Dolphins Give Waddle a Massive Extension

2021 first-round pick Jaylen Waddle has agreed to a three-year extension

Jaylen Waddle / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Dolphins took care extending the contract of one of their young stars Thursday, but it didn't involve the one that's been drawing almost all of the attention.

The Dolphins have reached an agreement wide receiver Jaylen Waddle on a three-year extension, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, with the deal worth $84.8 million with $75 million guaranteed.

The #Dolphins and star WR Jaylen Waddle have a new deal on a three-year, $84.75M contract extension that includes $76M guaranteed, sources say. Waddle is now one of the league’s top five highest-paid WRs.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 30, 2024

The extension comes about a month after the Dolphins exercised the fifth-year option on the rookie contract Waddle signed after he became the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft.

With the fifth-year option, Waddle was under contract through the 2025 season and now he'll be under contract through 2028 with the extension kicking in in 2026.

The three-year average of the extension will be the fourth-highest among NFL wide receivers, while the guaranteed money will put Waddle in third place behind only A.J. Brown's $84 million and Amon-Ra St. Brown's $77 million.

Put another way, Waddle now is looking at earning $102 million over the next five seasons, while his former Alabama teammate and fellow 2021 draft class member DeVonta Smith will get $92 million from the Philadelphia Eagles.

Waddle has been a hit for the Dolphins since arriving, becoming the first player in team history with 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons with the team.

In 2021, Waddle set an NFL rookie record with 104 catches and he followed that up by leading the NFL in receiving average (per catch) the next year.

Waddle had another 1,000-yard season in 2023 despite dealing with various injuries.

WHAT'S NEXT FOR DOLPHINS?

Waddle is among a handful of young nucleus players in line for extensions this year, the most prominent one being quarterback Tua Tagovailoa..

Fellow 2021 draft picks Jaelan Phillips and Jevon Holland also could get new contracts before too long, though the Dolphins also have Phillips under contract through the 2025 season with the fifth-year option.

After former Dolphins exec Mike Tannenbaum proposed an offseason trade that would send Waddle to the Kansas City Chiefs for All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie, GM Chris Grier made his feelings about the wide receiver perfectly clear at the scouting combine in Indianapolis.

Asked whether he would consider trading Waddle, Grier laughed when he began his answer.

"No, as I said in the middle of the season, I have no thoughts of trading Jaylen Waddle," Grier said. "We want him here for a long time, and we think he’s a big part of our now and our future here. He’s a great person on and off the field, and we still think as good as he is, he still has runway to keep getting better.”