Tagovailoa pleased to welcome back the ‘great white hope.’ And Beckham on where he stands
No team has received less production from its No. 3 wide receiver than the Dolphins.
But the available options are beginning to expand.
Weeks after Odell Beckham Jr. returned to the lineup, River Cracraft — who has been out since sustaining a shoulder injury in preseason — practiced on Wednesday, and Tua Tagovailoa jokingly called him the “great white hope.”
During the past two years, 16 of Cracraft’s 18 receptions from Tagovailoa have gone for first downs, and three have been touchdowns.
Cracraft was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice. If he has no setbacks and picks up his workload, he possibly could be activated for Sunday’s game at Buffalo (1 p.m., CBS).
Tagovailoa said he was able to throw to Beckham and Cracraft while both were sidelined. An offseason knee procedure kept Beckham out for the first four games of the season.
But Tagovailoa said it has been a process trying to develop chemistry with players outside of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
“It’s been tough,” Tagovailoa said. “You have the packages with [rookie receiver Malik Washington], but Malik is playing special teams and is doing a lot....
“The band is sort of coming together, meshing and being able to throw more routes and more timing throws with them, knowing where they need to be in spots on the field for the play. I think we’re getting to where we need to be. Hopefully this Sunday we get to use the weapons we’ve acquired this offseason.”
For some perspective on how little the Dolphins have received from No. 3 receivers, consider that Dee Eskridge’s two receptions are the most by any receiver on the roster outside of Hill and Waddle.
Per ESPN, the Dolphins have played only 162 snaps with three or more wide receivers on the field, which is the fewest in the league.
As for Beckham Jr., he has no receptions in three targets in his first three games back. He said Wednesday that he feels healthy and explosive.
“I feel good,” he said. “Just limited opportunity right now… I still run 20 miles per hour. I still run faster than the person who’s chasing me. It just hasn’t been the most opportunities.
“It’s finding out how I can best serve my teammates and this team. I don’t take it for granted. I’ve been through more. You couldn’t name a star receiver who has been through what I’ve been through as far as injuries and situations. As far as how I feel in my body, today was supposed to be a light day and I was out there pushing. I was out there trying to find something to get better at.”
Beckham added: “We’ve got two guys being paid $30 million [Hill and Waddle], and it’s how can I help in a system to find my way in.”
Beckham also said receivers get a bad rap for being divas.
“People always talk about receivers and they’re like, ‘Oh they’re divas’ and all that [expletive] that they say. A receiver is the most selfless person on the field.
“First of all you got to wait for it to be a pass play, you got to wait for the O-line to block and protect, you’ve got to wait for the quarterback to throw you the ball. There’s nothing really in your control. You can be open 10 times in a game and never get the ball or get thrown to you once, and that might be your only opportunity. Those five chances or however many chances you get, is all you’re going to have.”
Beckham has played exactly 11 offensive snaps in each of his first three games. Has Mike McDaniel told him that he wants to get Beckham more snaps?
“I’m sure he does,” Beckham said. “That’s why he brought me here.”
This will be Beckham’s first game in the Dolphins-Bills series, which Buffalo has dominated recently, winning 12 of the past 13.
“Everyone around here is tired of [the Bills having the upper hand] and [we’ve] got to come to work with the mentality that this is the most important game of our season,” he said.
THIS AND THAT
Six Dolphins missed practice because of injuries: safety Jevon Holland (hand), cornerback Kader Kohou (neck), linebacker Emmanuel Ogbah (biceps and illness), defensive lineman Zach Sieler (eye), cornerback Storm Duck (ankle) and tight end Julian Hill (shoulder).
Terron Armstead, Jordan Poyer and Calais Campbell were given days off to rest, with a knee issue also listed in Armstead’s designation.
Besides Cracraft, linebacker Jordyn Brooks (hamstring/wrist) and defensive lineman Benito Jones (knee) were limited.
▪ In this piece, we detailed eight areas where the Dolphins have struggled badly against Buffalo.
Here’s one area which hasn’t been a lopsided advantage for the Bills recently: The running game.
Even in the Bills’ 48-20 dismantling of Miami last October, the Dolphins ran for 142 yards on 7.5 per carry, while the Bills ran for 104 on just 3.6 per rush. In the Week 18 game last year, Miami rushed for 108 on 5.4 for carry, while the Bills ran for 128 but on just 3.6 per carry.
The rushing averages — 4.1 for Miami, 4.2 for Buffalo — were very close in the Sept. 12 game this season, which Buffalo won 31-10.
And if you remove James Cook’s 49-yard run on that Thursday night, Miami held Buffalo to 59 yards the other 25 carries (2.4 per rush).
But this Dolphins rushing defense isn’t as good as the past two years, so that’s a concern defensively Sunday, especially with Sieler’s status in doubt.
Offensively, running the ball wouldn’t be a bad idea; the Dolphins have averaged 7.5 yards per rush in each of their last two regular season games in Buffalo.
This story was originally published October 30, 2024 at 4:42 PM.
