Before Dak Prescott even made it to the locker room, rumors were already swirling about who the Dallas Cowboys should find to replace him if his injury proved serious. That talk was kicked into overdrive once the news dropped that the Pro Bowl quarterback could miss anywhere from 4-8 weeks with a fractured thumb. And all the talk keeps coming back to two names:

San Francisco’s Jimmy Garoppolo…and Miami’s Teddy Bridgewater.

Now, this development has absolutely delighted the GMs on Dolphins Twitter. Who I must say for once are showing much more cunning and patience than myself on an issue. Because the number of comments I’ve seen extolling the opportunity to net a fourth, or perhaps even a third, round selection in exchange for Bridgewater is simply mind-blowing to me. Yes, sometimes those third or fourth-rounders really hit. Is that worth risking a season though?

If I’m Chris Grier, I’m not even picking up the phone unless a second-rounder is mentioned. And even then, I’m probably still hanging up.

Tua Tagovailoa is a football player that has missed time in three consecutive football seasons. That sort of means that the Dolphins would be insane to entertain a trade for draft capital where the prize wasn’t a draft pick smaller than that number of injured seasons. It’s not a coincidence that the two quarterbacks apparently being viewed as the two best backups in the league are playing for teams with playoff aspirations of their own. The Dolphins paid Bridgewater significant money for the simple reason that last year’s team would very likely have made the playoffs if they had had a better backup QB. They also value his influence as a veteran on Tua’s development.

More importantly though is the flip side of that signing, which is why Bridgewater agreed to be the backup for this team. Hint: the answer doesn’t say glowing things about Tua’s health or abilities. Those concerns remain real until Tua plays at least 17 games of above-average football.

Of course, most of those Twitter GMs know that. Because it’s not confidence in Tua that’s driving the calls to accept those third-rounders for Miami’s No. 2 QB. It’s confidence in Skylar Thompson.

Without question, Thompson looked the part in training camp and the preseason. He was a great, electric oven. But he’s still No. 3 on the depth chart for a reason and is a much more fun project than the finished product. You don’t make a player like him the next man up for a contending team with an injury-prone starter.

Unless that is, the trade makes contending easier. Right now.

If the Dolphins are able to get a player out of Dallas, someone who would be a starter, to make this roster better in 2022, then they have to consider it. Draft pick-wise, Miami couldn’t turn down a first-rounder, which basically translates to a starter. Particularly as that could free the team up to trade a first for more 2022 help.

Unfortunately, Dallas is unlikely to give up a player of real value as the only reason they make a deal is if they think they’re going to be contending themselves. This means Bridgewater probably isn’t going anywhere.

And at the end of the day, that’s probably the best outcome possible for the 2022 Dolphins.