Miami Dolphins right tackle, and former first round pick, Austin Jackson will miss ‘weeks’ with a leg injury, NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reported hours ago.
“Dolphins escape injury scare from key pass rusher Jaelan Phillips today,” Wolfe’s tweet read. “But I’m told RT Austin Jackson will miss ‘weeks’ in camp with lower extremity injury.”
Hopes are that the 2020 first round pick, who recently signed a three-year, $36 million extension, will be back healthy for Week 1 on September 7th against the Indianapolis Colts.
Back Up Tackles Have Struggled In Camp
The Dolphins did not have a lot of money to work with this offseason. Nonetheless, this is a completely reinvented offensive line unit.
Entering his fifth-year with the team, Austin Jackson is the longest tenured offensive lineman in the locker room. Alongside ‘longtime’ center Liam Eichenberg, who was drafted by the team in 2021, Jackson is the elder statesman of the very few returning lineman.
The rest of the unit is made up by free agent acquisitions, members of this year’s draft class, and one second year tackle who is being asked to step up. But when it comes to depth, reports coming out of camp have been concerning.
“His loss is a concern because the Dolphins’ backup tackles have performed poorly during training camp,” the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson writes. “Larry Borom, the team’s No. 3 tackle behind Jackson and starting left tackle Patrick Paul, has struggled in camp after allowing seven sacks for the Bears last season and 20 in the past four years.”
Barry Jackson then goes on to chronicle the rest of this offensive line unit, focusing on their short comings. He says backup tackle Ryan Hayes has looked bad at practice. While other options, like Jackson Carman and Kion Smith, are good lineman but predominantly experienced in the interior of the offensive line.
It is also worth noting that the team is by no means short on personnel, but whether or not the bodies in the room make up a viable unit is up for debate.
Austin Jackson’s Injury History
Unfortunately for the Phins, this is not the first time the tackle has found himself on the sideline. Jackson has missed 25 games in the past three seasons combined. A number that is a little skewed by a 2022 season in which he went on the injured reserve for nearly the whole season.
“Jackson ended last season on injured reserve with a knee injury and has missed significant time in past seasons,” SI’s Dante Collinelli recounts. “He played in just two games during the 2022 season due to an ankle injury and spent time on injured reserve with a foot injury in 2020.”
The injury itself didn’t look too bad according to reports. It was suffered during 11-0n-11 reps at the end of Friday’s practice. The tackle fell to the ground while engaged with a defender and was slow to get up. He did not return to practice but no injury report surfaced till Wolfe broke the news Saturday afternoon.
This feels like good news for the Phins starter, as it looks like the team is erring on the side of caution with the six-foot-five protector.
