The Miami Dolphins have caught their first break of the 2019 NFL regular season — even though the start of playing games is still three months away. The team’s Week 2 opponent, the New England Patriots, have learned that they will be without starting tight end Ben Watson for their first 4 games on account of a failed drug test.
The Patriots will be returning to Hard Rock Stadium for the first time since Miami’s incredible 34-33 win in December — and they’ll have to face Miami in the team’s brand new white throwbacks to boot.
Watson announced the suspension on social media yesterday, acknowledging that he had been prescribed prescribed Bio Identical Testosterone Cypionate by his doctors once he thought his playing career in the NFL was over. But Watson had a change of heart, knowing that he’d be flagged for a violation of the league’s performance enhancing drug policy.
Without Watson, the Patriots will have to feel their way through the first month of the season — they’ve already lost tight end Rob Gronkowski to retirement and were banking on Watson to help fill the void in the short-term. That chemistry will have to wait another month to get off the ground — Watson will be eligible to return to the field on October 6th.
