But even legends make a lousy call every now and then. So it was with Shula, and so it is with Hyde, who argued in a recent column that the Miami Dolphins should trade Tyreek Hill this offseason. Citing his contract, locker-room presence, and the team’s long-term outlook, Hyde made compelling points.
But respectfully, he is dead wrong. Trading Hill on the eve of a make-or-break 2025 season for Miami would be like trying to return gifts on Christmas Eve because you looked at your credit card bill. Which is to say: At this point, the damage is done. Trading Hill now would be a catastrophic mistake for a franchise entering the 2025 season.
Let’s explain why keeping Hill is the only logical move for Miami.
2025 Is Do-or-Die for Miami
One of the Dolphins' most significant issues over the past three decades has been their tendency to hedge their bets, which opens up the potential for more excuses, and, inevitably, gives general manager Chris Grier another four years of job security. This time — and again, with all due respect — we ask them to sleep in the bed they have made.In last week's column, Hyde writes, "There's just too many cross-currents for him [Hill] to stay with a team that isn't a front-and-center Super Bowl contender next season. Which, sane minds agree, the Dolphins aren't."
The problem with this argument is that Miami doesn't have the luxury of thinking beyond 2025. Because whether you think Miami is a Super Bowl contender or not, the reality is this: If you're right, they'll be even less of a contender in 2026 and 2027, because they'll be busy tearing things down for the inevitable rebuild.
Whether or not Hill is on the roster, the Dolphins are facing a significant overhaul after next season if they don't make a deep playoff run. If this team fails to deliver, we're likely looking at a new head coach, general manager, and quite possibly, a new quarterback if Tua Tagovailoa doesn't prove he can stay healthy.
Why would Miami voluntarily weaken itself in its last chance to prove this team iteration was successful? The only thing trading Hill now does is increase the chances that next offseason the Dolphins are having a full-blown fire sale.
Miami can get a fourth-round pick for Hill now or a sixth-round pick during next season's fire sale. We fans vote for one more season of paying him money that isn't ours in exchange for seeing this thing through.
Restructuring Chubb, Jackson and Sieler would create $24 M. Restructuring Tua would create $19 M. And suddenly, Dolphins would have $57 M in cap space. They'll need it because they need to sign 8 starters and at least 10 backups. (Some will be addressed in draft.) https://t.co/8lR0qXcGfV
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) February 25, 2025
The NFL Salary Cap Is a Myth
Any argument for or against keeping Hill that includes salary cap numbers shouldn't be taken all that seriously, because the NFL salary cap is the least-serious competition-balancing thing in all of professional sports. Hyde suggests that Hill’s contract is an albatross. "The third option, the one where they re-do his contract again at age 32, where they spread out the $51.8 million salary-cap number he has in 2026 over a few more years, is hard to see on the table of a good organization, Isn't it?"
The truth is, the salary cap is an act of accounting sleight-of-hand that competent teams commit all the time. Cap space can be pushed into the future, restructured, and spread across years to accommodate stars.
Miami can adjust Hill's cap hit this season or in 2035 if the team so desires. Teams "figure it out" when it comes to keeping elite talent. The idea that Miami is forced to decide now is simply incorrect.
49ers trading WR Deebo Samuel to the Commanders for a 5th-round pick. (via @RapSheet) pic.twitter.com/V5hiStDf66
— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2025
The Market for Wide Receivers Is Nonexistent
Take whatever you think Tyreek Hill is worth on the trade market and lower your expectations. Not many teams are lining up to pay a boatload of draft assets for an aging (albeit star) wide receiver making historic money at his position. Not when they can draft a player in the second round who'll take home pennies in return for a decent percentage of the production Hill would generate. Hyde suggests Miami quietly explore a trade, writing, "Could they get a second-round pick for him?"
The recent trade of Deebo Samuel proves there is virtually no market for wide receivers. Samuel, a highly talented but not top-tier receiver, was traded for a fifth-round pick. If that’s the going rate for a receiver on a more manageable contract, Miami would be lucky to receive a mid-round pick in return for Hill. That's less than the Dolphins usually get when the compensatory picks are announced. Just ride things out.
Tua Tagovailoa Needs Every Weapon the Dolphins Can Provide
Removing Hill from the field does more harm than good. Yes, the drama he brings will lessen, but so will the number of headaches Miami's opponents will need to prepare for. And that's bad news for the team's quarterback, who we all know damn well is a ticking time bomb on the verge of retirement every time he says "hike."Hyde argues that Miami's offense hasn't demonstrated an ability to maximize both Hill and Jaylen Waddle: "First, this offense hasn't shown it can support two small, speedy and expensive receivers like Hill and Jaylen Waddle, has it?"
Yes it has. Did we dream about the offense suddenly becoming the talk of the sports-talk town upon Hill's arrival? How Waddle-Hill was the new Clayton-Duper for a solid season? The biggest issue — and change — has been that Miami allowed its best offensive lineman to walk in free agency and the team's run game immediately turned to shit.
The Dolphins need to make Tua's life as easy as possible, and removing the most dangerous weapon on the team makes no sense. If Miami moves on from Hill, they are effectively asking their quarterback to win with fewer weapons — i.e., the last thing he needs.
This will be my best year yet dolfans ✌🏿
— Ty Hill (@cheetah) March 1, 2025
Hill is a Generational Talent Worth the Drama
The reality is, most stars have a screw loose. Nearly every championship team deals with a roster full of players who are deeply flawed off the field. But, ironically, it's those personality quirks that make them who they are on the field. From Dennis Rodman to Deion Sanders, sometimes, you need to crack a few eggs to make a championship omelet. Hyde points to concerns about Hill's attitude. "He was often late to meetings in a manner McDaniel didn't handle. That was just, '10 percent of the problem' he gave the team, a team source said."
Great. Cool. Sounds much more like the Dolphins have a leadership problem at the head-coaching position than they do at the wide-receiver position. Everyone knows stars will push the limits if they're not checked on a regular basis. It sounds as if McDaniel's apparent need to be the cool-substitute-teacher "players' coach" backfired, and now he (and the team) want it both ways.
Sure, Hill comes with some headaches, but that's the cost of carrying an all-time great on your roster. When winning, Hill is a larger-than-life player who terrifies defenses and elevates the entire team — including Miami's defense, which benefits from opponents playing catch-up.
The best players often have big personalities; managing them is part of the job. The issue isn't that Tyreek Hill wants out; the problem is that he wants to win. Hill has a championship mindset — unlike the Dolphins franchise, which has spent decades accepting mediocrity. He's precisely the type of player Miami ought to be fighting to keep.
