Dolphins facing dire situation at WR ahead of showdown in Seattle

In Week 3, the Miami Dolphins will travel to Seattle to take on a 2-0 Seahawks side. They will do so with the wide receiver unit in shambles and few options to help. It's a near-dire situation for head man Mike McDaniel.

In 2023, the Dolphins entered the season with a plethora of receivers. This year, they only carried four on the initial 53. That has proven to be a mistake. Of course, Chris Grier's inability to field a serviceable WR unit is also to blame.

While Grier sunk a lot of money into Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill this year, he wasted some on Odell Beckham Jr., who not only missed training camp, but has yet to take a single snap or catch a pass this season. He has been on IR since the Dolphins made their final cuts. This weekend's game will see the Dolphins nearly gutted at wide receiver.

The Dolphins will enter the game with only three healthy receivers. Hill, Waddle, and Braxton Berrios will all play. Malik Washington returned to practice for the first time since suffering a quad injury ahead of Week 1. He is listed as doubtful for Sunday. The Dolphins claimed Grant DuBose off waivers from Green Bay following final cuts. He has been ruled out.

The Dolphins are depleted at WR due to injuries

On the practice squad, the Dolphins have two receivers who can be added to the 53. Dee Eskridge, a four-year pro, and Erik Ezukanma. Ezukanma has done little with his time in Miami and was injured in training camp.

D'Wayne "Dee" Eskridge is a former second-round pick of the Seahawks. In the three years since being drafted, he has posted 17 receptions for 122 yards and one touchdown. If Ezukanma isn't brought up for the game, Eskridge will be. He knows the Seattle team, but does he know enough to help the offense?

The Miami Dolphins failed to build their wide receiver unit in part because of arrogance. There is no logical reason not to have signed quality veteran receivers. They attempted to do so with Robbie Chosen, but they learned nothing from last campaign. Miami should have been adding help during training camp.

It is hard to predict injuries, but they knew OBJ would miss time and wasn't healthy, River Cracraft was going to miss time, and Ezukanma hasn't been reliable. They must also have forgotten that both Waddle and Hill have missed games due to injury.

Only the Dolphins know what they are going to do this week. Clearly, they believe they can win with Berrios as the third wide receiver. Berrios' involvement in his two seasons has not been good. Miami may have no choice but to get him involved a lot more vs. Seattle. Miami simply can't afford to lose any more wide receivers. They simply don't have the bodies to fill the holes - not healthy or productive ones that is.