MIAMI — The Dolphins agreed to a contract extension with Jaylen Waddle on Thursday, making him one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the NFL.
The three-year, $84.75 million extension includes $76 million guaranteed, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The extension’s average annual value of $28.25 million ranks fourth-highest among receivers in the NFL, while guaranteed money ranks third behind AJ Brown ($84 million) and Amon-Ra St. Brown ($77 million).
Waddle is now signed through the 2028 season.
Despite playing alongside Tyreek Hill the past two seasons, Waddle’s 3,385 receiving yards ranks 13th in the NFL since 2021 and he has posted the 16th-most receiving yards through their first three seasons.
The No. 6 pick in 2021 set a new record with 104 receptions and followed up that campaign with a career-best 1,356 yards in 2022 in his first season under coach Mike McDaniel. Waddle recorded his third straight 1,000-yard season in 2023, becoming the first player in Dolphins history to record three consecutive seasons of at least 1,000 receiving yards despite missing three games.
Dolphins general manager Chris Grier said in April that the team felt good about things with Waddle’s extension. He laughed off the idea that Miami would consider trading Wade and reaffirmed the team’s commitment to keeping him long-term.
“No, like I said in the middle of the season, I don’t have any thoughts about trading Jaylen Wade,” Grier said in February. “We’ve wanted him here for a long time, and we think he’s a big part of our present and our future. He’s a great person on and off the field, and we still think, like him, he’s still got the runway. To keep getting better.”
Waddle is the second key player in the Dolphins’ rebuild in the last five years to sign a long-term extension with the team, joining 2020 first-round pick Austin Jackson. Miami will seek extensions with Waddle’s draft classmates Jaelan Phillips and Jevon Holland and quarterback Tua Tagowailoa.
The contract extension was negotiated by Waddle’s representation at WME Football.
