The Denver Broncos are adding a playmaker to their offense as they’ve agreed to a trade with the Miami Dolphins for wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, league sources confirmed to The Athletic. The Broncos will receive Waddle and a fourth-round pick in exchange for Denver’s 2026 first-round pick (No. 30) and third- and fourth-round picks.
Waddle, a first-round pick in 2021 out of Alabama, played five years for the Dolphins and had three 1,000-yard receiving seasons. The trade is contingent upon Waddle passing a physical.
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For the Broncos, the trade boils down to a simple calculus: They needed a playmaking infusion for an offense that sputtered too often last season, even as Denver won 14 games and earned the AFC’s No. 1 seed. There was arguably no available player who fit that bill better than Waddle, a versatile threat with the capability to line up across Denver’s offensive formation.
The 17-game averages for Waddle during his career — 81 catches, 1,098 yards, six touchdowns — put him in elite company among NFL wide receivers. Just as was the case in Miami with Tyreek Hill before injuries slowed Hill, Waddle is now part of arguably one of the league’s best receiving duos alongside Courtland Sutton, who has 2,098 yards and 15 touchdowns across the last two seasons.
The Broncos were adamant after last season that they liked their receiving room. Outside of Sutton, the Broncos have three players they have drafted within the last three years: Marvin Mims Jr. (second round, 2023), Troy Franklin (fourth round, 2024) and Pat Bryant (third round, 2025). Each had encouraging flashes, including a monster game from Mims in Denver’s divisional round playoff win against the Buffalo Bills in January, but they don’t possess Waddle’s combination of speed, route-running ability and proven production. Denver needed more offensive juice around quarterback Bo Nix, who is entering the third year of his rookie contract, and they landed one of the most talented offensive players on the trade market.
The price for Waddle was significant. It is by far the biggest move for general manager George Paton since 2022, when he traded five drafts and three players to acquire Russell Wilson. That move was a flop, with Wilson being released after two seasons and a 19-30 record as Denver’s starter. Wilson, though, was 33 at the time of the trade and joined a team with a first-year head coach in Nathaniel Hackett, who proved incapable of doing the job and was fired after 15 games. Waddle is 27, has missed only three games the past two seasons and is joining an offense constructed by coach Sean Payton, who has a proven record of offensive success.
For Miami, the Dolphins will now have a chance to rebuild the roster around 26-year-old quarterback Malik Willis and see where things go. The Dolphins now have a whopping seven picks in the top 94 this year. Miami will pick at Nos. 11 and 30 in the first round, 43 in the second round and 75, 87 (from Philly), 90 (from Houston) and 94 (from Denver).
The Dolphins have a chance to target immediate needs at No. 11. The top cornerback (Mansoor Delane) and top guard (Vega Ioane) should be on the board. The Dolphins could also be in range for the top wide receiver (Carnell Tate) and top tight end (Kenyon Sadiq). Whichever need isn’t addressed early can now be attacked at No. 30, especially cornerback and receiver. Miami also has five picks on Day 2 right now, along with the two firsts. If the Dolphins want to trade into the top five for their favorite edge in this class, they could do so. The possibilities are pretty endless.