Tag: Patrick Laird

Eagles, Buccaneers have 4 former Dolphins wild-card matchup

Former Dolphins who will play in Eagles-Bucs wild-card game.

The Miami Dolphins have been eliminated from the postseason following their 27-6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday night.

So, while Dolphins fans prepare for the offseason, there are a number of former Dolphins who are still playing for a Super Bowl championship that they can support.

On Monday, the Philadelphia Eagles and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to battle in a wild-card matchup of their own, and there are four former Dolphins on their rosters and practice squads.

Here’s a look at which players who once donned the aqua and orange will play in this one:

Bucs make two practice squad elevations ahead of Wild Card matchup

The Bucs are rewarding some of their practice squad players for their good work this season by giving them some playoff checks.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are making two practice squad elevations ahead of their Wild Card game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The team is elevating running back Patrick Laird and outside linebacker Jose Ramirez to the active roster on Monday. The two players have been staples of Tampa Bay’s practice squad throughout the 2023 season.

As Greg Auman of FOX Sports pointed out, it’s unlikely that those two will play in the game. The players will get a bonus for being active in the playoffs, and as a result, Laird and Ramirez are likely being elevated as an award for being solid on the practice squad for the entire year. The practice is common, and it’s one that the Bucs have participated in before.

The team’s inactives will be announced 90 minutes before the start of the game on Monday.

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Bucs sign RB Patrick Laird

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have signed former Miami Dolphins running back Patrick Laird

Just a couple of days after facing the Miami Dolphins in their preseason opener, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are signing one of their former members.

Running back Patrick Laird has signed with the Bucs, the team announced Monday.

An undrafted free agent out of Cal in 2019, Laird joins the Bucs after spending three seasons in Miami, appearing in 37 games over that stretch. He has 76 carries in his career for 244 yards and one rushing touchdown, as well as 36 receptions for 289 yards through the air.

Laird replaces Kenjon Barner, who was placed on injured reserve Monday.

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Dolphins place RB Patrick Laird on injured reserve with a knee injury

Miami’s starting to look thin at running back.

The Miami Dolphins lost running back Patrick Laird to a knee injury in the first quarter of their Week 13 matchup with the New York Giants, but they were still able to win the game.

In the days following, the team must have received some bad news about the injury, as they placed him on the injured reserve which will cost him at least four weeks, including the bye week.

Laird has only appeared in six games for the Dolphins this season, rushing one time for four yards and catching three passes for another 17 yards.

Miami’s running back room is starting to look a little thin with only Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed as the two healthy backs on the active roster. Laird joins Malcolm Brown on the injured reserve, and Phillip Lindsay is on the 53, but he’s battling an ankle injury.

Luckily, the Dolphins have a bye week this week, and if Lindsay isn’t healthy by Week 15, they have veteran back Duke Johnson Jr. and rookie Gerrid Doaks on the practice squad to call up if they need to.

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Patrick Laird injury: Dolphins RB exits game in first quarter

The running back will miss the remainder of the game.

The Miami Dolphins and New York Giants finished their first quarter tied 0-0, but Brian Flores’ team suffered another loss at one of their thinnest positions.

Late in the first quarter, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was sacked inside his 10-yard line to make it fourth down. On the play, Dolphins running back Patrick Laird was injured and remained down for some time.

The team announced on social media that Laird’s injury is to his knee, and he will miss the remainder of the Week 13 matchup.

Miami came into this game without newly-acquired back Phillip Lindsay who is dealing with an ankle injury. They’ll have to complete this game against the Giants with Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed at the position.

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Dolphins make three roster moves ahead of Sunday’s matchup with the Bills

The Dolphins bring up three to the active roster.

The Miami Dolphins had a busy Saturday, as they made three moves for their Week 8 matchup with the Buffalo Bills. Miami signed running back Patrick Laird from their practice squad to their active roster and elevated linebacker Vince Biegel and cornerback Jamal Perry for the game.

