DAVIE, Fla. _ Here's the news: The Miami Dolphins want to trade for Jadeveon Clowney. Coach Brian Flores and others in the organization met with him last week. They see themselves as the leader to get the Houston Texans defensive end.
But let's ask a fundamental question before even wondering what the Dolphins would have to trade in return: What's the plan this year?
Seriously, what are the Dolphins trying to do?
It sounded simple and straightforward in January when Dolphins owner Steve Ross started the offseason saying he was willing to lose and, if necessary, to lose a lot to get his franchise in order.
It looked simple and painful when general manager Chris Grier threw aged and expensive talent overboard to clean up the books and collect picks for the quarterback-rich draft of 2020.
It felt simple and understandable when they signed a young Flores as head coach, traded for an inexpensive quarterback hope in Josh Rosen and didn't fill in any of the glaring holes on the roster to be in position to draft a quarterback next spring.
Does a big, potentially expensive move for Clowney fit in to all this?
Sure, he works in the small picture of improving a team with no pass rush. He would have some short-term value, too, as he possibly could be kept for two years and $35 million without a long-term deal. (That still would represent the most expensive contract on the team.)
Finally, he's 26. That works. That's perfect, really, a good player in his prime. But there are heavy risks for a Dolphins team in full rebuild:
1. The first, expensive move of this regime as far as outside talent, the one that lays the foundation of who they are and what they're about, is to take a chance on a player with an underachieving label?
Unfair? Maybe. No one in South Florida has seen the former No. 1 overall pick up close. Clowney has three straight Pro Bowl appearances, too.
He also has 29 sacks in five years. He's never had more than 9.5 sacks in a year despite playing opposite J.J. Watt, the three-time NFL defensive player of the year. That's not good-not-great production. Does a new scheme change all that?
2. There's some suggestion the Dolphins would get to play Clowney for a year or two and then decide whether to invest in him. But do you really need to watch a five-year veteran any longer before deciding if he's worth a big contract? If so, you probably have your answer.
Clowney probably wouldn't accept the trade without a new contract, too. He has some good muscle in these negotiations. He fired his agent so he appears on his own. He hasn't signed a franchise tag with Houston and, until he does, can facilitate or block a move to another team.
Seattle and Philadelphia are Clowney's first hopes, national reports say. Those are contending teams, too. So you can see why he'd rather play there than with the Dolphins.
It's also unclear just what the Dolphins' cost would be for Clowney in a trade. It won't be a No. 1 Dolphins draft pick or tackle Laremy Tunsil, a league source said. So there won't be a premium price if Clowney comes.
A lower draft pick and Kenny Stills? Maybe. He was kept out of practice on Tuesday. Kenyan Drake? The Texans lost running back Lamar Miller for the season last preseason game.
But if it's uncertain what a trade for Clowney would look like, it's also unclear if this would become the revisited idea of Ndamukong Suh. He arrived as expensive, talented and selfish. That played out over a few seasons before he was gone.
The purpose of this season matters. It sets the blueprint. As the Dolphins lost talent and didn't replace it, seemed to rebuild the culture and foundation, give Rosen a tryout and will be at the front of the line for next spring's draft.
Has that changed in August? Clowney would help a pass rush, help the defense and maybe even help win a game or two just plugging a very obvious hole on this roster.
That's the small picture. The big picture brings another question. What's the plan here? I was never for this season to be a tank job. But they got the owner's permission, started down that road and didn't seem to look back. Now, if this trade is done, they've looked back.
The plan for the season seems as uncertain as this trade right now.
