Dolphins fans, I was in stunned disbelief last night when the news broke.  Was I dreaming?  Was this an April Fool’s Day joke 3 weeks early?  This couldn’t be real, could it?  The Dolphins traded Jonathan Martin…..to an NFL team?  I thought maybe they could get some canadian bacon from a CFL team in exchange for him….but….WHAAAAT?

Photo Courtesy of Dolphins.com

My eyes were not playing tricks on me, the Dolphins have indeed traded Jonathan Martin to the 49ers for a conditional 7th round draft pick.  Before learning of the actual ‘conditions’ of the trade, I sent out the following tweet:

If the Dolphins got a conditional sack of paper clips in exchange for Jon Martin (who was in NO WAY coming back), they made out like bandits

— PhinNation.com (@PhinNation) March 12, 2014

Sources: Conditional SF is a 7th rd pick if Martin stays w/ 49ers all year…Becomes a 4th rd pick if he doesn’t throw his lunch tray

— PhinNation.com (@PhinNation) March 12, 2014

Needless to say, I didn’t know what to expect for the terms of this trade. After all, the Dolphins OWNER had come out a few weeks ago and said that neither Martin nor Incognito would return to the Dolphins.  Yet, while Incognito is a free agent, Martin is still under contract with the Dolphins.  I thought (we all did) that no NFL team would give the Dolphins anything for a player that the Dolphins had no intention of keeping.  Why would they? Wouldn’t the Dolphins just cut him?

Well the 49ers bit and offered a conditional 7th round pick which becomes the Dolphins if Martin is on the 49er’s 53 man roster at the start of the 2014 season.   Now let’s not kid ourselves, a 7th round pick is most likely going to end up being a pick for depth that plays special teams (if we’re lucky).  BUT, to get anything for a player that was about to get cut is a bargain.  It would be like putting your old couch out on your curb for the garbagemen to pick up and someone walking up and giving you $3 for it anyway.  It’s found money, or in this case a found draft pick.  We’ll take it!

Normally, I would be extremely ticked off that the Dolphins WASTED a 2nd round pick on a player that they turned around and traded for a conditional 7th round pick a couple of years later.  But this is refreshing…and surprising…..and much needed.  I had written Martin off as someone that would simply be cut. The sad truth is that Jonathan Martin was a wasted pick.  He didn’t play very well at all, especially in 2013 when he tried playing left tackle.  

Best of all, we can finally move on from this drama.  Incognito and Martin will be elsewhere in 2014, so the Dolphins can stop hearing about the bullying ‘scandal’.  My hope is that the Seahawks sign Richie Incognito and let him play on the defensive line against the 49ers.  That would be fun, wouldn’t it?  By the way, the 49ers are scheduled to play the Dolphins in 2016, just in case you want to attend the game and show some love to Jonathan Martin!  On a serious note, I hope he’s getting the help he needs and I hope his new situation works out.