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The Miami Dolphins are a little more than an hour away from kickoff, and we now know which Dolphins on the 53-man roster will not be suiting up for today’s game. The Dolphins shared their inactives list ahead of their primetime clash with the Las Vegas Raiders and Miami’s hopes of a playoff berth this season are heavily riding on the outcome. We know now that these Miami Dolphins will be unable to help the cause tonight as the Dolphins look for their 10th win of the 2020 season.
Inactives for #MIAvsLV. pic.twitter.com/5SDXH7iysg
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 26, 2020
The inactive list is highlighted by the absence of two key starters. First, DE Shaq Lawson, who we learned earlier this weekend did not travel with the team. Lawson’s absence will hurt; Miami will need to find other answers to provide stout play on the edge.
The second, WR DeVante Parker, offers a key blow to the Dolphins’ offense for the second consecutive week. Parker has been battling a hamstring injury for the past two and a half weeks — he was held without a catch in the Dolphins’ 33-27 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 14 and will now miss the two games in the immediate aftermath of the injury.
But the good news related to the inactives list is the players who are not on it for the Dolphins. Wide receiver Jakeem Grant make a return after the Dolphins played Week 15 severely handcuffed without him and Parker on the outside, plus tight end Mike Gesicki also returns after what initially appeared to be a potential season-ending injury to his shoulder in Week 14 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Dolphins managed 22 points against the New England Patriots last weekend without that trio and now face a statistically worse defense in Las Vegas with two of the three back in the fold. Will their returns be enough to spur the Dolphins’ offense to a comfortable point total in their bid to win in Las Vegas tonight? An added bonus is the return of Ereck Flowers, who was injured against the Cincinnati Bengals but will return to keep some level of continuity along the offensive line amid the inactive status of rookie guard Solomon Kindley.
The Miami Dolphins now take the center stage of the football world — and if the Dolphins would like to be taken seriously as a potential low-seeded playoff team who can make a run, a big performance on both sides of the ball will go a long way in delivering that message to everyone else in the league.