Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel on Byron Jones, trade deadline. Plus snap counts vs. Lions
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said he doesn’t anticipate cornerback Byron Jones will be activated off the physically-unable-to-perform list this week.
“Same story, nothing’s changed,” McDaniel said Monday.
Jones has yet to return to practice after undergoing offseason surgery on his lower leg. He was initially expected to return for training camp but now will have missed the first half of the 2022 season.
“He’s not progressing as fast as we hoped from the spring,” McDaniel said in early October. “There hasn’t been a major setback. I won’t put a dude on the field [until there’s] stability. We’ll keep addressing it. It hasn’t had to do with a major setback. That could change any time, day by day, week by week.”
Without Jones in the lineup, the Dolphins defense has called on several players to fill the boundary cornerback position opposite Xavien Howard, including Kader Kohou, Keion Crossen and Noah Igbinoghene.
The Dolphins’ pass defense has struggled in the first half of the season, allowing 262.1 yards per game and 11.1 yards per completion, both bottom-15 marks.
Trade deadline
McDaniel sidestepped a question regarding whether he anticipated the Dolphins would make a deal ahead of the NFL’s trade deadline at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
“Right now, I’m exclusively a football coach,” he said, “and we have conversations where I’m focused on our team as it stands and the Chicago Bears, who are going to be trying to beat us here in a day less than a week.”
The last time the Dolphins made an in-season trade for a player was Nov. 3, 2020, when they acquired running back DeAndre Washington from the Kansas City Chiefs for a swap of conditional draft picks. The last time the Dolphins traded a player in-season was in 2021 when they sent wide receiver/return specialist Jakeem Grant to the Bears for a 2023 sixth-round pick.
“It’s not really that much different,” McDaniel said of working with the trade deadline less than 24 hours away. “I’m focused on our team. I’m very happy with the team and if there are adjustments that do unfold, it will be in the best interest of the Dolphins organization. But I’m not even worried about that at this point.”
Snap counts
▪ With safety Brandon Jones out for the season because of an ACL injury, rookie Verone McKinley made his first NFL start and played 48 of the 80 defensive snaps. McKinley had 35 coverage snaps, primarily as a deep safety, and was not targeted, according to Pro Football Focus.
▪ Second-year player Robert Jones filled in for Liam Eichenberg at left guard after Eichenberg was carted off the field with a knee injury in the third quarter. Jones played the remaining 15 offensive snaps.
▪ Tight ends Gesicki and Durham Smythe both logged 31 snaps, while Hunter Long and Tanner Conner played 17 and two snaps, respectively.
▪ Rookie wide receiver Braylon Sanders, who made his NFL debut Sunday, played 14 offensive snaps. He lost a fumble on his first catch and finished with two receptions for 17 yards. Cedrick Wilson Jr. also played 14 snaps, up from four last week, while working as the team’s primary punt returner for the second consecutive week. Wilson returned two punts for 24 yards.
▪ In his return from a two-game absence because of an oblique injury, rookie Kader Kohou continued his role as a starting cornerback opposite Xavien Howard. Kohou played all but three of the 60 defensive snaps.
▪ Outside linebacker Melvin Ingram played a season-low 14 defensive snaps. Defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah, in his first game since a back injury forced him to sit out the Steelers game in Week 7, played a season-low 32 snaps.
This story was originally published October 31, 2022 at 5:53 PM.
