The Dolphins’ receiver situation keeps getting thinner, and Thursday’s roster shuffle didn’t do Caleb Douglas any favors.
Miami announced it had released long snapper Luke Basso from the practice squad and signed wide receiver A.J. Henning to the practice squad. Henning had already spent training camp with the Dolphins before being cut before the season began.
That kind of move may look minor on the surface, but it points to a team that is not exactly feeling great about the health of its wideout group heading into Week 3 against the Chiefs. Douglas and Chris Bell are both dealing with injury issues, and Miami may be preparing to lean deeper into its practice squad than it wanted to.
Right now, the Dolphins have only three healthy receivers on the 53-man roster: Jalen Tolbert, Malik Washington, and Kevin Coleman Jr. Ryan Miller has also been limited this week because of a back/hip issue. On the practice squad, Miami now has three more receivers available in Will Sheppard, Jalen Reagor, and Henning.
If Douglas or Bell can’t go on Sunday, Reagor and Henning could be called into action.
Even if both injured receivers suit up, the workload picture still looks shaky. Malik Washington is set to be the primary receiver for Malik Willis, and that puts him in a position where the Dolphins need him to take a real step forward.
The matchup doesn’t make things any easier. Kansas City comes in ranked third overall in defense after two weeks, with the 10th-ranked run defense and the fourth-ranked passing defense. The Chiefs’ cornerback group is described as solid and consistent, and they’re getting healthier too.
Some fans have already started blaming Jon-Eric Sullivan for the state of the receiver room, especially with the trade of Jaylen Waddle drawing criticism online. But the source of the problem is more complicated than that.
Miami is hoping Douglas and Bell can develop into franchise-level NFL starters, and both are still working through their own situations. Bell tore his ACL last November, while Douglas is dealing with a freak rollover of his ankle.
In Other News...
Tua Tagovailoa's Chance To Prove Dolphins Wrong Is Fading Fast
Tua Tagovailoas time with the Falcons has taken an odd turn, and it has left his next chance to get on the field looking less secure than it once did. Atlanta has already named Michael Penix Jr. its starter for Week 3, with Tagovailoa now working as the backup while he recovers from an oblique injury, a shift that came after he had been expected to take the job and start throwing passes for the team.
For Miami fans still tracking the quarterbacks path, the bigger issue is not just the injury, but the reality that the Falcons could keep rolling with Penix if he plays well. Tagovailoa has yet to throw a pass for Atlanta, and every week that passes without him in the lineup makes this situation feel less like a temporary detour and more like a decision the Falcons may not be eager to revisit. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Veterans Are Being Tested By A Reset Already Raising Questions
The Dolphins offseason has brought a clear reset, with a new front office and coaching staff steering the roster toward a younger core and a different direction. For veterans like defensive tackle Zach Sieler, that means more than just adjusting to new voices in the building. It means helping set the tone while a team in transition sorts through its next identity.
Miami has already been defined by the kind of churn that usually comes with change, and the early reports around performance, injuries and draft considerations only add to the sense that this is more than a simple tune-up. The veterans are being asked to steady things through a period that could test patience as much as production, and the bigger question is how quickly the roster can settle before the uncertainty starts to show. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Fans Will Never Agree On Their Most Defining Home Opener
The Dolphins have spent decades making home openers feel like a small event in themselves, the kind of early-season game that can set the tone in South Florida before the larger autumn questions start to settle in. Miamis record in those games has long been a point of pride, and the franchise has plenty of examples to draw from, whether it was a comeback win, a runaway performance or a memorable afternoon involving names like Dan Marino, Ricky Williams and Ryan Tannehill.
What makes the debate interesting is that no single opener seems to define the whole experience for Dolphins fans. Some are remembered for the drama, some for the dominance, and some for circumstances far beyond the scoreboard, including a game delayed by 9/11 and another that became the longest in NFL history. With so many different kinds of opening days folded into the franchises history, the argument is less about which one was best and more about which one still feels most like Miami. [Read more 🡒]