Laird will likely fill in with Malcolm Brown being placed on injured reserve. The Dolphins had three backs on the practice squad including the newly-signed veteran Duke Johnson, so it was far from a guarantee that Laird would be the one called up. He’ll likely be the third guy mixed in with Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed.

Biegel may be insurance for the Dolphins if Jerome Baker is unable to go, as he is dealing with a knee injury he suffered last week. Biegel originally signed with Miami in 2019 and played in 15 games. Since then, he suffered a torn Achilles that cost him all of 2020, and he was placed on injured reserve this preseason before being released and eventually re-signing on the practice squad in October.

Perry seems like a depth elevation for the secondary who will be missing Jason McCourty and could be without Noah Igbinoghene. Don’t expect him to get a ton of reps this week unless someone goes down.

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Six points with David Dorey

Friday’s quick look at six fantasy items to know

The Packers-49ers game on Thursday night was ugly (except for Davante Adams owners) thanks to rampant injuries couple with COVID-19 defections stripping the 49ers of all recognizable starters. The Packers let them have 17 pity points, but the cold weather is just starting and already teams are having issues with fielding a full team. What is it going to be like in two months?

This is a year we won’t forget, no matter how hard we try. Onto six thinks worth watching heading into Week 9.

  1. Cardinals backfield – Kenyan Drake is out with an ankle injury and Chase Edmonds moves up to the primary role. So far, only Drake and Edmonds have been used for the Cardinals backfield. Edmonds wavers between 20% to 40% of the touches, and this offense has never given 100% to the primary. Edmonds is a solid play this week at the Panthers facing the No. 31 defense against running backs.The No. 2 back this week is expected to be the 7.08 pick in the 2020 NFL draft of Eno Benjamin out of Arizona State. The 5-9, 207-pounder ran for over 1,000 yards the last two season and caught 82 passes in his three-year career. Edmonds won’t take every touch, so it’s always interesting to see the “next guy up.” Jonathan Ward may also see some work, but he’s only been a practice squad guy that works on special teams. Benjamin gets a chance to keep the team from looking elsewhere in 2021.

    Notable too is that Edmonds gets to be the No. 1 against a soft defense. He is in his final contract year in 2021 while Drake will be a free agent next year unless re-signed. Edmonds could look like an option for 2021.

