Jaylen Waddle Trade Illustrates Different Directions Dolphins And Broncos Went After 70-Point Game
Broncos get three-time 1,000-yard receiver for first and third-round picks as Dolphins continue massive rebuild
Remember that 70-20 beatdown the Miami Dolphins put on the Denver Broncos in 2023 when they had championship aspirations and the Broncos were rebuilding? The roles have definitely flipped and Tuesday's trade sending Jaylen Waddle from the Dolphins to the Broncos is a clear illustration of that.
The Dolphins and Broncos rocketed in vastly different directions following that game. The Dolphins became a bitter disappointment, while the Broncos built one of the NFL's best teams.
And so here we are on Tuesday, with the Dolphins selling off (more) talent amid their latest rebuild. And the Broncos are making a move to reach for a Super Bowl in 2026-27.
Both teams are a long way from 70-20.
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Jaylen Waddle of the Miami Dolphins. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
Dolphins Get First-Rounder For Waddle
The Dolphins are trading Waddle, a three-time 1,000-yard receiver, in exchange for a first round pick (30th overall), a third-round pick (94th overall) and one of Denver's fourth-round picks.
The Broncos get a big-time deep threat for quarterback Bo Nix and their offense because Waddle has averaged more than 14 yards per catch three times in his career, including last year.
The Dolphins come away from this with multiple picks in the first and third rounds of the upcoming draft. They have two first-round picks, and four third-round picks.
And Dolphins fans come away needing a game program to identify the team new coach Jeff Hafley and general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan will put on the field in 2026.
The Dolphins have added, by my unofficial count, 17 new free agents since the start of the new league year. And while most of those have signed minimum-salary deals for one year, the club will augment with its quiver of 11 draft picks.
The Dolphins have also released or traded quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, receiver Tyreek Hill, edge rusher Bradley Chubb, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick – all past Pro Bowl players – and now Waddle.
Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan. Photo: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Dolphins Headed To Losing Season
Great? Nope.
The Dolphins are going to lose often in 2026. They've voluntarily moved on from a lot of talent and are replacing that talent with unproven or mid-tier veterans plus a lot of draft picks.
The price for moving on from that talent will be measured in losses during the season, but is already obvious in the amount of dead money the club will carry on its 2026 salary cap. That figure comes in at an estimated $160 million.
No one said rebuilding – something the Dolphins undertook in 2019 to great depths and now to potentially equal depths – is easy.
The Broncos?
They've got Super Bowl thoughts in their head.
Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos. (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
Broncos Did What Dolphins Hope To
They went through what the Dolphins are going through now. They sold off Chubb – to the Dolphins, in fact. They found the need to move on from Russell Wilson despite the salary cap pain.
But the club rose from those tough times. The Broncos were in the AFC Championship game last we looked. And although they've been quiet in free agency, general manager George Paton has been working behind the scenes on this big addition.
The Broncos reportedly beat out a handful of teams, including the Buffalo Bills, for this acquisition. And they paid a steep price.
But the calculation for Denver obviously includes the idea that any talent they were bound to add with the No. 30 overall selection wouldn't factor to the degree Waddle, a sixth-overall selection in 2021 would immediately.
Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos roars after throwing a touchdown pass to Marvin Mims Jr. against the Buffalo Bills. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
Nix To Waddle In 2026
The Broncos obviously believe Waddle will be worth the price because they have a championship defense and lost the AFC Championship game by a meager 10-7 score despite not having Nix, who was injured.
So Denver is going for it.
The Broncos were AFC Super Bowl contenders before this trade, because how else to describe a team that was the No. 1 seed in the conference before the deal?
They now have to be considered a Super Bowl favorite in the AFC.