The Miami Dolphins have ensured that they will be reaping the benefits of the Laremy Tunsil trade for another two seasons after yesterday’s NFL Draft trading spree — the Dolphins currently take an extra 2022 3rd-round choice and 2023 1st-round pick into the total assets returned for that August 2019 blockbuster trade. But Miami’s benefit of moving down the board extends beyond just pooling future draft picks, too.
The Miami Dolphins, in a year that we’ve seen the salary cap reduced, will have economic benefits of their slew of trades and the eventual landing spot at No. 6 overall. Miami was slated to have a bloated rookie cap commitment in 2021 thanks to the team’s four choices inside the top-50 picks — and while the commitment will still be sizable, Miami has successfully cut down a notable amount with their move from No. 3 to No. 6 overall.
According to Over The Cap, the cap commitment in 2021 for the No. 3 overall selection in this year’s draft is $6.2M with a total contract value of $34M over the first four seasons.
The cap commitments for the No. 6 overall pick?
That checks in at $4.92M for 2021 and a total contract value of $27M over the first four seasons. When you take into account that the Dolphins appear to be playing the field (and the odds) here and are going to come home with the same exact player they were committed to taking on at No. 3 overall in the first place, this is a nifty move that will help make sure the Dolphins are able to navigate this year’s reduced salary cap without having to make any drastic changes to the roster or make any concessions with restructured contracts.
Over The Cap currently projects the Dolphins as needing a total of $13.3M in cap space to account for their rookie picks; nearly $3M more than the Dolphins currently have in cap room. So there will be some maneuvering around the board and some tinkering of the cap. But this move, to land the same player, sure helps the cause in 2021.