The Miami Dolphins’ battle against attrition in the skill positions has been a long one. The Dolphins had to play several critical games down the stretch of their season without a slew of top ball carriers and pass catchers — culminating with a Week 15 contest against the Patriots that saw the Dolphins without any of their top players at wide receiver, tight end or running back. The team did see some reinforcements in Week 16, only to see one such returning play succumb to a new injury against the Raiders: receiver Jakeem Grant departed in the first half with a scary looking leg injury.
We now know, courtesy of reports that came out yesterday, that Grant will not be a piece of the puzzle for the Dolphins in Week 17 — his high ankle sprain is expected to keep him out of Miami’s final regular season game against the Buffalo Bills.
#Dolphins WR and returner Jakeem Grant suffered a high-ankle sprain in the team’s dramatic win over the #Raiders, source said, and he’s out for Sunday’s must-win game vs. the #Bills. An injured reserve possiblity.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 28, 2020
While the loss of Grant hurts in the special teams department, Grant has been unable to consistently find his footing in the offensive game plan. Not having his speed available will hurt— but Miami would benefit much more from a return by WR DeVante Parker, who has missed the Dolphins’ last two games with an ailing hamstring.
If Parker is back in the mix, it changes everything for the Dolphins offense. But the knowledge that one of Miami’s few dynamic after the catch threats is already out for this Sunday’s game is going to force the Dolphins’ offensive staff to get creative on how to try to keep pace with a high-powered Bills offensive attack.
