The Miami Dolphins remained without standout rookie safety Jevon Holland for Wednesday’s practice ahead of their Monday Night Football game at the New Orleans Saints due to COVID-19 protocols, Dolphins coach Brian Flores said.
Holland was activated from the team’s reserve/COVID-19 list on Saturday, ahead of because teams have a Saturday 4 p.m. deadline to make game-day roster moves for Sunday games.
The Dolphins sacrificed a roster spot to activate him in case he could clear protocols Sunday morning. He did not, and after entering Sunday questionable, he was downgraded to out four hours before the 1 p.m. kickoff.
With Holland still not returning to practice, it doesn’t necessarily mean he will miss Monday’s game against the Saints (7-7). Last week, running back Myles Gaskin had 10 carries after being activated Friday ahead of Sunday’s game, participating in one practice and one walkthrough before facing the Jets. The Dolphins (7-7) were comfortable playing Holland last Sunday if he cleared protocols, given the activation without practicing all week after initially landing on the COVID list on Dec. 13.
“It’s case by case,” Flores said. “Myles is a good example with how he came off the list, was in practice on Friday. We saw what that looked like — walkthrough Saturday and play on Sunday. … The individual can tell us a lot about how they’re feeling, what they can do, but obviously, the health and safety of the players is priority No. 1.”
With wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and running back Phillip Lindsay activated from the COVID list on Monday, the two returned to practice on Wednesday. The Dolphins still have cornerback Justin Coleman on the COVID list, along with practice squad running back Gerrid Doaks.
Flores said that wide receiver Albert Wilson missed Wednesday’s practice due to personal reasons, but he expects Wilson to be available to play the Saints on Monday.
Fellow wideout DeVante Parker did not practice Wednesday, taking a veteran rest day, Flores said.
Dolphins offensive guard Robert Jones was not seen during the media viewing portion of Wednesday drills. The Dolphins announced Wednesday afternoon that . Jones played 10 offensive snaps against the Jets as a tight end and sixth offensive lineman in certain packages on Sunday, the first meaningful playing time for the undrafted rookie.
The Dolphins did not release a Wednesday injury report. With a Monday game on tap, the NFL mandates injury reports to be released Thursday, Friday and Saturday — this despite how Miami won’t practice on Christmas Day, Saturday. An estimation of what Saturday participation would have been with final injury designations will be released at that time.
No scoreboard watching
Playing on Monday night, it could present the Dolphins with an opportunity to watch AFC games this Sunday that directly impact their playoff odds. One result in particular, if the Buffalo Bills beat the New England Patriots, coupled with the Dolphins winning out over their final three regular-season games, of making the playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight.
But Flores said all of the team’s focus is going into winning Monday night’s game against a tough Saints team that is coming off a shutout of the defending Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“I just focus on today’s preparation,” Flores said. “That’s where it is. I think we’re going to be on a plane when a lot of those games are being played. I think we only have so much energy. I want to put all my energy into our team and this game. We’re going to need all of it against this opponent in this environment.”
Flores, showing where his focus is, went on to name a series of Saints defenders, along with quarterback Taysom Hill and running backs Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram as players he’s concerned about facing in studying New Orleans film.
