Dolphins, Colts discuss Jonathan Taylor trade. Why it makes sense for Miami

The Dolphins are among the teams that have called the Indianapolis Colts to discuss a trade involving running back Jonathan Taylor, a league source said Tuesday evening. Discussions are ongoing and Miami has made an offer, according to a source.

Miami has interest in making a deal, but a handful of other teams also have inquired. As of Tuesday evening, the Colts had not agreed to a trade compensation package with any team. Talks with teams were believed to be in the early, as opposed to advanced, stages.

A source confirmed that the Colts want a first-round pick or multiple second day picks in return for Taylor, who has permission to seek a trade. The sense in league circles is that if a team meets Indianapolis’ demands, the Colts would like to make a move before 53-man rosters must be finalized next Tuesday.

The view here: The Dolphins need to make this deal, not only because of how it would help Tua Tagovailoa, but also because of how it could boost Miami’s chances of surviving any multiweek injury to their quarterback, who hasn’t played a full season since the Dolphins drafted him.

It’s rare to have a chance to acquire a 24-year-old just two years removed from an All-Pro season, a player who has averaged more yards per carry in his first three seasons (5.1) than anyone in NFL history (minimum 750 carries).

The running back position has been devalued, but that doesn’t mean that teams should bypass an opportunity to add a genuine difference-maker — who’s entering his prime — if one becomes available.

And Taylor qualifies as a difference-maker. He finished third and first in the league in rushing yards in his two healthy seasons; he ran for 1,169 yards on 5.0 per carry as a rookie and 11 touchdowns in 2020 and 1,811 yards on 5.5 per carry and 18 TDs in 2021, when he was a first-team All-Pro. An ankle injury limited him to 11 games last season, but he still ran for 861 yards on 4.5 per carry.

Let’s be realistic here: Even with its best roster in years, Miami looks like a fringe playoff team — clearly behind Kansas City and Cincinnati and comparable to the Jets, Ravens, Chargers and Jaguars, who could win the AFC South by default.

If those six other teams play as well as expected, and Deshaun Watson returns to his old form with Cleveland, or Pittsburgh builds off a strong finish to last season, then the Dolphins could find themselves out of playoff position altogether, with seven AFC teams qualifying for postseason.

A team without a quarterback on the level of Patrick Mahomes, or to an extent, Joe Burrow, needs elite skill position players — and a dynamic defense — to have any chance of overtaking a team with an elite QB. Miami has two of those players in Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle; adding a third would create fits for defensive coordinators, giving Miami a dimension it has lacked since Ricky Williams steamrolled through defenses after his acquisition 21 years ago.

The Dolphins have two good backs in Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr., but a third special playmaker around Tua Tagovailoa is needed to seriously compete in a stacked AFC, certainly as long as Mahomes remains atop his game.

The difficulty for Miami is not giving up draft compensation — two second-day picks ultimately could be enough — but creating the cap space to accommodate Taylor, who could command a salary in the $12 million to $15 million per year range.

The Dolphins already are $34 million over the 2024 cap, but there are ways — some easy, some more painful — to clear out enough space to sign Taylor and keep together at least part of its defensive line in 2024.

Christian Wilkins, Zach Sieler and Raekwon Davis can all become free agents after the 2023 season. If the Dolphins give Taylor a large signing bonus and a small base salary in a five-year deal, his 2024 cap number could be kept to a reasonable amount.

Taylor is making $4.3 million this season in the final year of his rookie deal.

Acquiring Taylor would compel teams to respect Miami’s running game, creating additional space for Hill, Waddle and Braxton Berrios.

The Dolphins would be far better equipped to run out the clock when nursing a lead late in games.

They would be better positioned to convert third-and-short yardage situations. Miami was 24th in the league in third-down conversion last season, at 35 percent. The Dolphins converted just 37 percent of their third-and-short situations last season, which was last in the league.

Taylor, in his career, has run for a first down 36 times in the 61 occasions when the Colts needed 3 or fewer yards for a first down, equal to 59 percent. On fourth down, he has converted 11 of 15 in that situation, an impressive 73 percent.

And extending drives — which becomes more likely with Taylor — would keep the Dolphins’ defense off the field more. Miami was 25th in time of possession last season.

Add Taylor, and winning games if Tagovailoa is sidelined would be far less daunting, particularly against teams with shaky run defenses.

In the past two years, the Dolphins’ owner (Stephen Ross) and general manager (Chris Grier) have been consistently aggressive in pursuing players considered among the best at their position — from Hill to Jaylen Waddle to Terron Armstead to Bradley Chubb. Now isn’t the time to stop.

One other nugget on the team’s running back pursuit: Taylor and Dalvin Cook aren’t the only running backs that Miami made calls about in recent weeks. A source with another team insisted the Dolphins also inquired about 2022 NFL rushing leader Josh Jacobs, who has yet to sign a $10.1 million franchise tag with the Raiders. Jacobs would need to sign the tag to be traded, and talks between Miami and Las Vegas never advanced. Jacobs ran for a league-high 1,653 yards last season.

THIS AND THAT

Here’s what defensive coordinator Vic Fangio had to say about some of his top players this week:

On linebacker Jaelan Phillips: “I think he’s improved in his fundamentals. Both what happens early in the down and late in the down. I’ve been very pleased with his play. I think if he continues to improve on the little things, great things will happen because of his talent.”

On Jalen Ramsey: “I think he’s progressing well. He’s obviously trying to beat the timeline that the medical people have put on him, and he says he will. I think it’s way too early to know if that’s true or not. He’s working with the idea of coming back earlier rather than later.”

On linebacker David Long Jr.: “David can run. He’s a run and hit guy and can make good, flashy plays, which are good to have. He’s a good tackler. We just have to become more consistent in executing everything.”

▪ Defensive line coach Austin Clark said he’s not concerned that Wilkins continues to sit out team drills while waiting for a contract extension.

“He’ll be ready to go Week 1,” Clark said. “He’s done a hell of a job in individuals and helping lead the unit with Raekwon [Davis] and Sieler. From an evaluation standpoint in team reps, it has given other guys opportunities. The big thing to them is make the most of these ops. Most of them have done that.”

Has Wilkins done every single thing except 11-on-11 and games and been just as engaged? “One hundred percent,” Clark said. “I’ve been around this guy for four years. He’s a consummate pro, works his ass off, student of the game. He’ll be ready to go, no doubt in my mind.”

▪ Rookie cornerback Cam Smith said his shoulder “felt good” and he will be fine for the Sept. 10 opener at the Chargers.

Smith said Ramsey’s job “is up for grabs right now” with Ramsey out until at least November.

Smith has made several very good plays on the ball, but Fangio said: “We’ve got to feel like we can trust him to do the right thing. We’re all going to get beat some, but we don’t want to get beat by self-inflicted wounds.”

“A lot of stuff not coming to me when I first got here is coming to me now,” he said.

Smith said in this defense, “there are a lot of moving pieces. Having a corner like me with the instincts to go get it, you can have a lot more pass breakups, picks with the defense we’re running.”