What the Monday Mega Moves Tell Us About the Dolphins

Toto, we're not in the summer of 2024 anymore.

Forgive the stretched (or forced) analogy, but if it already wasn't obvious, the Dolphins' summer of spending had been replaced by a new approach, and what happened Monday should have served as yet another reminder.

Because, more than anything, what the trade of Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for Minkah Fitzpatrick and a pretty insignificant draft pick swap (it's a five for a seven and two years down the road) was about was fiscal responsibility.

It also was about looking more at the future than trying to make moves to win now, which most definitely is an interesting approach given the perception that the jobs of both GM Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniel could be or are on the line in 2025.

One can debate whether Ramsey or Fitzpatrick is a better play at this time, but when you throw Smith into the equation, it's impossible to suggest the Dolphins are a more talented team than they were at the start of the day.

But they're also rid of one headache while also moving on from a player who clearly wanted more than they were willing to give him. You can figure out which one is Ramsey and which is Smith (former and latter, respectively).

THE BOTTOM LINE MATTERS

The Dolphins' refusal to give Smith the new contract he wanted — or perhaps more precisely the raise he wanted — again was in stark contrast to last summer when, pretty much every big-name player who wanted a new contract got one.

That included two players with multiple years left on their deals, including the aforementioned Ramsey and Tyreek Hill.

With Smith, his performance last season, when he set single-season franchise records for tight ends in all receiving categories, absolutely merited a raise, but within reason.

While no one will question Smith's receiving ability, he also was the beneficiary of opposing defenses being hyper focused on not letting Hill or Jaylen Waddle burn them deep, and not just a little bit.

It's probably not a secret why he went from a previous career high of 50 catches to 88 last season, and it says here his 2025 total is going to be a lot closer than what he did in Tennessee, New England or Atlanta than what he did in Miami because he no longer has Hill or Waddle as teammates — assuming the Dolphins don't turn around and trade one of them to the Steelers for good measure.

GOOD RETURN FOR RAMSEY

Looking at the Ramsey departure strictly from a Minkah viewpoint, it's hard to complain about the return, particularly since Ramsey's contract for 2025 was fully guaranteed and Fitzpatrick has two years left on a deal averaging around $16 million per year but with no guarantees left.

It was a little disappointing to read the Dolphins having to eat about $3 million of Ramsey's remaining compensation for 2025, but that was the price of doing business.

Reports out of Pittsburgh suggest Fitzpatrick's play took a bit of a dip during the past two seasons after he signed a contract extension, with the one complaint being that he was trying too hard to go for takeaways.

Regardless, he instantly becomes the best defensive back on the roster and will provide the kind of versatility on the back end that Ramsey gave defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver.

As for Ramsey, don't be surprised to see him replace Fitzpatrick at safety in Pittsburgh and be very good at it.

As we said before, swapping Ramsey for Fitzpatrick can be debated as to whether it's a win or loss, but the Dolphins also got rid of a headache in the process.

WHERE THE MOVES LEAVE THE DOLPHINS

Losing Ramsey and Smith and bringing in Fitzpatrick is more talent drain in an offseason that already saw key players like Terron Armstead, Calais Campbell and Jevon Holland go out the door.

And losing Smith left them with another position without a proven player because Julian Hill and Tanner Conner might have potential, but you remember what Bill Parcells said about potential — it means you haven't done anything yet.

Even if we're not expecting Smith to match his numbers from last year, there's zero doubt the Steelers are more talented now than they were Sunday, and they probably have created some separation between themselves and the Dolphins.

And it's not like there weren't already a good number of teams that looked to be standing in the Dolphins' way to a return to the playoffs.

The Dolphins still have enough front-line players to make a playoff push if things go right, but their margin for error keeps getting smaller.

But they're also positioning themselves to make some noise in the future with better fiscal responsibility. For example, they have only five players with guaranteed money for 2026, according to OverTheCap.com — QB Tua Tagovailoa, WR Jaylen Waddle and recent top draft picks Chop Robinson, Kenneth Grant and Patrick Paul, though we'd expect Jonah Savaiinaea to join the group before too long.

McDaniel pushed back against the idea that the Dolphins were rebuilding or resetting in 2025, but at the very least, they're transitioning.

Gone are the free-spending days of "F them picks" and let's go get whatever big name is available.

The Dolphins clearly are operating differently these days. The question now is whether this will produce better results — even if it's not this year.

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