Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
He’s drawing a line
One message is clear: Gase wants to see more from Dolphins linemen
DAVIE — Dolphins defensive tackle Davon Godchaux was casually flipping through his feed of Instagram stories when he learned he would no longer be teammates with defensive tackle Jordan Phillips.
Caught off guard by the Dolphins’ roster move Tuesday, Godchaux took to his Twitter account and simply posted “Wow” in response.
Dolphins coach Adam Gase insisted Wednesday there was no motive behind Phillips’ release, despite releasing or trading away a player after a bad loss for the third time in his three-year tenure.
“There is no message there,” Gase said while shaking his head. “It was time to move on.”
If there is one message Gase does want to get across, it’s the Dolphins’ lack of overall physicality in the trenches after last Sunday’s 38-7 blowout loss to the Patriots.
The Dolphins will look to regroup in time for their Week 5 matchup on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday at 1 p.m. in Paul Brown Stadium, but their roster has been affected significantly on both the offensive and defensive lines.
“I know that we’re looking to play better on both sides,” Gase said of his players in the trenches.
While the defensive line is down a player who did not contribute much this season in Phillips, who was claimed by the Buffalo Bills on Wednesday, the Dolphins offensive line will rely on a recent newcomer to fill a starting role.
Fifth-year player Travis Swanson, who replaced starting center Daniel Kilgore during the Patriots game, will be expected to fill Kilgore’s role.
Kilgore was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, and will miss the rest of this season after suffering a torn triceps tendon against the Patriots.
“Travis has been here for two weeks before DK went down,” right guard Jesse Davis said of Swanson, who had a bad snap
that resulted in a turnover and touchdown for the Patriots last week.
“Everybody would be like this is a big change, but we’re all taught the same technique, and he’s in his fifth year. It’s not like he’s a rookie coming in, freaking out.”
The Dolphins feel comfortable with Swanson, who has worked previously with offensive line coach Jeremiah Washburn, and appeared in 54 career games with 42 starts mostly at center.
Former Jets offensive lineman Wesley Johnson, who has 24 career starts at center, was signed on Tuesday as the Dolphins hope to bolster depth.
Still, the losses of Kilgore and left guard Josh Sitton, who is also done for the season after a shoulder injury in the season opener, hurt the Dolphins.
Both players were offseason acquisitions that became leaders on the offensive line that needs to refine its continuity.
“It has to be everybody,” left tackle Laremy Tunsil said of his unit’s leadership moving forward. “That[’s] how it was at the beginning, everybody leading the charge. We lose two good guys in Sitton and Dan. We just have to keep it going, keep it rolling. Can’t let it stop us now.”
The same can be said with the Dolphins defensive line, which will play without Phillips and defensive end William Hayes, who is lost for the season following an ACL tear.
Miami also has to play without defensive end Andre Branch, who is out indefinitely with a knee injury.
Godchaux, Akeem Spence and Vincent Taylor remain at defensive tackle, while defensive ends Cameron Wake, Robert Quinn and former first-round pick Charles Harris were recently joined by Jonathan Woodard and Cameron Malveaux from the practice squad.
The Dolphins’ shortened defensive line rotation allowed Patriots offensive linemen to reach the second level, and saw running backs Sony Michell and James White account for three of their five touchdowns during the blowout loss.
Godchaux, who did not believe Phillips’ release was meant to send a message, said the Dolphins may have needed the blowout loss to the Patriots to provide motivation before the Bengals game.
“Believe it or not, we needed that loss. We needed that to get back on track,” Godchaux said. “We were 3-0, and now we’re 3-1. We got that wakeup call, so now we need to get back on track.”