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UPDATE: The Patriots are trading a 2023 third rounder to the Dolphins for Parker and a 2023 fifth rounder, per Ian Rapoport.
The Miami Dolphins are trading WR DeVante Parker to the New England Patriots, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The Dolphins are getting back late-round draft compensation in return for Parker. Here are the full trade details, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter:
Trade terms, per source:
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 2, 2022
Patriots get WR DeVante Parker and a 2022 5th-round pick.
Dolphins get a 2023 third-round pick.
It’s a bit odd to see the Dolphins sending an asset to their AFC East rival. One plus on top of the draft compensation is the Dolphins clear around $3.3 million in cap space by offloading Parker. He’s signed through 2023 and New England will need to pay his base salary of $5.65 million.
The Patriots desperately needed some help at WR, a position that has been weak since Julian Edelman retired. Parker has had injury issues and has only played a full season once (2019) in his seven-year NFL career. That was his best season, catching 72 of 128 targets for 1,202 yards and 9 TDs. With QB Mac Jones, if Parker can stay on the field, there’s the potential for a solid QB-WR duo there.
New England now has Parker, Jakobi Meyers and Kendrick Bourne as WR depth along with Nelson Agholor. Plus, don’t forget about Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith at tight end. That’s plenty of targets for Jones to work with in the passing game.
The Dolphins were always going to find a new home for Parker before the 2022 NFL season. With Tyreek Hill acquired from the Chiefs and second-year wideout Jaylen Waddle, the Dolphins already had their top 2 wide receivers set. Cedrick Wilson and Preston Williams will rotate as the third WR.