  2.  Lions Wide receivers – The passing lags the 2019 version when Matt Stafford played but showed life recently that could be promising. Stafford was stuck at moderate production but then passed for 340 yards and a score at the Jaguars and 336 yards and three touchdowns against the Colts for his best showing of the year. And that happened with Kenny Golladay on the sideline with a hip injury. Fourth-year player Marvin Hall came in and posted four catches for 113 yards in the second half of the loss to the Colts.Marvin Jones failed to make any difference this year until posting five catches for 80 yards in Week 7 and then three receptions for 39 yards and two touchdowns last Sunday. The Lions play at the Vikings this week and Golladay has not practiced on Wednesday and Thursday. He hasn’t been ruled out but isn’t trending well so far. Stafford has two straight games where the passing looked better and that was even without Golladay last week. Jones and Hall are worth watching and if Hall can again show up with the same impact, he can carve a bigger role for himself.
  3. RB Christian McCaffrey (CAR)  – He returned to practice a few days ago and looks likely to be activated to play against the Chiefs this week. That sends Mike Davis to the bench after richly rewarding his fantasy owners for the last six weeks. It will be good to see the No. 1 pick in fantasy drafts but just as notable will be his effect on how the rest of the offense plays. Remember, the Panthers are installing a new offense this year with HC Matt Rhule in his first season. And Teddy Bridgewater was also in his first games as a Panther when McCaffrey was gone for Week 3.Robby Anderson opened the year with back-to-back 100-yard games while McCaffrey was there while D.J. Moore turned in eight catches for 120 yards in Week 2 against the Buccaneers.  McCaffrey’s return is great for fantasy owners, but it could also help Bridgewater, Moore and Anderson as well.
  4. QB Jake Luton (JAC) – Gardner Minshew is out with fractures and ligament damage to his thumb and the Jags are turning to their 6.10 pick this year in Luton. The 6-6, 224-pounder from Oregon State threw 28 scores as a senior last year and he rushed for a net loss of 204 yards on 72 runs in college, so he’s not going to be stealing much from James Robinson as a runner. But he’s very tall and can throw very deep. The hope is that the Jaguars passing offense can connect farther downfield.Starting a rookie is rarely profitable at least for a few games. But Luton will at least bring a new element to an offense that has lost their last six games. D.J. Chark fell from 13.8 yards per catch in 2019 to only 11.2 this year. The rookie Laviska Shenault also averages 11.2 yards. That’s also lower than the 13.6 yards he averaged at Colorado last year. The schedule hits a few tough matchups in upcoming weeks, but Luton is worth watching this week to see if he can do anything with the underperforming Jaguars offense.
  5. Miami Backfield – Myles Gaskin is on injured reserve because of his MCL sprain and Matt Breida would be positioned to become the new No. 1 running back but a bad hamstring has him missing Wednesday and Thursday practices. The Dolphins look like they have to rely on Jordan Howard and Patrick Laird. The Fins just traded to get DeAndre Washington for depth.Laird only totals three catches for 11 yards and no rushes. Howard scored three times over the four games he played, but only gained 14 yards on 18 carries which is why he only played four games. His one catch was a three-yard loss. All this while a rookie quarterback takes his second start. Gaskin is gone for at least a few weeks, so the Fins have to figure out whatever works the best. The matchup with the Cardinals this week is where they determine what they have to use.
  6. WR Antonio Brown (PIT OAK NE  TB) – The Buccaneers signed Brown and he is on the active roster. That’s worth watching for so many reasons. Tom Brady wanted him and Tom Brady got him since his 20 passing touchdowns are No. 4 in the NFL and the Buccaneers are looking really improved.  He hasn’t had any time to learn the playbook and his uniform still has creases. But he is expected to play this week. Chris Godwin has been limited in practices and his status isn’t certain.Brown already served his eight-game suspension and is clear to play. His only game of 2019 was Week 2 with the Patriots – and Brady –  when he turned eight targets into four catches for 56 yards and one touchdown. If this works out, the Buccaneers are going to be scary good on offense. But… it’s never worked out for Brown the last few years.

Three biggest surprises from Dolphins’ initial depth chart

Three biggest surprises from Dolphins’ initial depth chart

The Miami Dolphins have released their first official depth chart of the 2020 NFL season and, generally speaking, there weren’t too many surprises along the way. The Dolphins’ offensive line appears to be set — with rookies Austin Jackson and Solomon Kindley locking down starting jobs entering Week 1 against the New England Patriots. Add in Ryan Fitzpatrick commandeering the starting quarterback position and everything appeared to remain fairly in line with what training camp reports seemed to indicate for the Dolphins.

But that isn’t to say this depth chart didn’t offer at least some surprises. Here were the three biggest curveballs that Miami’s depth chart provided entering Week 1.

Dec 29, 2019; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Miami Dolphins tight end Mike Gesicki (88) catches the winning touchdown behind New England Patriots strong safety Patrick Chung (23) with less than a minute to go in the fourth quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Gesicki as TE2

Durham Smythe, starting tight end of the Miami Dolphins? This was a bit of a surprise, but then again you have to consider the format of the depth chart. The Dolphins’ depth chart was listed in a traditional ’21 personnel’ presentation: with a tight end, running back and fullback all getting credited with a “1st-string” role. The Dolphins aren’t going to run a lot of 21 personnel (or maybe they will, but we shouldn’t expect it). Durham Smythe is also a better blocker than Gesicki, so traditional tight end reps will rightfully go to Smythe this his hand in the dirt over Gesicki.

But if you think that means Gesicki won’t play on Sunday, guess again. We’d be willing to bet Gesicki gobbles up more reps than Smythe in Week 1 despite what the depth chart reads.

