In the words of Willy Wonka, “Strike that, reverse it”. The Miami Dolphins have opted to not trade Branden Albert for Julius Thomas. Unless they do.

The Dolphins are still moving Albert to the Jacksonville Jaguars but it will now be for what some are reporting as a conditional late round pick (6 or 7) in 2018’s draft. That is a far cry from the earlier reports that Miami was seeking a mid round pick and then Julius Thomas.

In reality the fact Miami is getting anything for him is still a good deal for the Dolphins. Miami was reportedly set to release the left tackle outright early last week but those rumors didn’t come true as talk of a trade began to brew.

Some will be unhappy that the Dolphins didn’t land tight-end Juilius Thomas in the deal and the Dolphins were reported to have serious interest and mutual interest from the Jaguars. Why Thomas fell out of the deal, if he was ever actually in it, is only speculation but some believe Thomas would not restructure his deal to join the Dolphins. He is scheduled to make $7.5 million this year.

Albert has told local media that he will not try and get out of the trade and will meet with the Jaguars this week while his agent works on a contract restructure. It is still possible that Thomas could end up with the Dolphins should the Jaguars release him but they have already guaranteed $3 million of his salary this year so it’s unlikely.

For the Dolphins not having Thomas in the picture doesn’t really change much. Miami still wants to re-sign Dion Sims and outside of that are not in desperate need of a tight-end. They are however in desperate need of guard and linebackers.

When the trade is finalized the Dolphins will get $7.2 million back in cap space. The deal can not be official until the start of the league new year on March 9th.