The Dolphins’ quarterback situation took another odd turn on Monday, when Miami put in a waiver claim on former Jets backup Brady Cook.
That move came after a busy stretch for the team’s QB room. Malik Willis is still the only real shot Miami has at winning games this year, but he can’t do it alone. The Dolphins already had Quinn Ewers as a backup, though he had been struggling, and Jon-Eric Sullivan decided not to keep waiting around for him.
On Sunday, Sullivan reached out to his old team and worked out a deal for Kyle McCord. That gave Miami a new backup with roughly the same level of experience as Ewers and, maybe, a higher ceiling.
At that point, the Dolphins had a second quarterback in place. When word later leaked that Mark Gronowski would be heading back to the practice squad, Miami seemed to have its emergency third QB lined up too.
Then Monday arrived, and the waiver wire started moving. Somewhere in that process, Sullivan added Cook, who spent time as the Jets’ backup.
In 2025, Cook started four games and lost all four, while throwing seven interceptions against just two touchdowns. If there was any silver lining, it was that the damage came in New York.
Sullivan later defended the decision.
"Brady's the ultimate competitor. Tough as nails, got a lot of swag, if you will.
Guys follow him." Sullivan said about his new QB.
"You watch what he did at Missouri, and his time there he elevated a program that maybe at the time wasn't the most talented, they played well and I think a lot of that had to do with him. And again, I think it upgraded our room."
The logic is easy enough to follow from Miami’s side. Gronkowski isn’t ready to take the next step up to the 53 in an emergency situation, so adding a third quarterback to the roster does make some sense. But it also means another position group is left one player short, which is exactly why the decision is going to leave fans shaking their heads.
For plenty of observers, Cook looked more like a practice squad quarterback than a waiver claim. After the move was announced, Mike Luciano of The Jet Press sent a message that captured the reaction to Cook’s time in New York. That about sums up the feeling around this one.
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