Dolphins have perfect replacement for Austin Jackson after season-ending injury
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins placed starting right tackle Austin Jackson on injured reserve last week with a knee injury. He is done for the year and leaves them looking for a backup.
Fortunately, the Dolphins already have a capable backup for the right tackle position. Kendall Lamm has been Jackson's primary backup all season, and he has shown that he can handle the job. Previously, he substituted for Terron Armstead when he was out. Now, he will take on the starting role for the rest of the year.
On the left side, Armstead will still be backed up by rookie Patrick Paul. It would be incredibly smart of the Dolphins to begin working Paul on both sides of the line should anything happen to Lamm. Cross-training at the NFL level for linemen is smart. Will the Dolphins do it is another question.
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Jackson is expected to be ready for training camp, so the blow could have been worse. Lamm has started more than 80 games in his career and has been with Miami for three seasons under Mike McDaniel.
Who is the backup to Kendall Lamm is a bigger question with the Austin Jackson news
As we said, it would be smart to begin training Paul on the right side, but entering Week 11, the Dolphins have no obvious backup right tackle on the active 53-man roster.
Miami has Jackson Carman, Ryan Hayes, and Bayron Matos on the practice squad, and it will use players from that pool to call up on Sundays for the game. Miami can elevate a player three times before needing to add them to the 53 permanently or keep them on the practice squad for the rest of the year.
Dolphins fans should expect a fluid situation along the line for the remainder of the season, and they will likely have to look outside of the roster to find help, even if it is another practice squad player.
The good news is that the Dolphins should stay in good shape at right tackle. It was smart to bring Lamm back this year, and it proves the importance of having quality depth, unlike what they did at quarterback.
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