see Smith go, but if he can have the season he did in Miami then Waller is every bit as capable of replicating Smiths production.

The Waller trade: I will give a B. If he can produce even just what he did in his last season in NY (50+ rec 500+ yards) then that is tremendous value for a seventh. round pick. Given his history with OC Frank Smith when they were together with the Raiders, I absolutely believe he will make a impact on this team.

As far as next seasons division standings, I think Miami will still finish 2nd, but just barely. Buffalo is still the team to beat unfortunately. So Miami will finish 10-7 with a wild card spot. Assuming Tua and our defensive line stays healthy. Oh and also signing a free agent CB (hopefully Asante Samuel if healthy).

Yarganaught

Waller is a nothing trade… I don’t expect him to play much. I do expect that the other TEs on the roster will surprise a few of us, in a good way. We won’t miss Jonnu, but I wish him well.

Essentially getting Minkah (back) for Ramsey is a good deal. I just hope Weaver welcomes him and says, “Great, we have our final piece to create an amoeba defense!” Seriously though, our Secondary improved with this trade.

JUK

I’m giving both trades an A given where we were last week. We knew Ramsey was gone and most of the speculation was that we would add cash and get a day 3 pick back. So our CB room is exactly where we thought it would be but our safety room is much better, plus a useful pick swap thrown in. So how you feel comes down to your view of losing Jonnu, For me his success was a result of our offense not working, and his shortcomings limited our options in a lot of sets. With better interior and perimeter blocking we can cope without him. We were not in a position to give him the raise the Steelers did.

Waller I think is much more interesting than most people think. It’s very low risk for us (I’m assuming it’s veteran minimum plus incentive to get to 5m here or my grade would change slightly) and his per game production still remained very good through 21 to 23 – his overall average yards per game was better than Jonnu’s last season! So it comes down to the year off – does that make him healthier in which case this could be a steal, and will that year off have eroded his skill set. For what we paid I’m excited to find out. Certainly better than trading a high pick for someone like Pitts and extending them

glen55

I think the big trade was an A. Yes, the Steelers got more talent overall, BUT …

Both of the guys the Fins gave up were guys they needed to move and I didn’t expect them to get anything near what they actually got
Specifically, the Dolphins got the best player involved in the trade
While getting Smith means the Steelers won the overall talent weight in the swap, Smith isn’t that important to the Dolphins unless Hill and Waddle get hurt again, and if the team wants to compete for anything significant, it has to assume they won’t
The cap relief the Dolphins got was huge, something I did not personally expect and hopefully it will help the team snag a starter CB sometime this summer

As for the Waller trade? Not sure it’s significant enough to rate as a “trade,” it’s more like taking a flyer on a free agent, and probably a good flyer to take. Giving up a 7th barely weighs in the balance at all.

tpl

Miami still has too many unknowns. Will the signing of James Daniels and Savaiinaea solve the offensive line woes? Will Darren Waller make an impact at TE. Will Zack Wilson be a reliable backup QB? What will be Minkah Fitzpatricks effect on the secondary? Will MM improve as a coach this year?

Bill Moody

Minkah Trade = A
Waller Trade = B
Overall = B+ (so B)

Love the $10 in Cap, upgrade from 7th to 5th pick and Minkah. The Waller trade won’t cost us much if it doesn’t work out. Just need to work on our CBs, but we knew this already anyways.

Miami7

I grade both trades a ‘C’….a ‘B’ based on the position they put themselves in that made the trades necessary, but that position – caused by mismanagement in the 1st place, knocks the grade down a notch. They really kinda sorta did all they could given the circumstances…though diggin’ up the bones of a TE whose career ended a while ago doesn’t really seem all that noteworthy but….it’s not like they’re contenders, so who cares?

2nd place in Division. The top spot rests on the shoulders of Buffalo having a generational QB. We do not. Unfortunately, we also do not have a GM that can build so good a roster around our ‘good’ QB as to raise our finish expectations.

Where will the Dolphins finish in the AFC East?

The second half of the survey consisted of a simple prediction of where Miami would finish in the AFC East this year. The Dolphins have been second in the division for three consecutive years and six times in the last decade. Will they be able to overtake the Buffalo Bills, who have won the division title each of the last five years? Will the New England Patriots or New York Jets surpass Miami?

Over at FanDuel sportsbook, the oddsmakers, even after the trades, have the Dolphins third in the division when looking at the chances the team has to win the AFC East. The Bills lead the way at -250, with the Patriots at +500. Miami is +700, while the Jets are a distant fourth at +1600.

Dolphins fans expect the team to finish ahead of both New England and New York, but once again behind the Bills, it would seem:

A majority of the fans predict a second-place finish. Will that be how the season plays out? Will a second-place finish in the division include a trip to the playoffs, as it did in 2022 and 2023, but not last year?