The Miami Dolphins acquired veteran cornerback Byron Maxwell in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday, but the deal could fall through over an undisclosed injury.
As of Wednesday morning, the Dolphins were “gathering more information” about Maxwell before finalizing the trade. Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News reports that Maxwell has a shoulder injury, the extent of which was a surprise to his new team.
Source: Maxwell went to Miami for physical, told Dolphins’ doc he couldn’t do bench press or pushups. Told Eagles he was fine at end of year
— Les Bowen (@LesBowen) March 9, 2016
Maxwell sprained SC joint, where collarbone meets sternum, missed last 2 games. Told Eagles he could’ve played if they’d made the playoffs
— Les Bowen (@LesBowen) March 9, 2016
If Maxwell said he was “fine,” you can understand why not being able to do a pushup nearly three months later would be a concern. The trade is on hold until Maxwell is evaluated by doctors.
In the event that the trade is nixed, the Dolphins would have quite the mess on their hands. They have already made it clear through media leaks that they intend to release top cornerback Brent Grimes, whose wife has been a major headache for the team due to incidents like this. Would Grimes even want to come back now if the Maxwell deal fell through?
Of course, the trade is not dead yet. Doctors could determine that Maxwell is simply dealing with a sprain and will be fine for training camp. Either way, this is not the smoothest of transactions.
Photo: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
