Jarvis Landry trade rumors start, immediately denied

The Miami Dolphins have yet to make a contract extension offer to wide receiver Jarvis Landry, and now it appears that lack of contract is starting to lead to rumors of the Dolphins looking to trade their top receiver from the last three seasons. A two-time Pro Bowl receiver, Landry holds the NFL record for most receptions in a player’s first two seasons and is tied with his former LSU teammate Odell Beckham, Jr., for the most receptions in a player’s first three seasons, as well as being the Dolphins’ record holder for most receptions as a rookie and most receptions in a season. Landry is the fire that gives the Miami offense a spark when it most needs it and is a player that fans love to watch.

According to a series of tweets from former NFL executive and current reporter for The Ringer, Michael Lombardi, the Dolphins are “listening” to offers for Landry, a theory he initially pushed forward in May. According to Lombardi, the Dolphins are not looking to re-sign the receiver and that third-year receiver DeVante Parker will have a larger role in the offense, leading to Miami not being willing to pay for Landry.

Immediately, reporters close to the team began to dig, trying to get an idea if the Dolphins were actually “listening” to offers. Those reporters all then began to deny any plans by the Dolphins to trade Landry. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s David Hyde wrote Sunday:

The Dolphins people I talked with say that’s not true. They just got Jay Cutler and wouldn’t want to put more on his plate by getting rid of a great security blanket like Landry. They wouldn’t get value for him to help for this season when they’re trying to build on last year’s playoff run.

The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson also denied the reports, writing:

Dolphins management assured the Jarvis Landry camp on Sunday that the team is not considering offers for the veteran wide receiver in the wake of a report to the contrary, according to a source with direct knowledge.

The team also conveyed that it has no plans to trade him.

The Dolphins have not appeared to be in a rush to re-sign Landry, who has put a deadline of working out a new deal prior to the season as the team’s Week 1 opening game on September 10. If a contract is not struck by then, the negotiations are expected to take place after the season, though the Dolphins have not ruled out the idea of using the franchise tag on the receiver, a move that would pay Landry somewhere around $16 million for 2018. Miami seems to want to see exactly what they have in Parker before the figure out where to slot Landry in terms of salary.

There does not appear to be any fire behind the smoke Lombardi is creating. The Dolphins want to keep Landry, and they seem to have a plan to do it - even if it takes until after the season and the use of franchise tag. The denial of the trade rumors make sense, especially with the Hyde explanation that the Dolphins do not want to get rid of a player like Landry as they try to get quarterback Cutler comfortable with the offense.

Lombardi’s report may have accurate sources who have heard of the Dolphins asking for an idea of Landry’s value in an effort to figure out where to begin with their negotiations. It does not seem like a trade is really something the Dolphins are chasing.