Soon after the start of NFL free agency, new Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan worked his best to shore up the offensive line with the limited resources at his disposal. In his quest, Sullivan signed former Los Angeles Chargers guard/tackle Jamaree Salyer to a one-year deal, with the opportunity to fight for a starting position. Now, however, following an injury at minicamp, we await word on the severity of Salyer's status.
As reported by the Sun Sentinel's Chris Perkins, Salyer left Wednesday's session of mandatory minicamp on a cart with an apparent injury. What the injury is, however, and to what extent, remain unknown at this time.
Salyer was one of several minimum-level deals Sullivan has handed out this offseason, but he's been tagged as a potential starter depending on how things go in training camp. Now the question arises if he'll even get the opportunity.
Miami Dolphins' OL Jamaree Salyer leaves practice on cart
It's important to point out that during practices and camps, it is customary for teams to cart injured players off the field as a precautionary measure. If a player gets carted off in an actual game, there's almost always reason for concern. In practice, however, that's not necessarily the case. So, with a splash of hopium, hopefully, Salyer's injury is more on the precautionary side.
As mentioned, Salyer was set to compete for a starting guard spot, presumably against Jonah Savaiinaea at right guard, and it's a considerable reason why he chose Miami over other teams. At the very least, he can be a competent backup (something the Dolphins have sorely lacked in the OL department) behind Savaiinaea and rookie Kadyn Proctor. With experience at OT as well, Salyer could also be an option as a backup swing tackle if called upon.
We'll have to wait for the official announcement as to the severity of Salyer's injury. However, the longer it takes to hear something, the more likely it is that it can't be good.
To this point, Salyer has been durable throughout his NFL career. He was healthy and played in all regular-season games for the first three years of his career, and played in 13 games last year for the Chargers as a versatile backup.
If the injury turns out to be severe, added pressure will be on Savaiinaea to step up in his second year. Meanwhile, we could see Sullivan look to use some of that additional money to add another veteran.
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