AFC East team eyeing trade for Colts RB Jonathan Taylor?

It would be hard to believe that the Miami Dolphins are serious about trading assets to acquire Indianapolis Colts star running back Jonathan Taylor after passing on free-agent rusher Dalvin Cook.

Cook, who openly called the Dolphins "a perfect fit," signed a one-year deal last week with the AFC East rival New York Jets worth up to $8.6M. The Dolphins had every opportunity to bring Cook back home to South Florida, but they passed, seemingly content with the guys in the running back room and not willing to give the former Minnesota Viking what the Jets paid.

Yet, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the possibility of the Dolphins giving up multiple picks, which could include a first-rounder, is real. Looking ahead to future drafts, the Dolphins have one pick in every round for 2024 and 2025, except for their fourth- and fifth-round selections next year. 

One was lost when Dolphins owner Stephen Ross was found guilty of tampering when he tried to unite Tom Brady and Sean Payton in Miami. The other was traded last season to the Denver Broncos for defensive end Bradley Chubb.

So, although it would be entirely possible for the Dolphins to relinquish future draft capital for the 2022 Offensive Player of the Year runner-up, the acquisition would be baffling. If you take into account how often running backs get injured and how the position has evolved to utilizing multiple players instead of a featured back, why would the Dolphins want Taylor?

The Dolphins already have six running backs on their active roster. A few will get cut before the season opener, but the team selected speedster De'Von Achane in the third round of the 2023 draft and signed both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson to almost identical two-year deals. Even though Achane is week-to-week with a shoulder injury, as reported by ESPN.com, he should be ready for the season opener. 

The Dolphins also have Salvon Ahmed, who looked fantastic in Miami's preseason win over the Houston Texans this past Saturday and Myles Gaskin, who was the Dolphins leading rusher in 2020.

Taylor was limited to only 11 games last year and a dispute arose during this preseason over the extent and nature of his injury. Taylor failed his physical this past July, and there were reports that he had back pain, which he denies.