Dolphins' Dante Trader Jr Exits Jets Game With Shoulder Injury

Miami Dolphins safety Dante Trader Jr. has now exited the New York Jets matchup with an apparent injury.

During a replay, Trader was making a tackle on a Jets player and stayed on the turf following the play. It appeared the Dolphins safety may have suffered an arm or shoulder injury, as he was grabbing at that part of his body while on the turf.

The medical staff came out immediately to check in on Trader. The safety then went into the blue medical tent and was seen walking into the locker room.

The Dolphins officially labeled Trade as questionable to return with a shoulder injury.

With Trader out, the Miami defense is now relying on Zane Anderson to take over.

At the time of this writing, the Dolphins are still in the lead with a 21-14 score. The Jets scored almost immediately after Trader was taken off the field. 

Trader may still return to the game, but it depends on the severity of his injury. If he can get some work done on the shoulder in the locker room, he may be able to finish out the matchup. 

Trader might also be ruled out due to the injury, again, depending on how bad it is. 

The Dolphins have looked like a completely different team in Week 7 thus far. After a strong opening-drive touchdown, they followed that up with an additional scoring drive.

Quarterback Malik Willis has looked sharp thus far; the Miami defense has been able to keep Geno Smith and the Jets offense from being able to catch up thus far. 

There is plenty of football left to play, and the defense will now be without an important player in Trader. 

If the Dolphins can hold on and get the win, it will be their first victory of the 2026 season. 

Miami has gone 0-5 through six weeks. The Dolphins had a Week 6 bye, and have looked every part of a rested and rejuvenated team.

What matters now is whether the offense can keep putting points on the board. After a strong 21-point start, the team has not been able to move the chains nearly as easily.

The Jets had been held scoreless through the second quarter and well into the third. However, they were finally able to move the chains to score.

Smith tossed a huge pass to rookie receiver Omar Cooper Jr. Trader was in on the coverage of that play, but could not stop the rookie from securing a big play.