The 2026 NFL Draft is here, where all the picks traded in the years leading up to it finally turn from numbers into actual football players. With that in mind, we’ll be taking a look at what some of those trades look like now with the added context.
This time, we’ll be looking at one of the biggest trades of 2026 so far: Jaylen Waddle from the Miami Dolphins to the Denver Broncos.
Original terms of the Jaylen Waddle trade
- Broncos receive: Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, 2026 fourth-round pick (No. 111)
- Dolphins receive: 2026 first-round pick (No. 30), third-round pick (No. 94) and fourth-round pick (No. 130)
What did the Denver Broncos do with the picks from the Jaylen Waddle trade?
When the Broncos use the 111th pick in the fourth round, we will update.
What did the Miami Dolphins do with the picks from the Jaylen Waddle trade?
With the 30th pick in the first round of the 2026
NFL Draft, the Dolphins moved up to 27 to select Chris Johnson, the San Diego State cornerback. We will update with the full trade terms.
We will update during the third and fourth rounds for picks 94 and 130.
How was Jaylen Waddle’s performance for the Dolphins in 2025?
Waddle logged 64 catches for 910 yards and six touchdowns for Miami in 2025. He was a standout on a 7-10 team that benched starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in December and lost star wide receiver Tyreek Hill to a season-ending injury in Week 4.
Waddle averaged 56.9 yards per game and a respectable 14.2 yards per reception in 2025. Despite playing in a struggling offense, his blazing speed made him an every-level threat.
A first-round draft pick in 2021, Waddle opened his career with three-straight 1,000-yard seasons. However, his production took a hit over the last two years as Miami sank to back-to-back losing records. Still, Waddle has been one of the most consistent NFL receivers of the last five years with 5,039 receiving yards and 26 receiving touchdowns over that span.
Just 27 years old, Waddle is signed to a three-year, $84.75 million deal through 2028.
