Dolphins expected to have DeVante Parker back but is he needed?

The Miami Dolphins opted to sit out wide-receiver DeVante Parker last Sunday and Parker believes he could have played. He will likely play Sunday.

A bigger question for the Miami Dolphins as it relates to DeVante Parker is what will he bring to the team’s offense? The Dolphins have won two games in a row and have used Albert Wilson and Jakeem Grant in stylish ways and that formula seems to be working. Is Parker needed?

Parker is in a contract year of sorts. His 5th year option has already been picked up by the team for the 2019 season but that is not guaranteed beyond injury. Parker needs to have a very good 2018 and finally take a big step forward. Something the Dolphins and their fans have been waiting for since he was drafted.

Parker missed the remaining pre-season games and the first two games of the regular season with a broken finger but he was taking soft passes from the “jugs” machine ahead of last weeks game and doing conditioning work at practice. Unfortunately, Parker has never been active for an opening weekend due to various injuries.

The Dolphins hope that Parker will provide the team with the skill set that he gained at Louisville. Over the past three seasons Parker has been relatively inconsistent and staying on the field has been a big problem for the prototype receiver. When he is healthy he seems to at times be in his own head. That mental aspect of his game needs a little improvement as well.

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Parker is an enigma. He has all the tools to be one of the best receivers in the NFL. He has very good hands and the body size to match-up with any corner in the league but he struggles at times to get into proper position to use his body against the coverage to make the catch.

This week, if Parker does in fact play, it will be interesting to see how the Dolphins use him in their game plan. Miami is having a lot of success running the football and the Raiders have a low 20 rank against the run. Can Parker give the Dolphins an outside threat they desperately need?

One of the bigger issues is that Parker doesn’t scare opposing defenses. They can match with him relatively easy because Parker has yet to showcase that talent he has within him. He needs to find that in his own mind and bring it out. His camp this year was nothing special. He needs to be special because he has special talent.

How well he will integrate with the offense won’t be known until Sunday and even then Adam Gase may take a slow approach to bring him back into the fold. While nothing is certain about Parker playing this weekend, if he does, he needs to become that go-to receiver and drive his routes downfield to open the offense. If he can do that, there will be a new and exciting element to the Dolphins offense. If he can do that.