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Several injuries from Monday’s practice to watch for the Dolphins

Several injuries from Monday’s practice to watch for the Dolphins

Injuries are, inevitably, a part of football. That’s just the nature of the beast. This is a high contact sport with massive individuals — inevitably the repeated blows and contact is going to wear players down to some degree. For the Dolphins, the first week of padded practice resulted in two big injuries to their pass rush group. First, the team lost Vince Biegel with a torn Achilles. Then 5th-round rookie Curtis Weaver endured a foot injury that has presumably ended his season.

The Dolphins cut Weaver yesterday and hope to retain him on injured reserve if he clears the waiver wire.

But there have also been other injuries for the Dolphins — presumably minor ones. Linebacker Jerome Baker missed one and a half practice sessions but was back out on the field on Monday. Several Dolphins did not see the end of Monday’s session with injuries of their own, which will need to be monitored closely as Miami looks to walk the line between getting prepared for the upcoming season and staying healthy.

The most open-ended injury sits with linebacker Kyle Van Noy. The versatile defender missed the end of practice after sustaining an unspecified upper body injury. Miami, amid the other losses sustained to the outside linebacker group, can ill afford for Van Noy to be out for any significant amount of time.

Running back Patrick Laird is reported to be day to day after sustaining an upper body injury of his own near the end of practice. Standout rookie cornerback Noah Igbinoghene is another player who did not finish practice on Monday, although he is reportedly fine. Injuries are a normal part of the game and, so long as they’re more casual bumps and bruises and less of the tears and breaks that can end seasons, Miami should be able to take the intermittent practice disruptions in stride and not lose any sleep at night.

Sorting out the survivors in Miami Dolphins’ new look backfield

Sorting out the survivors in Miami Dolphins’ new look backfield

If we told you ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft that the Miami Dolphins would not have drafted a youngster, the assumption would be that the team was poised to bring back the collection of backs who manned the position last year. But despite that being exactly what happened, we’d recommend betting on some major changeups. The Dolphins didn’t draft a running back but they did acquire veteran Matt Breida from the San Francisco 49ers — a deal that flipped a 5th-round pick on the NFL Draft’s third day. With that in mind, what will the Dolphins’ new-look backfield look like? There will be plenty of new faces — but who will they replace?

Status Quo

Fullback Chandler Cox 

Cox was a selection by the Dolphins in 2019 and while the new offense in Miami isn’t necessarily going to command loads of reps for Cox, he’s almost assuredly going to maintain his role on the roster thanks to some versatility and ability to impact the passing game. His role may be diminished but this is the same regime that picked him in 2019’s final round. His ability to fill a niche should keep him in line.

Running back Patrick Laird

The man known as “the Intern” should make a strong push to stay on the roster and get the nod over fellow 2019 rookie Myles Gaskin. Why? Because Laird is better in the passing game and seemed to build up some trust with the coaching staff down the stretch last year. His pass catching resume in 2019 (23 receptions on just 290 snaps last year) is the big tiebreaker.

Out With The Old

RB Kalen Ballage

To be fair to Ballage, he didn’t get a lot of help from the offensive line in 2019. But Ballage also averaged 1.8 yards per carry and seemed to rub some the wrong way when he asserted he had “nothing to prove” last season despite ugly errors in the passing game and one of the most putrid stat lines from a per/touch production standpoint in recent memory.

RB Myles Gaskin

Gaskin was a 7th-round pick in 2019 but he’s been lapped by Patrick Laird among the 2019 rookie backs and the team’s addition of Matt Breida (who is a much more dynamic athlete) makes this a numbers game riddle that is unlikely in Gaskin’s favor.

In With The New

RB Jordan Howard

Howard signed a 2-year deal with nearly $10M and has two 1,000 yard seasons under his belt as a between the tackles runner in Chicago. He spent last season in Philadelphia and looked to have found his groove only to see his season ended via injury. He’ll be the new lead back in Miami.

RB Matt Breida

The lightning to Howard’s thunder, Breida’s electric skillset should give the Dolphins a dynamic they haven’t had in the backfield since Reggie Bush was a member of the team. The Dolphins will need to find the optimal role and reps to give Breida to make the most out of his touches.