Miami Dolphins lose Mark Walford to NFL suspension
By Brian Miller
The NFL thinks that the Miami Dolphins need a hand in losing and have suspended running back Mark Walton for four games.
Mark Walton will not be back on the field with his teammates until week 13 of the season after the NFL levied a suspension of four games on the former Bengals and current Dolphins starting running back.
Walton’s suspension is not a surprise. The “conduct detrimental” situation stems from three previous arrests and more off-field issues while Walton was with the Bengals. The Dolphins signed him earlier this off-season despite the pending charges. He has had no issues since joining the Dolphins and Miami was aware of the pending suspension.
Miami released a statement regarding the suspension and acknowledged that they had been in contact with the league for weeks. This would mean that Miami was aware of the situation when they traded Kenyan Drake to the Cardinals last week.
Walton has run hard for the Dolphins but he has yet to have a really huge game. He has just over 200 yards in seven games and four starts. He has carried the ball 53 times for an average of 3.8 yards per carry. His longest run is 19 yards.
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With Walton now shelved for four weeks, the Dolphins will likely turn back to Kalen Ballage who entered the season as the starter. Ballage struggled and Walton was moved to the ones. It will be interesting to see what this does for rookie Myles Gaskin who should see himself activated this week against the Colts.
Fans, however, want to see more of Patrick Laird who has made no impact in the Dolphins running game either as a runner or pass catcher. He opened eyes during training camp but has yet to be involved in the Dolphins game plan. Maybe that changes now. This season has been about evaluating so it’s time to evaluate the other running backs on the roster.
Miami will now have two roster spots open. Earlier today the team announced that Preston Williams is done for the year with a knee injury.