Fantasy Stock Up, Stock Down: Miami Dolphins

Welcome back to the “Fantasy Stock Up, Stock Down” series (off-season edition). Off-season madness has begun, Free Agency has started, and the NFL Draft is approaching. Meanwhile, we as Dynasty Managers need to be preparing as well. Who are we going to target in Rookie Drafts? Who are we going to go out and trade for? Who are we willing to give up in return? Will you go all in this season to bring home a championship? Or should you go young and prepare for the future? There’s so much to think about before September. The “off-season edition” of this series is an early look at whose stock is up and whose stock is down as we look at free agency moves and approach draft season. We will break down each NFL team one by one. Today is all about the Miami Dolphins. 

STOCK UP – Tua Tagovailoa

Miami has been busy during the free agency period. Not only are they bringing back some key pieces on offense, but they’ve also added a ton of new faces to their team. Tagovailoa is going to benefit from their moves tremendously. He’ll now have Teddy Bridgewater as his backup, as he continues to learn and develop with the help of a veteran signal-caller. On top of that, one of his favorite targets from last season, Mike Gesicki, has been brought back on the team’s franchise tag. In 22 games played together, the duo has connected 83 times for 927 yards and four touchdowns. Bringing him back is essential in Tua’s development. Preston Williams was also resigned for depth purposes at the receiver position. 

Tua is going into a critical season where if he doesn’t take the next step, it could be time to move on. Miami is giving him the best chance to succeed this season, as they’ve brought in Chase Edmonds, Raheem Mostert, Cedrick Wilson, and Trent Sherfield. The running game has been an issue ever since Tua was drafted by Miami. Myles Gaskin has shown big-play capabilities, but he’s never been able to carry the load. In comes Edmonds and Mostert. With an improved running game, things will open up more for Tua in the passing game. It also helps that he’ll have an elite pass-catching running back in Edmonds to dump his passes off to in crisis situations. During the past two seasons alone, he has combined for 96 receptions, 713 receiving yards, and four receiving touchdowns in 28 games played. 

Now that Gesicki and Williams have been brought back and Wilson and Sherfield have been brought in, Miami’s receiving room is pretty solid. Gesicki has shown that he can play like a top-10 tight end in this league. Wilson is coming off a career year where he hauled in 45 of his 61 targets for 602 yards and six touchdowns. Williams and Sherfield are key depth pieces behind Wilson, DeVante Parker, and Jaylen Waddle. With the plethora of talent surrounding Tua in this offense now, don’t be surprised if he takes a big step forward. His value is certainly the highest it’s been since he was drafted, and he’s worth a shot at trading for if your dynasty roster needs an upgrade at your QB2/QB3 spot. Get him now before the chances of his price going up in the future gets too high. If you’re not in love with his future outlook, trade him now while his stock is rising. 

Other Notables: Jaylen Waddle, Chase Edmonds

STOCK DOWN – MYLES GASKIN

The “gas man” had a good run in 2020 in terms of fantasy production. His 16.4 PPR points per game indicated that if he were to go through a full season healthy, he could serve as a top-12 back. Then 2021 hit, and we watched him slowly lose more playing time as the season went on. His yards per attempt went from 4.1 in 2020 to 3.5 in 2021. He also saw a decrease in production in the receiving game, and because of it, he only averaged 10.2 PPR points per game last season. Even if Miami decided to stay away from adding better players at his position this offseason, his dynasty value was already on a downward slope. But the additions of Edmonds and Mostert diminish his value at this point, and it’s hard to imagine Gaskin seeing much production in 2022 if he stayed in Miami. 

This is his final season under contract with Miami. So not all hope is lost, but even so, could you imagine another team trading for him to be their lead back? Probably not. His days as a team’s RB1 are now in the rearview mirror. Let’s say he does stay in Miami throughout the entire 2022 season. He’ll likely serve as the RB3 behind both Edmonds and Mostert. Salvon Ahmed has also shown flashes when given an opportunity. The running back room is crowded, and it’s hard to imagine Gaskin getting many carries. In the past, he’s been solid as a pass-catcher out of the backfield. But with Edmonds coming in (128 career receptions), Gaskin will likely take a back seat in that role as well. 

It’s going to be hard to find a trade partner if you’re looking to pivot off of Gaskin. The best thing that could happen is for him to be traded at this point. When healthy, Mostert has shown that he can carry the load as an RB1 for his team. Edmonds has also shown that, and he’s been productive as an RB2 for a team as well. With the amount of talent at the running back spot and the new additions at wide receiver, it’s hard to imagine Gaskin having any kind of role if injuries don’t get in the way of others. For now, his dynasty stock is spiraling, but I would hold on until his value goes up a little more so that you can get a decent return for him in a trade. If you’re trading for him, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to shoot a low offer in hopes that he is traded away from Miami eventually. 

Other Notables: DeVante Parker, Salvon Ahmed

Teams Broken Down Already: Bears, Bengals, Bills, Broncos, Browns, Buccaneers, Cardinals, Chargers, Chiefs, Colts, Commanders, Cowboys

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