Cap-constrained Dolphins heading in new direction after trading standout receiver Jaylen Waddle
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Jon-Eric Sullivan’s aggressive overhaul of the Miami Dolphins has taken another step.
The new Miami general manager has dismantled the core of a once star-studded roster, prioritizing draft capital over established resumes and doing what he can to get the Dolphins out of a difficult salary cap situation.
Franchise quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was released, along with other stars including Tyreek Hill and Bradley Chubb.
The massive overhaul continued Tuesday when wide receiver Jaylen Waddle was traded to the Denver Broncos for picks No. 30, 94 and 130 in this year’s draft. While Waddle was a foundational offensive piece under Miami’s old regime of coach Mike McDaniel and GM Chris Grier, the franchise is clearly heading in a different direction.
“There are players that we see as building blocks as we move down the road,” Sullivan said at last month’s NFL scouting combine. “My job as the general manager is if the phone rings, I have to listen. Any player is tradeable at a certain price.”
Getting out of this current salary cap bind has been the priority. Miami will have $175 million in salary cap charges next season on players who are no longer on the roster.
That’s more than half of the Dolphins’ cap for 2026 and includes more than $50 million to Tagovailoa, $28.2 million to Hill and $20.9 million to cornerback Jalen Ramsey, traded to Pittsburgh last year.
“Obviously, it’s no secret that we’re in a bit of a strain salary cap-wise,” Sullivan said last month. “I think you can always do what you want to do within the salary cap. That means you have to kick things down the road. … I think we’re in a position where we need to get back into a healthy state within our salary cap.”
Sullivan has said he will prioritize the draft to fill in the roster, which fits the approach he wants to bring from his time working in Green Bay’s front office.
The Dolphins have already addressed one of their key needs in free agency, signing Malik Willis at quarterback, but they also now have 11 total draft picks in 2026 — two in the first round and seven in the first three rounds — to begin addressing a roster with plenty of needs.
Miami’s receiver room after the Waddle trade, which also included sending a 2026 fourth-rounder to Denver, now includes Tutu Atwell, Malik Washington, Theo Wease Jr., Tahj Washington, Terrace Marshall Jr., Jalen Tolbert and AJ Henning.
So the Dolphins could address the position with one of their picks.
“It’s my job to be very creative and aggressive in how we use our (draft) picks,” Sullivan said, “then our undrafted free agency process, then the 53 cut and then practice squad steals. We’ve got to build this thing out, but we have to build it out so that it’s sustainable over time. You can’t do that overnight.”
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