As much news as is given to trades for big-ticket players such as Brandon Marshall to Miami a week ago, it can also be very telling of the overall interest said player receives from the rest of the league.
A player can surprisingly garner a swarm of eyeballs, as was in the Marshall deal. The Dolphins got him for two second-round picks, but not without plenty of competition.
ProFootballTalk revealed on Sunday that while the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers were potential players,
the New York Jets were prepared to give the Denver Broncos the first-round pick they sought for him.
“New York was comfortable giving up their first round pick for Marshall, and tried to sign the now-Dolphin to an offer sheet,” wrote PFT’s Gregg Rosenthal. “The Jets, however, couldn’t come up with a contract that made Marshall happy. The offer sheet never came, the Jets moved on, and the Dolphins began to show interest about one week later.”
Denver apparently had to settle because Marshall would only sign on for the Dolphins’ contract offer, a four-year deal worth a reported $11.75 million per season, $24 million guaranteed. It could turn out to be a worthy contract if the receiver behaves. When in line, Marshall is a top-tier Pro Bowler with down field speed. That’s something Miami had on a consistent basis since O.J. McDuffie in the mid-90s (some could say ever further back than that).
And that could ultimately be bad news for the Jets, who pride themselves on defense, and acquired Antonio Cromartie to help out All-Pro Darrelle Revis. New York was obviously hoping to avoid a thorny match-up twice a year.
Marshall led Denver with 1,120 yards and 10 scores in ‘09, and has 4,019 yards overall since his rookie season in 2006.
Chad Henne could use all that help in his first full season. Henne only threw for 2,878 yards in 14 games, and Miami receivers had just 13 total touchdowns. Davone Bess actually led the team with 758 yards.
The Dolphins are 30/1 favorites to win the 2011 Super Bowl, according to most NFL Betting Odds, while the Jets are at 16/1