The Patriots and Dolphins executed a rare intradivisional trade on Saturday. Miami will be sending wide receiver DeVante Parker to New England in exchange for draft capital.
Parker, 29, has been with the Dolphins since they selected him in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He was the longest-tenured player on Miami's roster and has appeared in 93 games for the team over seven years.
Parker made 64 starts in Miami. His best season came in 2019 when he posted 72 catches, 1,202 yards and nine touchdowns. He has only played in all 16 of his team's games once; that also came in 2019.
The Patriots needed receiver help, so trading for a veteran like Parker makes sense. What did they give up to get him? Below are the details of the Parker to New England trade.
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DeVante Parker trade details
- Patriots get: WR DeVante Parker, 2022 fifth-round pick
- Dolphins get: 2023 third-round pick
The Patriots not only received Parker as a part of this deal, but they also received a fifth-round draft pick in 2022, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. In turn, they will send the Dolphins a third-round pick in 2023.
Parker will fill an immediate need in the Patriots' receiving corps. They have a few solid receivers in slot-man Jakobi Meyers, the versatile Kendrick Bourne and speed-threat Nelson Agholor. However, they needed to add a true starter with size to their offense given N'Keal Harry's struggles during his first three NFL seasons. Parker (6-3, 219 pounds) will provide the team with just that.
Parker is also on a reasonable contract. He is set to have cap hits of $8.7 million and $9 million over the next two years, per Spotrac.com. So, the Patriots are acquiring a cost-controlled asset while picking up another current asset — the 2022 fifth-round pick — in exchange for a future third-round pick. That's a sensible move, especially considering the depth of the 2022 NFL Draft class.
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Meanwhile, the move makes sense for the Dolphins as well. Miami selected Jaylen Waddle in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, signed Cedrick Wilson this offseason in free agency and then traded for Tyreek Hill and made him the NFL's highest-paid receiver.
The Dolphins simply didn't have room for Parker. He wasn't guaranteed to be a starter and moving on from his $8.7 million cap hit opens up more salary-cap space for the team to make other deals. Doing so while getting a future Day 2 pick seems like a solid return.
Trading Parker to the Patriots, however, is an interesting move since both teams are in the AFC East. That said, the Patriots and Dolphins have swapped receivers before, as NFL Network's Ian Rapoport notes. Miami sent both Wes Welker and Isaiah Ford to the Patriots in 2007 and 2020, respectively.
Parker makes it three wide receiver trades between the division rivals over the last 15 years. Now, the Dolphins will have to face Parker twice per season, and they'll hope that his impact in New England is closer to Ford's than it is to Welker's.
