Assistant coaches live life on the injury report.

Outside of the “out” section — where Dolphins running back Reggie Bush sits for Sunday’s game with the Jets — the injury report lists uncertainties: questionable, probable, doubtful. That’s the lot of NFL assistant coaches even more so than head coaches, especially assistant coaches on staffs such as the Dolphins, where everybody knows change is coming.

Their approach to living with job insecurity could be summed up in the words of that fictional Miami Beach resident Hyman Roth: This is the business we’ve chosen. Or, for those whose taste run less Godfather and more Super Chicken: You knew the job was dangerous when you took it.

“If you don’t know what you’re getting into to begin with, then don’t be a coach,” Dolphins defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said.

Dolphins interim coach Todd Bowles, an NFL player for eight seasons and NFL coach for 12, said, “You kind of know what you’re signed up for when you come into this business. As a former player and coach for 10-plus years, all you can control is coaching your guys and make sure they’re ready to play. The decisions that you don’t make can’t affect you, so you just go ahead and coach. You’re true to yourself and you’re true to your coaching; you understand that you’ll be around somewhere.”

While Nolan said he found the changes sometimes “exciting,” he admitted, “I think it bothers you when you have children, from a family standpoint. Because that’s really who’s affected the most. But outside of that, my kids are out of the house now.

“If you’re a homebody, or if you want to be in one place all the time, get a high school job, get something that’s close to home,” he continued. “The NFL’s not for you. You’re going to move. Take the good with the bad.”

Nobody knows better than Nolan. Before being an NFL assistant and head coach the past 25 seasons, he was raised in the home of Dick Nolan, an assistant in Dallas under Tom Landry before being a head coach in San Francisco (1968-75) and New Orleans (1978-80).

“Without question, it helped a lot,” Nolan said. “It helped my wife, it helped my family because she knew what she was getting into at the time.”

Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll’s family, wife and four children, is younger than Nolan’s and Daboll’s on his third team in four seasons. But the prospect of another move doesn’t cause him angst.

“You don’t focus on that,” Daboll said. “You’ve really got to focus what you can control, which is trying to get prepared for the New York Jets and doing the same meetings you have and studying as much film as you have.’’

None of the three wished they had chosen a more stable profession that wouldn’t include so much upheaval, the vast majority of which gets handled by their spouses.

“I wish I hit the Powerball,” Bowles laughed. “Other than that, no, I love the game.

“If I hit the Powerball in lotto, I would be like the guy on [ The] Shawshank [ Redemption]. I’ll have a boat down there on the island somewhere. I’ll be good to go. You’ll never hear from me again.”

Bush to miss finale

Bush showed he can be an every-down back this season with the Dolphins with 1,086 rushing yards and averaging 5.0 yards per carry.

But he’ll fall short of being an every-game back as he’ll miss Sunday’s season finale against the Jets with a knee injury. The Dolphins held Bush out of practice all week.

“He hasn’t been responding, so we’re going to sit him down,” said Bowles, who also said the same move would have been made had this been another point in the season instead of the finale.

Bush played all 16 games only in his rookie season, 2006, with New Orleans. This season’s 216 carries in 15 games exceed by four his past three seasons — but only 32 games — combined. His combined 259 carries and catches raised his career high from the 243 of his rookie season.

Cornerback Jimmy Wilson (hamstring) is doubtful for Sunday. Linebacker Karlos Dansby returned to practice Friday after dealing with a family emergency.

Arrive early

• The Dolphins ask that fans be in their seats by 12:45 for a pregame ceremony honoring outside linebacker Jason Taylor, who is retiring after 15 NFL seasons, 13 of which were with the Dolphins.

• Safety Yeremiah Bell was voted the 2011 Good Guy Award by the South Florida media who covers the Dolphins daily. The award honors a player for exemplary cooperation with the media over the course of a season and is given by each local Pro Football Writers Association chapter.