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Miami Dolphins losing Preston Williams is not the end of the world

By Brian Miller

Sep 24, 2020; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Preston Williams (18) celebrates with center Ted Karras (right) and offensive guard Ereck Flowers (75) after making a touchdown catch against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 24, 2020; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Preston Williams (18) celebrates with center Ted Karras (right) and offensive guard Ereck Flowers (75) after making a touchdown catch against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Miami Dolphins will place wide-receiver Preston Williams on injured reserve.

Brian Flores in his weekly call with the media announced that Miami Dolphins receiver, Preston Williams is heading to IR following his early exit last Sunday.

Losing Preston Williams is not an ideal situation for the already thin Miami Dolphins receiving group but it also not the end of the world and Miami shouldn’t miss much when they transition to the next man up.

Williams has been inconsistent this year and while last weekend he had a very good game, the Dolphins didn’t fall apart after he left with his injury. The injury happened on his touchdown reception when the Arizona defender rolled up his ankle. Flores said today that the injury was worse than they had originally thought. He didn’t go into a lot more detail according to reports.

With Williams now gone the Dolphins will turn to a trio of potential replacements. Antonio Callaway has a lot of potential and is now activated after serving his league suspension. The Dolphins activated Kirk Merritt last weekend and he will likely stay on the 53 man roster now. Miami also brought Mack Hollins into the fold last week. Hollins scored a touchdown as well.

The Dolphins offense is going to miss the match-up advantages with Williams but they shouldn’t lose production while moving the ball. Williams has 18 receptions this year for 288 yards. What will be missed is his propensity to get into the endzone. He has four touchdowns. That will now fall on someone else’s shoulders.

Can Hollins, Calloway, or Merritt make up for it? Hard to say. Hollins has one touchdown on one reception for his entire NFL career. Kirk Merritt has no catches and no targets. Antonio Callaway could be the key.

The Miami Dolphins are banking on filling the role of Preston Williams with talent not experience.

Callaway was a promising receiver with the Browns. He has 51 receptions for 675 yards and five touchdowns. His issue isn’t talent it’s getting into off-field issues. The Dolphins are taking on the reclamation project with little investment but he needs to step up now as he becomes the most experienced of the three likely to replace Williams.

It is not ideal to lose Williams when things are falling into place for the Dolphins but as we saw last Sunday without him, Tua Tagovailoa didn’t skip a beat after losing him. Miami’s offense will need to continue to evolve and that thin receiving corp that just got thinner will need to step up.

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