Here’s how Miami Dolphins running backs coach is dealing with COVID outbreak in his room
Eric Studesville insists he isn’t eagerly awaiting the phone call informing him whether his three running backs on the COVID-19 list produce the two negative consecutive tests required to return to work this week.
Studesville — who serves as the Dolphins’ running backs coach and co-offensive coordinator — is too busy coming up with a tentative plan to replace Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed and Phillip Lindsay — if necessary — against the Jets.
Those three — who all tested positive for COVID-19 in recent days — are vaccinated and can play Sunday only if they produce two negative tests spaced 24 hours apart by Saturday afternoon and have no symptoms at that time. In order to play Sunday, players must be removed from the COVID-19 list by 4 p.m. Saturday.
Are all three feeling OK? “They’re in different places in this whole thing,” Studesville said Tuesday. “At the end of the day, they’re going to be fine. They’re at different stages. Some feel better than others.”
Are their cases mild or serious? “I don’t know mild from serious,” Studesville said, declining to discuss each of their symptoms.
Asked his comfort level with playing any of the three if they don’t practice this week, he said: “I haven’t had that happen so I don’t know what my comfort level or discomfort would be.”
But while he made clear that their health is of paramount importance, he’s preparing as if they won’t play.
Asked if he’s eagerly awaiting their test results, Studesville said: “No. I can’t control that. The thing I can control is we’ve got to come up with a game plan for whoever is going to be in there. I don’t want my players or anybody to be sick. But we’ve got to move forward. You’ve got to be ready to adapt and be flexible.”
The new tentative plan, for now, includes two veteran NFL backs — Duke Johnson and (likely) Malcolm Brown — and if needed, practice squad players Gerrid Doaks or Dexter Williams. The plan won’t include Patrick Laird, who’s out indefinitely with a sprained MCL.
Johnson has averaged 4.2 yards per carry in his career and had four carries for 18 yards in his Dolphins appearance against the Jets, his only NFL game this season.
“Duke is an aggressive runner, has vision, slams it up in there, finds run lanes,” Studesville said.
Johnson has been elevated to the roster as a COVID-19 replacement this week, meaning he can be elevated one more time this season. The Dolphins also could move him to the 53-man roster at any time.
Brown — who is eligible to return from injured reserve — has missed six games with a quadriceps injury but Brian Flores indicated he likely will be able to practice this week. He’s averaging 3.8 yards on 33 carries this season.
Before he was injured, Brown was Miami’s primary short-yardage runner (with mixed results) and Studesville said “Malcolm gave us some things” earlier this season. “He’s a competitive person, really smart, does a great job getting to know everything, tremendous work ethic.”
Doaks, one of the Dolphins’ seventh-round draft picks in April, has been consistently protected from poaching by other teams — the Dolphins and other teams can do so with four practice squad players each week — but has yet to make his NFL debut.
“He’s continuing to develop,” Studesville said. “Sometimes an opportunity will present itself. If it presents itself, he’s got to be ready.”
Williams was signed to the practice squad on Monday after the team auditioned Williams, Benny LeMay and former Dolphins Lamar Miller and Jordan Scarlett.
Williams, selected by Green Bay in the sixth round of the 2019 draft out of Notre Dame, has seven career carries for 19 yards. He has spent time with the Giants’ and Browns’ practice squads this season.
“I remember Dexter when he came out at the Combine,” Studesville said. “He plays with good effort, smart guy, has got vision. I don’t know a lot more about him than the workout, which isn’t really football.”
The Dolphins have averaged 28 carries per game during this win streak, but their 3.3 rushing average is tied for worst in the league. Studesville said he wants to maintain that approach even if the top three backs are unavailable:
“That’s always our plan, to be a balanced attack. We want to make sure we have a commitment to the run game in every game plan.”
Toughest challenge of the week?
“The first thing I do is worry about [Gaskin, Ahmed and Lindsay], making sure they’re doing all right,” Studesville said. “I love all my guys. We’re going to sort the whole thing out... In our room we talk about you never know when an opportunity will come up. There are going to be multiple players in there [Sunday]. How many? We don’t know.”
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 12:03 PM.
