Jon-Eric Sullivan’s early rebuild of the Miami Dolphins continued in a big way on Tuesday, when the former Green Bay Packers executive and now Dolphins general manager agreed to trade receiver Jaylen Waddle to the Denver Broncos, per multiple reports.
The big prize coming back to Miami? A first-round pick, No. 30 overall.
Waddle, a first-round pick of the Dolphins in 2021, signed a three-year, $84 million extension in Miami in 2024. He’ll now head to Denver and the AFC West champion Broncos.
Sullivan and former Packers coach Jeff Hafley have systemically torn down the Dolphins roster in the last couple of weeks, moving on from Waddle, Tyreek Hill, Tua Tagovailoa, Bradley Chubb, Minkah FitzPatrick and James Daniels, among others. While the Dolphins signed former Packers quarterback Malik Willis to a three-year deal in free agency, a full-on rebuild is underway, and the draft — a fundamental roster-building phase for Sullivan — will be the key to making Miami relevant again.
The Dolphins now two first-round picks (No. 11, No. 30), an incredible seven total picks in the top 100 and 13 total picks overall in the 2026 NFL draft. In his first season in Miami, Sullivan will get a chance to flex his drafting muscle.
Sullivan previously spent over two decades in Green Bay, coming up in the Ron Wolf tree and working directly under Ted Thompson and Brian Gutekunst.
Don’t forget: the Packers host the Dolphins at Lambeau Field in 2026. Can Sullivan and Hafley turn Miami into a competitive team in Year 1 of the rebuild?
The Packers do not face the Broncos in 2026.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Former Packers exec makes blockbuster trade, continues Dolphins teardown
Reporting by Zach Kruse, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
