2020 NFL Draft: What a Dolphins trade with Lions, Bengals looks like

If the Miami Dolphins are serious about moving up to the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, it will be tough but not impossible.

According to Miami Dolphins and NFL insider Armando Salguero, the Dolphins will make an attempt to trade up with the Cincinnati Bengals for the number one overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

That would really be something, wouldn’t it?

The Cincinnati Bengals certainly have given no indication that they are poised to trade the pick, nor have they even made it known that the pick is available for the right price.

But every player and pick in the NFL has a price. The question is — are the Dolphins willing (or able) to pay it?

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network had a fascinating take on how this could potentially work out, or at least if he were running the Bengals, how it would have to work out.

The Miami Dolphins are in a rare position with three first-round picks in this draft class as well as two second-round picks. Let’s try and play this out the way Jeremiah is talking about with Miami first moving up from the fifth overall spot to the third overall spot with Detroit.

If you’re the Detroit Lions, this is a trade that is worthwhile. The Dolphins only have to give up one selection to move up from five to three because that 39th overall pick would give the Lions three selections in the top 39 picks.

The Lions also have the luxury at pick number five overall of knowing they are likely to get one of the two or three best defensive players on their draft board between Chase Young (likely going second overall), Jeffrey Okudah, and Isaiah Simmons. They could also go after Derrick Brown out of Auburn.

The Lions don’t necessarily need the third overall pick unless they are dead set on Okudah or Simmons and moving down two spots, they pick up an additional high selection with which they can either move back into the first round or scoop up another player at the top of round two who slips and fill additional holes on their roster, which was a bit depleted this offseason.

The Dolphins and Lions are both run, at least at head coach, by former Patriots guys. This trade could come to pass even if the Dolphins aren’t trading up to the first overall pick.

Which leads us to that part of the discussion. How do the Dolphins move up from the third overall pick to the first overall pick in this scenario?

If you go strictly by the trade value chart, all the Dolphins would have to give up for ‘good’ value from the Bengals’ perspective is the 18th overall pick.

But the trade value chart goes out the window in this scenario. Joe Burrow is not the only quarterback in this draft, but if the Dolphins covet him enough to trade up for him, the Bengals have enough leverage to ask for a lot more than what would otherwise be required to move up.

So, let’s explore what would be a reasonable asking price from the Bengals’ perspective.

Would the Dolphins be able to part with four first-round picks and a high third-round pick for Joe Burrow? This would gut the Dolphins of their primary 2020 draft capital and the luster of Joe Burrow might be lost on some of the fan base if it requires giving up four first-round picks, a second, and a third to get just him. But is he a game-changer? Is he a franchise altering player?

The Dolphins aren’t going to get to have their cake and eat it too in a trade. The Bengals know that Miami is armed with not only three first-round picks and two second-round picks in 2020, but they also own Houston’s 2021 first- and second-round picks. The Dolphins could make this trade with the Bengals and still have a first-round pick and two second-round picks in next year’s draft.

If Burrow is the guy they want, the price will be understandably high from Cincinnati’s perspective, and this could be merely a starting point.

That might be the price they would have to pay, if not more, to get him. But if they are serious about making a play to move up and get him, they’ve got the capital to make the Bengals an offer they can’t refuse. Why else have they been collecting all that draft capital? Sure, the Dolphins have plenty of roster needs and the capital to rebuild, but in this scenario, they would still have a second-round pick and eight selections on day three to round out their roster depth as well as constantly being an attractive destination for free agents.

As active as they were in free agency and as many assets as they’ve been accumulating in order to secure a franchise quarterback, why would they not do whatever it takes to move up and get the guy they want the most?

Let’s say the Bengals say yes to this, painful as it would be to many of their fans to not have Joe Burrow in the fold.

This would give Cincinnati their choice, presumably, between Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert. The Bengals’s staff — if you’ll recall — really liked what they saw from Justin Herbert at the Senior Bowl in January. Herbert worked with the Bengals’ staff at the Senior Bowl and had a tremendous week there. If they could get a guy at QB they really like along with three additional first-round picks plus a third-rounder, that might be worth not having Joe Burrow to them.