Miami Dolphins: 3 players not named Tua under most pressure in 2022

Miami Dolphins player under pressure #1: Austin Jackson

There may be no starting or possibly starting player on the Dolphins roster that is on a shorter leash than Austin Jackson.

The 2020 first-round pick was supposed to be a cornerstone for the offensive line in Miami, and we had high hopes for him as the acquisition was made just an hour after the selection of Tua Tagovailoa. But Jackson has created more questions than answers for the team during his first two seasons, and 2022 could be his last in a Dolphins uniform if he is unable to show improvement.

There were a lot of bad parts on what was a historically bad Miami offensive from a season ago, and Jackson was one of the glaring weaknesses. We saw very few glimpses of the talent that he showed at USC that made him a top prospect, and more videos and images of him getting blown by or missing an assignment that causes the play to die and the offense to stall.

There won’t be any room for that in 2022. There will be a new scheme set in place by the new coaching regime, one that relies heavily on competent blocking from athletic offensive linemen. Mike McDaniel may be the key to getting the untapped talent out of Austin Jackson, something that Brian Flores and his staff were unable to do. Or maybe Chris Grier made another first-round mistake and Jackson will be out of the rotation by Week 7.

There is really no in-between.