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AFC Notes: Mike Vrabel, Geno Smith, Dolphins, Jets, Patriots
Apr 11, 2026Wyatt GrindleyNFL Trade Rumors
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Dolphins Dolphins HC Jeff Hafley on his message to QB Malik Willis after signing a multi-year contract: “Don’t change who you are. Don’t put any extra pressure on yourself. You’ve earned the right to be here and have this opportunity. Don’t press. Just be you. It doesn’t have to be perfect.” ( Joe Schad ) Oklahoma OLB R Mason Thomas will take a 30 visit with the Dolphins. He counts as a local prospect because he went to high school nearby. ( Arye Pulli ) Tony Pauline of EssentiallySports reports that the potential “sweet spot” for Miami OT Francis Mauigoa is No. 9 to the Chiefs or No. 11 to the Dolphins. Pauline writes that few people believe Mauigoa will get past Miami, where he would be a Week 1 starter. Jets The Jets signed veteran QB Geno Smith after his time with the Raiders, marking his second stint with the organization, following his 2013 draft by New York. Jets HC Aaron Glenn expressed confidence in Smith and said the veteran has a “fresh start” in 2026. “I just feel like he’s the guy that’s going to lead us to the promised land,” Glenn said, via Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic . “He’s the guy that’s going to touch the ball more than anybody else on offense. I know he had his struggles. I think a lot of quarterbacks have their struggles. If you look at over the last five years (at) the guys that have thrown the most interceptions, the top guys are up there. Those things you always weigh. To me, I didn’t think they’d be a detriment to us as an organization or to the fans. Obviously, there are some fans that probably didn’t like it, and I understand. But I think there were some fans that did like it. He has a fresh start, and I look forward to how he’s going to operate because he really, really wants this. Just going through the process of getting the quarterback, that’s something that stood out about him. He wants to be here. When you have guys that want to be here, want to be Jets, that makes it better.” As for Smith possibly being a stopgap quarterback, Glenn wouldn’t rule out the possibility of him playing past next season. “I don’t think that’s a question for me to answer because he can go out there and throw for 4,000 yards and have 30 touchdowns and no interceptions, and you think, we’re just going to let him go?” Glenn said. “ That just goes by year. I do know this: He’s excited about being here. He’s going to be our quarterback, and I look forward to that.” New York has met with several quarterback prospects ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft, including Alabama’s Ty Simpson, Miami’s Carson Beck , Penn State’s Drew Allar, and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier . Jets GM Darren Mougey said they want to get the “biggest sample size we can.” “We want the biggest sample size we can,” Mougey said. “It’s always projection with all these guys. The bigger the sample size, naturally you might feel better about it. We’ll evaluate it, and there’s a lot of good things to see in the games he did play.” Patriots The Patriots had a surprising Super Bowl berth in 2025. New England HC Mike Vrabel said they remain focused on getting back to the Super Bowl, and he’s glad to have the support of owner Robert Kraft. “Championships will remain the goal,” Vrabel said, via Chad Graff of The Athletic. “It will never change. I appreciate Robert’s support. We want to win the division, we want to host playoff games and we want to compete for championships. We got a taste of that. We saw what that looked like. We saw the environment that it created to be able to play…