Miami Dolphins
The Texans will have defensive end Denico Autry (knee) in Sunday’s game against the Dolphins.
He returned to full participation Thursday after being limited Wednesday, and Autry remained a full participant Friday.
The Texans ruled out left guard Juice Scruggs (foot) after he did not practice this week, but they could see the return of left guard Kenyon Green (shoulder) from injured reserve. Green was a full participant Friday and is questionable.
Linebacker Christian Harris (calf), linebacker Jamal Hill (knee) and offensive lineman Nick Broeker (hand) also are questionable.
Broeker was a new addition to the practice report Friday, but he was a full participant.
After making nine catches over nine games, Odell Beckham Jr. was waived by the Dolphins on Friday.
In his Friday press conference, head coach Mike McDaniel characterized the move as a positive for both Beckham and Miami.
“It’s as simple as, what’s the best for both him and the team moving forward. We thought it was a good time to go that direction,” McDaniel said, via Omar Kelly of the Miami Herald. “I know his expectations. When you communicate transparently, I know where he’s at.
“This is the best for both parties.”
Beckham was on the field for just 20 percent of offensive snaps in games played. He finishes his time in Miami with nine receptions for 55 yards.
With the playoffs looming, a veteran receiver is suddenly available.
So what happens next for Odell Beckham, Jr.?
He’ll pass through waivers. Anyone who claims him will be picking up the remainder of his $3 million base salary. It works out to $500,000.
If he clears waivers, he becomes a free agent. It’s unclear whether he’d command anything more than the prorated veteran minimum of $1.21 million.
Playoff teams that could use help at the position include the Steelers and Chiefs. Without George Pickens, who has a hamstring injury, Beckham arguably brings more to the table than all of the other receivers on the roster, except Mike Williams.
That assumes Beckham still has gas in the tank. The Dolphins did, but they were wrong. He had nine catches for 55 yards in nine games.
Other potentially interested teams include the Chargers, the Ravens (who gave him $15 million guaranteed in 2023), the Rams (where he played in 2021), the Buccaneers, and the Commanders.
Again, the question is whether he can still play at a high level. He’s not what he once was. Is what he currently is good enough?
Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is officially a former member of the Dolphins.
Friday morning brought word that Beckham would be placed on waivers and the Dolphins announced the move a short time later. The other 31 teams in the league will be able to claim Beckham through Monday.
Beckham only had nine catches for 55 yards in nine games for the Dolphins, which makes it easy to understand why the two sides are parting ways. It’s less clear if another team will take a flier on seeing if Beckham can be more of a contributor for them.
If a team does claim Beckham, they will take on the remainder of the one-year deal he signed with the Dolphins this offseason. That would cost in the neighborhood of $210,000 and we’ll find out early next week if anyone rolls the dice on the veteran wideout.
Odell Beckham’s days as a Dolphin are over.
The Dolphins will place Beckham on waivers, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. He’ll be available for any team to claim on Monday, and if no team claims him he’ll be an unrestricted free agent after clearing waivers.
The report calls it a mutual agreement and says Beckham hopes to find more opportunities elsewhere. Realistically, given that he has looked like a shell of his former self and caught just nine passes in nine games this season, there probably won’t be a whole lot of teams looking to give him that opportunity, but it only takes one.
Beckham was the NFL’s offensive rookie of the year in 2014 and one of the best wide receivers in the NFL in his first three seasons with the Giants. But it’s been a long time since he has played at that level, and his skills have eroded as he’s moved from the Browns to the Rams to the Ravens and now to the Dolphins.
Beckham hasn’t been practicing this week for what the Dolphins described as personal reasons, but he’ll be ready next week — if any team wants him.
The Texans had three changes to their practice report from Thursday.
Defensive end Denico Autry (knee) returned to full participation after being listed as limited Wednesday.
The team added linebacker Jamal Hill (knee) to the report as a limited participant, and running back Joe Mixon had a rest day with a limited practice.
Center Juice Scruggs (foot) did not practice again.
Defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi (foot), offensive guard Kenyon Green (shoulder) and linebacker Christian Harris (calf) were limited again.
Wide receiver Nico Collins and left tackle Laremy Tunsil were back after a rest day Wednesday, and wide receiver Robert Woods practiced after a personal day Wednesday.
The Dolphins have several wide receivers on this week’s injury report, including Odell Beckham Jr.
Beckham did not practice for the second straight day on Thursday. Beckham, who has nine catches for 55 yards this season, is listed as out for personal reasons.
Dee Eskridge (knee) also missed practice for the second day in a row while Jaylen Waddle (hamstring) and Grant DuBose (shoulder) remained limited participants. Tyreek Hill (wrist) was also listed as limited on Wednesday, but he moved up to full participation on Thursday.
Left tackle Terron Armstead (knee) and tackle Kendall Lamm (back) were the other Dolphins to miss practice. Linebacker Jordyn Brooks (ribs), edge rusher Bradley Chubb (knee), linebacker Cameron Goode (knee), fullback Alec Ingold (ankle), and running back Raheem Mostert (hip) were all limited participants.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa heads into Week 15 with the highest completion percentage in the league and one of the highest single-season completion percentages of all time.
Tagovailoa has completed 73.8 percent of his passes this season and former Saints quarterback Drew Brees is the only quarterback in NFL history with a higher percentage for a single season. Brees completed 74.4 percent of his passes in 2018 and 74.3 percent of his passes in 2019.
With four games left, there’s a chance that Tagovailoa could wind up with a higher mark than Brees managed in those seasons, but he said at a Wednesday press conference that it isn’t something that takes precedence over trying for a winning streak that could push the Dolphins into the playoffs.
“To surpass any record in the NFL, I think is an accomplishment in itself,” Tagovailoa said, via a transcript from the team. “You’re talking about legends, Hall of Famers in the past that have played this game. You’re talking about future legends, future Hall of Famers that are playing now in this game. That would mean a lot, but I think for us, right now, just trying to keep the main goal, the main goal and to find a win this Sunday and go on a run that we’ve been talking about in that locker room as a team, that would be a little more special than any other record I would say.”
Tagovailoa completed over 80 percent of his passes against the Packers on Thanksgiving, but the Dolphins lost. He was 10 percentage points lower against the Jets last Sunday, but the Dolphins won and that’s a trade the quarterback says he’ll make every time.
As more homes of pro athletes are invaded and robbed, they need to be thinking about hiring personal security details.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is one step ahead of them.
“I have personal security just because my house had gone broken into — not necessarily my house but one of my cars,” Tagovailoa told reporters on Wednesday. “So it’s a little too close for my comfort with my family being in the house. So we got personal security to take care of all of that. When we’re on the road, we got someone with my wife. Got someone also at the house surveying the house. So just to let that be known, they are armed. So I hope if you decide to go to my house, you think twice.”
He said the incident happened in the last year or two.
Does he feel like he might be a target?
“I wouldn’t say necessarily I would be a target, but I wouldn’t want to play the chances with my family, my kids sleeping,” he said. “My wife sleeping, me sleeping at the house.”
Whether he regards himself as a target, he is. His compensation and profile make him one, especially with the FBI investigating whether a transnational crime ring is robbing the homes of players like Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.
It’s not cheap, but given what he’s making it’s worth it.
The Dolphins are getting some receiver depth back at practice on Wednesday.
Miami has opened the 21-day practice window for Grant DuBose.
The Dolphins claimed DuBose off waivers in late August after he’d been cut by the Packers. He suffered a shoulder injury in the Week 2 loss to the Bills after making his first career catch during the matchup.
It went for 13 yards.
DuBose is the seventh of eight possible players the Dolphins can designate to return this season.