It’s safe to say that a little over a week after being traded along with cornerback Jalen Ramsey and a 2027 seventh-round pick from the Miami Dolphins to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2025 fifth-round pick, tight end Jonnu Smith may still feel a little salty about how things went down.
The 29-year-old Smith is coming off the best season of his career with the Dolphins, in which he caught 88 passes for 884 yards and eight touchdowns—all career highs—but he’s about to play for his fifth team in six years.
Though his one season in Miami was the most fruitful of his eight-year NFL career, Smith recently stated during an exclusive interview with recently retired former Dolphins offensive tackle Terron Armstead that he’s actually glad he’s no longer playing in Miami.
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“I’m in a situation where I’m appreciated,” Smith told Armstead. “You always want to be where you’re most valued and appreciated, and that’s the situation that I found myself in with Pittsburgh.”
To Smith’s point, the Steelers had been linked to Smith for several weeks before pulling the trigger on the trade. It was evident how much Pittsburgh wanted Smith by its insistence on revisiting trade talks after the NFL draft.
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While Smith is at peace with the Dolphins’ decision to move on from him, and subsequently trade for former Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller, who is coming out of retirement to make an NFL comeback, he still was caught off guard with how things went down leading to his untimely exit from the franchise.
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“We started this conversation in January with Miami and, obviously, giving me the run-around, ‘We’ll get back to it,” Smith stated. “Obviously, they had some things they had to address, and I understand that. I was patient with them throughout the whole entire process, and eventually it came to a point in time where they told me that they just can’t do it and they weren’t economically in a position to pay me like a Pro Bowl tight end.
“I didn’t foresee this happening with how the season went for me individually. I had aspirations of ending my career in Miami, with it being home for me, my children, my family. But I understand the business side of it, and it didn’t work out.”
In joining the Steelers, Smith will likely be a featured part of the team’s revamped passing attack, that features star wideout DK Metcalf, incumbent starting TE Pat Friermuth, and four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers.