Miami’s WR Depth May be an Issue Early in the Season
This past offseason, Chris Grier, Mike McDaniel, and the Dolphins looked to address the depth at the wide receiver position. Last year, behind Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, were Chase Claypool, Braxton Berrios, and Robbie Chosen/Anderson.
Erik Ezukanma missed essentially all of the 2023 season, and River Cracraft was limited to only ten games.
Yes, Miami forced the ball to Hill and Waddle (especially Hill), but when teams took that away and late in the season when Hill and Waddle got dinged up a little and were less than 100%, Miami didn’t have another wide receiver on their roster to step up.
So, Grier and McDaniel did the wise thing this offseason and ran off Claypool and Chosen. They brought in Odell Beckham Jr. and drafted Malik and Tajh Washington. Then, they re-signed River Cracraft and Braxton Berrios. It was time to shake up this WR room on the back end and see if the depth could be improved.
In theory, on paper, it was great.
As we sit on August 22nd, this has not gotten off to the start due to some bad luck—mainly injuries!
I know Tyreek Hill has his hand in a brace and isn’t catching passes, and Jaylen Waddle missed 2+ weeks of practice, but those do not appear to be injuries that will carry into the regular season and force them to miss time. That is the good news.
Here is where things have gone off the rails.
Odell Beckham Jr. was placed on PUP before training camp began, and he has missed all of it and every preseason game. Was he ever going to play in a preseason game? Probably not, but not being able to practice once as we head into the final week of August is concerning.
While Odell is on social media arguing with fans, it doesn’t change the fact that he hasn’t practiced, and the week one game vs. Jacksonville is fast approaching.
Could Odell only practice a week or a few days and be ready to go Week 1 and be on the active roster? Sure, I guess. But he is on a new team in a new offense, and while I am sure he has been attending meetings and such, it’s not the same as going through practices multiple times a week with his new teammates.
So, needless to say, Odell is a big question mark for the start of the regular season.
Next is River Cracraft, who, by all accounts, was having an amazing training camp this summer and, in the last preseason game vs Washington, had a beautiful touchdown reception from Tua. Unfortunately, it appears to be the last reception he will have for some time as he suffered an upper-body injury on the play, and Mike McDaniel said while his injury isn’t “season-ending,” he will miss “some time,” which you can read as a few months if not more.
Seventh-round pick Tajh Washington was placed on IR before training camp started, so his season never got off the ground.
Erik Ezukanma, who missed almost all last season, has been injured again at this training camp (new injury) and just returned to practice last week. He did play well in last week’s preseason game, but you do have durability concerns with Ezukanma and have questions about how many games he can give you in a season because the injuries have been one after another and never-ending.
As of this moment, Braxton Berrios is the Dolphins’ #3 wide receiver, a good-sized role that is involved a lot in this offense. Last season, he showed an inability to get separation and couldn’t contribute much on the field. He isn’t a #3 wide receiver in the NFL in 2024, and he is miscast in that role should he need to be in it for any length of time.
Malik Washington is a rookie and the Dolphins’ fifth-round draft pick who has looked good in training camp. However, he also looks like a rookie who is overwhelmed at times. He isn’t someone you want on the field much once the regular season begins, and he is probably a year away from being a serious contributor.
Braylon Sanders (who is week-to-week) has a leg injury of some sort, and Anthony Schwartz has dropped a lot of balls this camp, per the reports. Both are and continue to be longshots to make the roster.
God forbid if Hill or Waddle get injured once the regular season comes around and are less than 100% or have to miss a few games. The Dolphins WR room instantly goes from a strength to a big weakness just due to the lack of quality depth.
If Odell Bekcham Jr. can be healthy, on the active roster, and contribute, it does change things, but right now, with no time frame for his return, it just leaves more questions than answers.
I know a week from now, many players around the league will be cut; I wouldn’t be shocked to see Miami make a play and put in a waiver claim for a WR. Or, to see Chris Grier part with one of the seven tradable picks he has in the 2025 draft to add a depth-piece WR. Often this time of year we see a deal like Team “A” will send a player and a 7th round pick to Team “B” in exchange for a 5th round pick. Or something like that. If Miami were Team “A” in a trade like that, I wouldn’t be shocked.
I know that no team has a perfect roster and many teams are dealing with injuries, but looking at this Miami roster and which positions have the least amount of depth where one injury can change things on a dime, the Miami Dolphins wide receiver room right now is at the top of the list (behind quarterback of course).
Field Yates Early 2025 MOCK DRAFT has Miami Selecting…
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