What if? Yes, I know it’s hypothetical, but it may quickly become a reality for the Miami Dolphins.

On Night one of the NFL Draft, WHAT IF quarterback Shedeur Sanders has a fall and is on the board when the Miami Dolphins are on the clock with the 13th overall pick of Rd 1?

Do I think it’s likely? NO.

Do I think it will happen? NO.

I think there is probably a team in the back half of the Top 10 wanting him to fall, putting out misinformation to hurt his stock hoping to cause Sanders to fall into their laps. 

But WHAT IF it does fall out of the Top 10?

There are numerous reports out there that Sanders stock is falling and he may not be a Top 10 pick in this draft due to a poor attitude amongst other things. And with Miami picking #13 there is a chance he is available for Miami to select if they want to.

Should Miami select him?

The short answer is YES.

Now I know the die-hard Tua fans who genuflect each day at a picture of Tua when, moments before they go to bed, will flip out reading this, send me nasty tweets, and throw a temper tantrum. I’m over that group, though, and can’t tip-toe around them anymore and their unhealthy obsession with one specific player.

For the rest of us who are Dolphins fans before Tua fans and who are level-headed, rational people who can have a civil, open-minded discussion on a topic like this, lets look at a few things.

For one, Miami did not restructure Tua Tagovailoa‘s contract in the past month or so, which many are reading as a sign that the Dolphins organization is ready to move on from the quarterback if he continues to be unable to stay healthy and play anywhere close to a full slate of games in 2025.

If the Dolphins front office brass had any faith and confidence in Tua Tagovailoa thinking he is their answer at quarterback for the next two to three seasons, they would have restructured his contract to free up $19 million to improve the roster this last week.

They did not, though.

This is a sign that they didn’t want to make it more difficult for them from a salary cap perspective if they release him after the 2025 season.

So, if you are already that down on your starting quarterback, clearly you are thinking about or have had conversations about Life After Tua.

While many may say this 2025 NFL Draft quarterback class is a “weak quarterback class,” what isn’t up for debate is that Sanders is the second-best quarterback in this class.

And there is a lot to like with Sanders. He isn’t afraid to stay in the pocket even when the pocket is collapsing around him to get rid of the ball, he consistently keeps his eyes downfield looking for receivers, and when he is out of the pocket and rolling out, he squares his hips to deliver a strike, he throws with great timing, he lets routes develop, and oh yeah he is durable!

Of course, there are some flaws, as there are with any rookie quarterback entering the league. He needs to check down more and take what the defense is giving him at times. He needs a quicker release, to learn when to throw it away instead of taking a sack at a bad time, and to work on his dropbacks so that he does not drop out of the pocket on some passes, leading to easy sacks for the opponent.

But most of that is easily correctable stuff, nothing too scary.

The 2026 quarterback class appears to be better on paper with Drew Allar, Garrett Nussmeier, Nico Iamaleava, and possibly Arch Manning (although I think he may stay in school). But the thing is, what if Miami wins 7 or 8 games and cannot get one of those names, or worse yet cannot get the name they want?

They will be kicking themselves for passing on Sanders now.

There are no guarantees what things will look like next year and in the next draft.

And don’t get me wrong—it’s not that Tua is a bad quarterback; it’s just that you can’t count on him from week to week, and at a certain point, you have to move on.

Shedeur Sanders’s personality will rub some people the wrong way, but that isn’t important; nobody is asking you to hang out with the kid and have Sunday dinner with him. What is important is whether he can be the answer for the Dolphins at quarterback long term.

Tua put himself in this situation, so do not feel sorry for him. There is this belief that if you give Tua a great offensive line, he won’t get injured anymore. Nothing could be further from the truth.

All of Tua’s main injuries since entering the NFL have nothing to do with the offensive line. They have occurred because he holds onto the ball too long (Buffalo 1st injury, Cincinnati). His inability to slide or get out of bounds (Buffalo 2nd injury, Green Bay Christmas Day). Or just not take un-necessary risks with his body (the hip injury vs Houston this past season that ended his season).

Then factor in the close calls (like diving head first trying to make a tackle vs the Rams after he threw an interception) that he was very lucky he didn’t get injured on. That is just one example there are many more. Like the time vs the Jets he lowered his head and tried running over a defender. Fun in the moment, but that could have ended very badly as well.

Tua can’t be trusted. PERIOD.

Whether you worship him, hate him, or are indifferent about him as the Dolphins quarterback, that is a fact.

Not hating, stating.

How can anyone trust Tua to play an entire season? Or 14 games? Or 12 games?

You can’t!

He only did so when he was playing for a new big-money contract in 2023 (shocking, I know).

Once he got paid, he went back to every old bad habit he had previously, shockingly, he got hurt multiple times again in the 2024 season.

So before you just laugh off, or brush off the notion that Miami will not draft Shedeur Sanders IF he falls to Pick #13. Remember actions speak louder than words.

And Chris “Job for Life” Grier and Mike “Check Your Pulse, I love Tua” McDaniel didn’t restructure Tua’s contract to give themselves $19 million MORE in free agency to improve this team.

That tells you all you need to know how the honeymoon is over in Miami Gardens.

And I know Miami just paid Zach Wilson $6 million to be their primary backup, which is a monkey wrench into this equation of why pay Zach and then draft Sanders. Well, for one, Miami couldn’t have predicted Sanders would fall to 13, so they had to be ready just in case.

Second, Zach is on a one-year deal, and he hasn’t shown anything in his career to show he is nothing more than a backup.

Selecting Sanders is a big-picture play, not a short-term, “OH MY GOD; WE HAVE 3 QBs ON OUR ROSTER IN 2025” play.

So, I wouldn’t let Zach Wilson get in the way of a gift falling in your lap on night one of the draft.

And as I said at the top of this article, while I don’t think Sanders will fall to pick #13, it isn’t impossible.

Nobody thought Aaron Rodgers would fall to pick #24

Nobody thought Brady Quinn would fall to pick #22

and nobody thought Dan Marino would fall to pick #27