When the Miami Dolphins decided to let Christian Wilkins and Robert Hunt walk away in free agency, it was with players like Tua Tagovailoa and Jaylen Waddle in mind.

Wilkins plays defensive tackle and Hunt plays guard and even though they were successful Dolphins draft stories, they play positions that are typically easier to backfill than quarterback and wide receiver.

The Dolphins and Tua are still working diligently on a deserved extension that will likely come in over $50 million per season.

Waddle's three-year extension, worth a reported $84.75 million, with $75 million guaranteed, seems on-market and fair for both player and club.

Waddle agreed to his deal after former college teammate DeVonta Smith of the Eagles.

Smith's extension is 3 years, $75 million, with a guarantee of $51.

Miami chose Waddle over Smith in the NFL draft. He's faster. He's a more ideal fit for Mike McDaniel's offense.

Waddle has proven in college and the pros to mesh seamlessly with Tagovailoa.

It was important to get the Waddle deal done ahead of some other pending star receiver deals like Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb and Ja'Marr Chase.

Those deals could have impacted Waddle negotiations.

There is little doubt that $28.25 million per season for three seasons is a big chunk of change for a player who isn't even your number one receiver at the moment.

But Waddle is under contract for only $9 million in 2024 and $19.9 million in 2025.

How Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill contracts align

By the time the new deal kicks in, it is possible Tyreek Hill and/or the Miami Dolphins have moved on from Tyreek Hill and/or the Miami Dolphins.

The final year of Tyreek's deal, 2026, has a cap hit of $56 million that obviously will not happen.

If it were to come to it, Miami could move on with a dead cap hit of about $11.3 million.

But that's a worry for another day.

Miami is trying to compete for an AFC Championship and Super Bowl in the next two seasons, while presumably Hill and Waddle are both under Miami contract.

Hill's cap hit is $31.2 million this year.

Who are the NFL's highest-paid wide receivers?

Here are the highest average annual contract values for the latest contracts of the highest-paid receivers in the NFL, via Spotrac:

A.J. Brown, Eagles: $32 million

Amon-Ra St. Brown: $30 million

Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: $30 million

Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins: $28.25 million

Davante Adams, Raiders: $28 million

Cooper Kupp, Rams: $26.7 million

DeVonta Smith, Eagles: $25 million

Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and on X @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: How Jaylen Waddle contract details compare to DeVonta Smith, Tyreek Hill