Parker was healthy; unclear why he sat

The puzzle that is

DAVIE — DeVante Parker has reached this point: He was a healthy scratch against the Jets on Sunday.

Or, at best, an almost- healthy scratch.

After the Dolphins beat the Jets 20-12, Parker said he could have played rather than miss his second consec- utive game with a broken finger on his right hand.

“That’s true,” coach Adam Gase said Monday. “He could have played. I told him he was going to be inactive.”

Parker said he was given no indication by Gase as to why he was inactive. “There’s a lot of mov

ing parts to this thing, and I explained that to him,” Gase said.

After being limited in prac

tice last Wednesday, Parker made it through entire prac-

tices Thursday and Friday and was listed as question- able for the Jets game.

“It looked like everything was going smooth,” Gase said.

Gase said the Dolphins were cautious in contact drills last week to see how Parker responded to defend- ers swiping at his hand.

“Really by the end of the week, he did a good job,” Gase said. “He did everything we asked him to do.”

For whatever reason, there was a change of heart by Saturday. Asked if trainers told him Parker would be at risk had he played, Gase said, “No, but he’s going to be stronger this week than he was last.”

The Dolphins declined to make Parker available to the media Monday, saying he would comment after prac- ticing later in the week.

The 2-0 Dolphins play the 0-2 Oakland Raiders at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday.

It’s possible the Dolphins have become weary of the string of injuries that has stunted Parker’s career and simply want him to debut this season at 100 percent. Parker was Miami’s first-round draft pick in 2015 but has started only 24 of the Dolphins’ 50 games since.

The revamped receiving corps has performed capa- bly without him.

Kenny Stills caught two touchdown passes in the opening victory over Tennessee and leads the team in receiving yards (123), average (20.5) and touchdowns. Newcomer Danny Amendola leads in receptions (eight). Jakeem Grant is more than halfway toward matching last season’s reception total of 13, having caught seven passes for 65 yards in addition to returning a kickoff for a score. And Albert Wil- son and tight end A.J. Derby have TD catches.

“I think we played really good,” Wilson said of the receivers. “I think we left a lot of things out there on the field. We can clean things up and become better.”

The best way to become better, it would seem, would be to get Parker, their poten- tial No. 1 receiver, back in uniform.

“Oh, man, once we get him back, we’re just going to take it to another notch,” Wilson said. “He’s a great receiver — a lot of size, a lot of talent.”

Run, Ryan, run: The first play Ryan Tannehill ran against the Jets on Sunday was a run.

As in, a Tannehill run. Tannehill took off around right end and gained 20 yards.

“That was actually a boot- leg pass,” Tannehill said. “They just did a good job of holding on to Danny Amendola on the back side there. ... There was no one there. So I just ran.”

With the game on the line and less than five minutes to play, facing a 2nd-and-5 at the 50, Tannehill took off to the left for 14 yards.

“It was just a zone read,” Tannehill said. “I’m read- ing the defensive end . ... I thought I could get the edge

and get it.”

Tannehill did.

Tannehill ran for 44 yards on eight carries, which was more than Frank Gore and nearly as much as Kenyan Drake.

Tannehill hasn’t run for so many yards in his last 39 games, dating to Nov. 2, 2014 against San Diego. That was the third of three straight games in which Tannehill ran for 47 or 48 yards, all wins.

When Tannehill runs, good things happen.

“He’s a pretty good athlete,” Gase said. “He played wide receiver in college for a little bit, so he’s not afraid to get out there and mix it up. It’s not something that’s ideal — sometimes we wanted him to get down a little bit sooner — but in the crucial parts of

the game where that’s an option, you can see what can be the result.”

Tannehill is coming off of anterior cruciate ligament surgery, yet he seems faster. That was evident last week, when he was forced to run against Tennessee.

With a knee brace that Tannehill doesn’t really love wearing, he is still learning how he wants to slide and/ or dive head first.

But in 2016, Tannehill was at his best when the threat of quarterback runs and designed roll-outs existed.

They exist again. Advantage Dolphins.