Miami Dolphins training camp: Updated WR roster predictions
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins are nine days from playing a football game and are in their second week of training camp but at WR, the battle is only beginning.
As training camp closed in, there were questions about whether or not the Dolphins would carry all of the players on the roster into camp. With Will Fuller being banged up, DeVante Parker missing the first couple of days, Preston Williams not active, it really wasn’t a surprise after all that no one was released.
That will not be the case as the rest of camp unfolds and the roster is eventually cut to 53. Like it or not, there are quality receivers who will not make this year’s roster.
We know that DeVante Parker and Will Fuller will make the team as will Jaylen Waddle. Barring injury of course. What about the rest of the unit? Here is a look at what some of the are doing and who may be staying and who may be going.
Preston Williams: The Dolphins would be smart to just put him on IR and bring him back after week 8. He is still recovering from surgery last year and really doesn’t need to risk more injuries coming back too soon. He has also been placed on the COVID IR list but will come off soon enough. If the Dolphins put Williams on IR, they will have one more spot available.
Jakeem Grant: Grant told the media that he has been working hard at fixing his drop problem from 2020. So far in camp, Grant has looked really good in the passing game. He is a player that many, including myself, would have been cut prior to camp. Now, he is giving the coaches a reason to keep him that is outside of the return game.
Mack Hollins: Hollins played a lot down the stretch last season and there is a lot to like about him. He is caught in the shuffle and numbers game right now but he has been consistent in camp so far and the Dolphins coaching staff seem to like him. He could take the 7th spot if Miami rolls with that many at the position.
Robert Foster: Foster is showing his speed and quickness and is having a solid camp thus far. He is connecting well with Tua Tagovailoa and is giving the coaches a lot to think about.
Albert Wilson: Wilson is having an All-Pro training camp and by that I mean he has been on fire since day one. He has one drop so far and has his timing down with Tagovailoa. Wilson isn’t making a case for the 53 man roster, he is making a case to start.
Lynn Bowden, Jr.: So far, Bowden has been quiet and he hasn’t progressed as some have thought. He is versatile but is being overlooked by far better play from others. He needs to step it up.
Allen Hurns: To be honest, I have heard almost nothing of Hurns and that doesn’t bode well for him considering the camp that Wilson is having right now. The numbers are not in his favor if his quiet camp continues.
Kirk Merritt: Merritt is having a pretty decent camp but there are not enough roster spots and even if Williams were to be placed on IR, there still may not be enough. He is going to end up on the practice squad if another team doesn’t take him when he is released.
Isaiah Ford: Ford is having a typical camp, quiet but consistent. Still, there is no real future for the on-again-off-again receiver who has been cut and re-signed more than any other player on the roster the last two years.
Mid-camp predictions:
Waddle, Parker, and Fuller are 100% locks barring injury and Williams will be as well if he is activated and not put on IR. I think that Albert Wilson has displayed to the coaches that he is more than 100% recovered from his injury two years ago and I think he takes up spot number four.
Williams is my question mark because he has to get on the field. I’m going to put an asterisk next to his name because he could end up on the IR at some point. If he is healthy, he is spot number five but if he goes on IR, then that opens the door for someone to take 6 or 7 if they carry that many.
Jakeem Grant, I still believe is outside looking in but if he continues to impress in camp, he will lock down the 6th spot. It’s hard to predict this spot for him especially over Robert Foster and Mack Hollins but his performance has been really good so far.
With Grant taking the 6th spot, I think that Hollins will take the final spot. He is having a good camp and again, the coaches like him and will do whatever is asked of him.
The * (asterisk) spot will come down to Hollins, Bowden, and Foster. That last spot is going to be tough and I think the Dolphins will carry seven receivers into the season especially after the injuries they have dealt with. Parker and Fuller are two players who are great when they are healthy but struggle to stay that way and because of that, the Dolphins need to keep an extra player at the position.