Miami Dolphins get back a key defender for Chargers game, but will be without another
Miami Dolphins linebacker Kyle Van Noy is COVID-19-free and has been cleared to play Sunday against the Chargers, the team announced Saturday.
Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, meanwhile, will remain on the NFL’s reserve/COVID-19 list and miss a game for the first time in his career.
Both defenders landed on the COVID list this week for unspecified reasons, but Van Noy’s designation was a result of contact tracing, not a positive test. He has since met the necessary benchmarks to play. Wilkins, meanwhile, remains out of action.
Furthermore, the Dolphins elevated on Saturday wide receiver Antonio Callaway from the practice squad. He’s in line to play for the first time since the NFL suspended him last November for multiple violations of the league’s substance abuse policy.
It’ll be a much-needed lift to a Dolphins offense that lost Preston Williams for multiple weeks, and likely the season, with a foot injury.
Callaway, just 23 years old, has caught 51 passes for 675 yards and five touchdowns in 20 career games, all for the Cleveland Browns.
Callaway on Sunday might be auditioning for a job. The Dolphins showed this week that they aren’t done looking for help at receiver. They brought in veterans Ricardo Louis and Andre Patton for workouts.
A source in touch with the Dolphins said the expectation is that Williams will be out for the remainder of the season, unless he makes a surprisingly fast recovery from an injury sustained in last Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
Williams’ injury — and the summer decisions by Albert Wilson and Allen Hurns to opt out of playing this season — has left Miami with little experienced depth at the position. Miami has five receivers on its 53-man roster: DeVante Parker, Jakeem Grant, Mack Hollins and rookies Lynn Bowden Jr. and Malcolm Perry.
Hollins has 27 career receptions; his only catch this season was a touchdown reception in the fourth quarter of last Sunday’s win against Arizona. Perry and Bowden each have one reception in their rookie seasons.
The 6-2 Louis — who has 45 career catches for 562 yards (all with Cleveland) — has had two stints with the Dolphins but hasn’t played in a game for them. He missed last season with a knee injury, re-signed with Miami in February, was released in July, re-signed in August and was released Sept. 1. He hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2017.
The 6-4 Patton, an undrafted player from Rutgers, spent two seasons on the Chargers’ practice squad and finally played last year, finishing with six catches for 56 yards in 13 games, including five starts, for the Chargers. He was on the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad for seven weeks this season before he was released Oct. 27.
Patton won’t work out for the Dolphins until Tuesday. Per NFL rules this season, free agents who are visiting the Dolphins must isolate in a Broward hotel room and take COVID-19 tests for five consecutive days before being permitted to work out for the team.
With Wilkins out Sunday, expect defensive linemen Zach Sieler, Raekwon Davis and Jason Strowbridge to all play more. Plus they will likely get a good look at Benito Jones, who has spent this season shuttling between the practice squad and the active roster.
This story was originally published November 14, 2020 at 4:13 PM.
