Copyright Yardbarker
Many outsiders expected the Miami Dolphins would become significant sellers ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline after they sent pass-rusher Jaelan Phillips to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2026 third-round draft pick. However, that proved to be the only major move made by the Dolphins this week. While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, head coach Mike McDaniel opened up about his 2-7 team being the subject of trade-related rumors throughout what's become a disappointing season for everybody involved. Mike McDaniel addresses "exhausting" nature of NFL "The NFL is an exhausting place if you lean into all rumors," McDaniel explained, per Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN. "This is a business of rumors. People are paying attention or buying subscriptions, or watching television, and there's a game once every seven days, or four, I guess, if you count Thursday. I think, ultimately, coaches and players have to adjust to the fishbowl that is the National Football League. I'm sure some guys probably had some thoughts or feelings [about the trade deadline] ... the unknown is the greatest source of stress and anxiety for human beings." Pass-rusher Bradley Chubb and wide receiver Jaylen Waddle were among Miami players linked with other teams throughout October. Following the Dolphins' blowout 28-6 home loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Oct. 30, Chubb acknowledged he understood "the business of football." Meanwhile, Miami reportedly wanted a first-round draft pick or a first-rounder and more in return for Waddle. Chubb and Waddle remained with the Dolphins leading up to their home game versus the Buffalo Bills (6-2) this coming Sunday. "To be honest, you have a team playing a division opponent that we very much are familiar with and are eager to position ourselves to put our best performance out there and compete against these guys," McDaniel continued. "So I think it was a breath of fresh air to have a unilateral focus on an opponent and what we have to do." Dolphins had "healthy conversations" internally about trade-deadline activities The Dolphins and general manager Chris Grier "mutually" agreed to part ways on Oct. 31, and Miami subsequently promoted senior personnel executive Champ Kelly to the role of interim general manager. On Wednesday, McDaniel said that he, Kelly, Dolphins senior vice president of football and business administration Brandon Shore and team owner Stephen Ross "had very, very healthy conversations" and were "all in agreement for the moves [we made] and/or moves we didn't make" ahead of the deadline. "It was a normal trade deadline process where you are, contrary to popular belief, you generally talk about a ton," McDaniel added. "...There's conversations all over the place with every team because everyone's trying to get better and seeing what competitive advantage they can get." As of Thursday morning, ESPN BET had the Dolphins as 9.5-point underdogs against the Bills.
