Dolphins’ McDaniel updates injuries to Brandon Jones, others. And notes at every position
Dolphins safety Brandon Jones will miss at least four weeks with a knee injury and could be out much longer.
Coach Mike McDaniel said Jones is headed to injured reserve — which would sideline him at least four games — but there’s not enough information available to know whether he definitely will miss the remainder of the season.
Jones was injured during Sunday’s game and struggled to put weight on the leg.
“I’m not too excited about it,” McDaniel said about his prognosis, adding “there is some lingering college stuff that is complicating the issue.”
Meanwhile, cornerback Byron Jones is still not ready to practice after March surgery in his ankle/Achilles area. He was originally expected to be ready for training camp. McDaniel called it “frustrating for all parties.”
McDaniel said Byron Jones’ injury is in the same area where he had the surgery. McDaniel said Jones hasn’t had another setback per se, but it’s “a long road to recovery. Those things respond differently for different people.”
Without Brandon Jones, the Dolphins likely will go with a combination of players alongside Jevon Holland — Eric Rowe (who played 17 defensive snaps on Sunday), Clayton Fejedelem (18) and rookie practice squad player Verone McKinley III (16).
Safety Elijah Campbell played only special teams Sunday night.
On Sunday, Holland played all 75 defensive snaps and Jones played 42 before departing with his injury.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins won with just three available cornerbacks Sunday.
Xavien Howard and Noah Igbinoghene played all 75 defensive snaps, and Justin Bethel played 59. The status of cornerbacks Kader Kohou (oblique) and Keion Crossen (knee) will become clearer later in the week; both missed Sunday’s game.
Igbinoghene had the game-sealing interception — the first of his three-year career — in his first NFL start.
“All the coaches have been preaching is just ‘get the ball, Noah, get the ball,’” he said. “And I was able to get it. At first I didn’t think I caught it cause the referee right there said it was out. I saw the review and I saw everyone get excited and I got excited as well.”
Per Pro Football Focus, Igbinoghene on Sunday allowed six of eight targets to be caught for 68 yards, one touchdown and the interception (a 98.4 passer rating).
Bethel permitted seven of nine targets to be caught for 54 yards and an interception (a 52.1 passer rating against).
And Howard, playing through a groin injury, permitted four of five passes to be caught for just 35 yards.
OTHER POSITION NOTES
▪ Defensive line: With Emmanuel Ogbah missing the game with a back injury, the Dolphins allocated defensive line snaps this way: Christian Wilkins (61), Zach Sieler (59), Raekwon Davis (45), John Jenkins (15) and practice-squad rookie Ben Stille (9).
“They should get Emmanuel back to the Lions game hopefully,” his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said on his weekly WSVN-Fox 7 segment on Sunday night.
▪ At outside linebacker, Andrew Van Ginkel had eight tackles in just 24 defensive snaps. (He also had two tackles on special teams). Jaelan Phillips had 1.5 sacks and eight tackles in 60 snaps and had seven pressures in his 35 pass rushing snaps, per PFF.
Melvin Ingram logged 33 snaps.
Among inside linebackers, Jerome Baker played 69 snaps, Elandon Roberts 35, Duke Riley 29 and Sam Eguavoen 9.
▪ With Durham Smythe working his way back from a hamstring injury, the Dolphins gave 38 tight end snaps to Mike Gesicki, 26 to Smythe, four to Hunter Long and two to Tanner Conner.
▪ Though Cedrick Wilson Jr. took over punt return responsibilities for the first time, his playing time on offense continued to dwindle, with just four snaps. Tyreek Hill played 55 of Miami’s 62 offensive snaps, Jaylen Waddle 49, Trent Sherfield 35 and River Cracraft 6.
▪ At running back, Raheem Mostert continues to distance himself from Chase Edmonds, in snaps and production.
Mostert played 44 snaps and ran 16 times for 79 yards (4.9 per carry). Edmonds played 18 snaps, ran 7 times for 17 yards (2.4 per carry) and dropped a pass for the fourth time this season.
▪ Offensive line: The five starting linemen allowed no sacks and just four combined pressures — two against right tackle Brandon Shell, and one each against guards Liam Eichenberg and Robert Hunt.
Shell “is making our offensive line group better by his good play,” McDaniel said. “He continues to impress.”
Right tackle Austin Jackson, who has missed six games with an ankle injury, remains on IR and McDaniel isn’t confident he will practice this week but didn’t rule it out. But McDaniel has said he expects Jackson to play again this season.
NOTABLE
McDaniel said he made the call — not the analytics department — when he decided to go for it on a fourth-and-3 at the Pittsburgh 14 with the Dolphins ahead 16-10 early in the third quarter. Chase Edmonds was stopped well short of the first-down marker.
“We have a couple guys within analytics that are in my ear in all those types of situations,” McDaniel said. “In this situation, they did not advise me to go for it.
“I think the scoreboard might have said three, but I think it was like a long two and a half, but it’s one of those if it’s fourth-and-2 they’re a lot more supportive; fourth-and-3 the percentages go way down. I felt really confident that we’d be able to convert.”
▪ The Dolphins are 9-1 in their last 10 home games. That’s their best stretch at Hard Rock Stadium since 2001-02.
▪ Pro Football Focus rated the Dolphins’ top five players on offense in this order: center Connor Williams, Mostert, Hunt, Waddle and Hill.
▪ PFF rated the Dolphins’ top five players on defense in this order: Holland, Phillips, Riley, Van Ginkel and Ingram.
This story was originally published October 24, 2022 at 4:50 PM.
