The Miami Dolphins’ offensive attack sputtered in Week 1 against the New England Patriots. Part of the trouble for Miami stemmed from wide receiver DeVante Parker’s hamstring — an ongoing issue that kept Parker out of practice for a week in the build up to Week 1 against the Patriots and forced the team’s star receiver to miss the second half of the game. And, when you add in DeVante Parker’s durability questions throughout the course of his NFL career, it’s a reasonable concern to have for Parker and the Dolphins in the coming weeks.
Make no mistake — the Dolphins’ rebuilding effort is an incomplete effort and the team forecasting more favorably in some areas of the roster in comparison to others. First and foremost, Miami’s wide receiver room feels top heavy. The unit features Parker and a promising (but still not totally proven) 2019 rookie in Preston Williams. Beyond that, Miami recently traded for 2020 rookie Lynn Bowden Jr. and drafted Malcolm Perry to develop for roles in the unit. Yes, the Dolphins have Allen Hurns and Albert Wilson coming back in 2021 after opt-outs for this season, but neither is a long-term standout player.
The rest of Miami’s pieces in the wide receiver room are primarily depth pieces, like Isaiah Ford and Mack Hollins. The team may, however, be looking at a potential upgrade opportunity for the receiver room if things continue to go south in the Windy City.
Bears standout wide receiver Allen Robinson has spent his entire NFL career catching passes from Mitch Trubisky and Blake Bortles — which is bad enough. But Robinson is also due a new contract after the end of the season. And the fact that he hasn’t gotten one yet is reportedly causing some friction between the two sides.
From @GMFB: #Bears WR Allen Robinson is frustrated over the state of his contract negotiations. But he has not asked for a trade… yet. pic.twitter.com/FmlJoSNi6E
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 16, 2020
There is no trade demand just yet. But if Robinson makes one, should the Dolphins call? That really depends on two things:
- Is Miami comfortable playing a premiere contract to a wide receiver at this juncture after the season?
- Are the Dolphins truly committed to having the biggest wide receiver room in the NFL?
If both things are true, then sure. If and when Robinson requests a trade, Miami would be wide to call up Chicago — for the right price anything is on the table. And at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds, Robinson has the size and down the field prowess to add more physical dominance to a wide receiver room that seems to place physical toughness and size at the front of the line. Compensation may become a sticking point for the Dolphins, as this is a team that covets those early draft selections. Coughing up a 2nd-round pick (the same thing Mohamed Sanu was traded to New England for last season) feels unlikely. But if the market is dry and Miami wants a head start on evaluating a potential complement (and contingency plan) to DeVante Parker, perhaps there’s some business to be done.
It can’t hurt to call. But Robinson’s got to demand a deal, first.