Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Injured players back for walkthrough
But how much progress have they made toward playing?
MIAMI GARDENS — The lengthy list of key Miami Dolphins players that missed Sunday’s crushing 23-20 defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars in London were present for the team’s Wednesday walkthrough to kick off the practice week ahead of this Sunday’s home game against the Atlanta Falcons.
Those players: Cornerbacks Xavien Howard (shoulder/groin) and Byron Jones (Achilles/groin), wide receivers DeVante Parker (shoulder/hamstring) and Preston Williams (groin) and tight end Adam Shaheen (knee).
The caution, of course, is that the Dolphins were only holding a walkthrough on Wednesday instead of a true practice. Of the five aforementioned players, Howard, Jones, Parker and Williams were estimated to be limited participants on Wednesday, according to the team’s injury report that deemed 12 players limited. Shaheen was described as a full participant.
“It’s obviously a scaled-down pace, so they’ll be available for that,” coach Brian Flores said. “We’ll just take it one day at a time. They’re all getting better. They’re all [getting treatment]. They’re all doing everything they can. I think [Thursday] is going to tell us a lot more about their potential status for the game.”
Would they be available if it was a regular practice?
“That’s hard to say,” Flores said. “I don’t really want to get into hypotheticals about what [Wednesday] would look like. We’ll see them [Thursday]. I think they’re all trending in the right direction. They’re all working hard. They’re all rehabbing. I think they’ll all have an opportunity, potentially — they would have an opportunity to practice [Wednesday]. They will have an opportunity [Thursday].
“But there’s a lot that goes into that. How do they feel that morning? It’s hard to say [Wednesday], given that we knew it was going to be a walkthrough.”
Howard and Parker were deemed out on Friday after missing the three practices in preparation for the Jaguars. Jones, Williams and Shaheen were game-time decisions and deemed inactive ahead of the 9:30 a.m. kickoff.
Flores also said quarterback Tua Tagovailoa responded well from the pain-tolerance standpoint that was the Dolphins’ only concern entering the Jaguars game, his first game back after missing three weeks with fractured ribs.
“Obviously, there was some discomfort, but he’s a tough kid,” Flores said. “I thought he got through it well, and I think this is one of those things that, every week, you just get a little bit better, a little bit better each day, each week, hopefully.
As Tagovailoa was also listed as limited on Wednesday, he described himself as “sore.”
“I’m sure there is some discomfort, but in his mind, he’s good to go, so he’s not going to complain from anything,” Flores said.
Fellow quarterback Jacoby Brissett (hamstring) was also limited, along with running back Malcolm Brown (ribs), offensive linemen Austin Jackson (shoulder) and Greg Mancz (groin), defensive tackle John Jenkins (knees), safety Brandon Jones (ankle) and edge defender Jaelan Phillips (ankle). Along with Shaheen, linebacker Elandon Roberts (throat) was described as a full participant.
The Dolphins also still have wide receiver Will Fuller and center Michael Deiter, among others, on injured reserve.
With the Dolphins returning to Miami for game prep against the Falcons instead of a bye coming off the long flights to and from London, the team went through a walkthrough Wednesday instead of the usual full-fledged practice.
Of the previous 59 NFL teams to play a game in London, only four have gone without a bye the week following the overseas trip — and all that bypassed the post-London idle week were earlier in the season. The last team to do it was the 2017 Dolphins, who won at home the following week against the Tennessee Titans.
Vince Biegel’s return
Flores discussed the Dolphins’ Tuesday decision to bring back outside linebacker Vince Biegel to the team’s practice squad, releasing fellow linebacker Shaquem Griffin in the process.
“We’ll see how he looks in the practices these next couple of days,” Flores said of Biegel, a 2019 standout on his defense during Flores’ first season at the helm in Miami. “Obviously, we have history with Vince. He’s been here the last couple of years, hurt last year, had him in training camp.”
Biegel started 10 of 15 games in 2019 after he was acquired from the New Orleans Saints in a trade for former linebacker Kiko Alonso. He had 59 tackles, 2 ½ sacks, a team-leading 13 quarterback hits and an interception that year.
“A lot of things we like about him, as a player, as a person,” Flores said. “Excited to have him back.”
Biegel missed the 2020 season after suffering a torn left Achilles in the preseason. He was with the Dolphins for training camp, but suffered an injury to his right lower leg. He was placed on injured reserve momentarily before being released with an injury settlement on Sept. 7.