Dolphins lose third quarterback to troublesome injury
The Miami Dolphins haven’t had much success keeping quarterbacks healthy this season.
The Dolphins were forced to put Tim Boyle on the field in the third quarter of Sunday’s 16-10 road loss to the Indianapolis Colts because Tyler “Snoop” Huntley, the starter for the past three games, suffered a right shoulder injury and got pulled from the game.
Huntley, who was signed a month ago to address the concussion that Tua Tagovailoa suffered in week 2, which got him placed on injured reserve five weeks ago, finished Sunday’s game completing 7-of-13 passes, throwing for 87 yards and one touchdown.
He also gained 20 rushing yards on five scrambles during the game, which was a defensive duel from kickoff.
Boyle, who was signed to the 53-man roster on Saturday to serve as the backup because Skylar Thompson’s still nursing broken ribs, took over when the score was 10-10. But he failed to drive the team the length of the field in the game’s closing minutes and his final fourth down pass, which came on fourth-and-2 from Indianapolis’ 33, was thrown out of bounds.
Shoulder injuries and quarterbacks are usually a problematic situation, especially when they involve the throwing hand, so it might force the Dolphins to add another passer.
Fortunately for Miami, this is the week Tagovailoa is eligible to come back from injured reserve.
Tagovailoa, a Pro Bowl starter in 2023, is expected to practice this week, and if he exits the NFL’s concussion protocol the Dolphins will likely start him in next Sunday’s home game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Miami’s offense has struggled most of this season, averaging 11.2 points per game with, and without Tagovailoa.
Ogbah Shelved For Colts
The Dolphins sat one of the team’s starting edge rushers for the Colts game because of a biceps injury that limited his practice participation all week.
Emmanuel Ogbah, who has started 32 games for the Dolphins the past five seasons, has contributed 18 tackles, two sacks, one interception and one pass breakup this season.
Ogbah’s absence on the defensive front led to Chop Robinson, the Dolphins’ 2024 first-round pick, starting his first NFL game.
Robinson finished the game with two tackles.
Mohamed Kamara, a Colorado State standout who was a fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft, was active for his first game of the season and contributed one tackle for loss.
Poyer makes his return
Starting free safety Jevon Holland, who broke his left hand two weeks ago in Miami’s 15-10 win over the New England Patriots, didn’t play against the Colts. He practiced all week but the Dolphins seemingly felt Holland’s inability to use both hands meant he’d benefit from another week of rest and healing.
However, the Dolphins got back starting strong safety Jordan Poyer, who missed the Patriots game because of the shin injury he suffered in Miami’s loss to the Tennessee Titans three weeks ago.
Poyer, who has 19 tackles in the four games he’s played, led the team with eight tackles while paired with Marcus Maye, who contributed five tackles in his second start for the Dolphins.
Dolphins work in new long snapper
Miami will also be utilizing a new long snapper because Blake Ferguson, the Dolphins’ long snapper on special teams for the past five seasons, has been placed on the reserve/non-football illness list.
Ferguson, who botched a snap two weeks ago against the Patriots, surfaced on the injury report Friday when he was listed as a limited participant because of a personal issue.
By being placed on NFL, Ferguson will have to miss at least the next four games — today against the Colts, Arizona Cardinals next week, Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams — and his first eligible game back being against the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 17.
Miami signed veteran long-snapper Matt Overton to the practice squad and he handled the field goal, punt and extra point snaps against the Colts without a mishap.
Overton has a ton of NFL experience with 139 games in 10 seasons, though he hasn’t played since 2022 when he was with the Dallas Cowboys.
This story was originally published October 20, 2024 at 11:34 AM.
