How fractured neck, knee breakdown left two Dolphins veterans at a crossroads
Our Dolphins coverage this offseason remains forward-looking, with an eye toward the draft and free agency and how new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan will navigate a new era for the franchise.
But the human side of the game should never be lost on any of us. And that brings us to the story of two good men who, like everyone who plays this brutally violent sport, put their bodies at risk every time they walk on the field.
Last spring began with such hope for Dolphins running back Alexander Mattison and offensive lineman Liam Eichenberg.
Mattison was excited about the possibility of helping the Dolphins solve their short-yardage shortcomings, a problem that had bedeviled them the previous two seasons.
Eichenberg was pleased to sign a one-year contract and to be able to continue his career with the team that drafted him, in a role that likely would include serving as the top backup at the three interior line positions.
But the NFL takes an unforgiving physical toll on players and the season ended up both Mattison and Eichenberg before it even began.
Dolphins players who spent much or all of the season on injured reserve spoke to reporters last month, and for the first time, Eichenberg and Mattison provided some level of clarity on their physical ordeals.
Mattison revealed that the neck injury he sustained in a preseason game at Chicago required emergency fusion surgery. He said he’s still recovering and hopes to play again.
Eichenberg said he spent the season on the physically unable to perform list because of a knee injury that kept worsening and came to a head during an offseason practice.
“It was one of those things that just started happening working out, doing exercises,” Eichenberg said. “My knee was just kind of breaking down for the most part.”
Asked if the injury required surgery, he said: “I would like to not answer that.”
Eichenberg, who was hobbling around the locker room while wearing a left knee brace on the day after the season ended, said he could not say with certainty if he will play again but “I am going to try. I don’t want to share too much” information.
He finished his Dolphins career with 60 appearances and 52 starts.
As for Mattison, he showed impressive burst and power at times during training camp before a play in the preseason opener at Chicago changed everything.
“It was a third down call,” he recalled during a conversation with a few reporters on Jan. 5.
“I had a free release out of the backfield and Quinn [Ewers] gave me the ball and I broke a tackle and had some open space and I was running through open space.
“I saw a defender coming and tried to cut across him, but he gave me the Ole!, and pulled my momentum into the ground. I went head first into the ground. With the laws of physics, I’m not going to win that battle. It was a bad angle and all of my momentum went head first into the ground. That caused the fracture.”
But Mattison never lost consciousness and was able to walk off on his own. Only later that day did he learn that he had sustained a neck fracture and “a little bit of dislocation.” He was taken to a Chicago area hospital and “we found out there was a little bit of instability.”
That instability necessitated emergency surgery, he said.
“I don’t think I was scared until doctors told me what happened,” he said. “I thought it was a neck stinger. Then walking off the field and seeing and hearing the word fracture [was alarming]. Then getting to the hospital and hearing I needed emergency surgery was concerning.”
He remained in Chicago for two days while recovering “and then made my way back here and started the healing journey.”
Will Mattison be able to play again? He’s very hopeful - and that’s his plan - but it’s too early to know for sure.
“That’s my goal; that’s the path I’m on,” he said. “I’m healing up really good. Hopefully, we get back out there on the gridiron. [But] I don’t know that I want to put any expectations one way or the other. Talk to the doctor when it’s time and hopefully get that green light.”
But would he be more at risk if he plays again after this injury?
“They reassured me there’s always risk with anything, not specifically re-injuring myself,” he said. “Their main concern is not about whether I risk re-injuring. It’s more so am I able to sustain the contact and the likelihood of an event like that happening again without further damage. Getting back to a place where I’m healed and am able to deliver contact in a safe manner is our goal.”
Mattison added that “it’s tricky to ask the doctor about the risk of playing football because they’re not going to give you a straight forward answer. There’s guys who have had fusions and neck injuries that have returned –- Asante Samuel Jr., Peyton Manning -- so I’m not so much concerned when it comes down to that because I know it’s possible.”
He’s out of the neck brace but his activities were still somewhat limited as of a few weeks ago.
“I’m still in that healing process where it’s restricted with certain things,” he said. “Running, jumping – I’m still rolling into things like that. I’m trying to get the bones and everything to heal before we start that stuff. But I feel really strong and confident. It’s getting to point where you push the boundaries.”
Both Eichenberg, 28, and Mattison, 27, will be unrestricted free agents in March. But football remains secondary at this point. Regaining their health remains the priority for the foreseeable future.
Mattison appreciates the care the Dolphins gave him.
“The team did an amazing job reassuring me saying it’s going to be a long process, but you’ll come out of it better than ever if God willing everything heals the way it needs to heal,” he said. “Everything is looking great.”
This story was originally published February 3, 2026 at 9:15 AM.
