The Dolphins just completed their first joint practice with the Carolina Panthers on Wednesday, and sadly one player from each team had a major injury. Ironically neither injury was due to contact. The Panthers star wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin sprained his knee running a route against Reshad Jones and was taken in for an MRI. On the Dolphins side, Louis Delmas was covering Ted Ginn Jr (why does this name continue to haunt this franchise) and he went down grabbing his knee, and needed to be carted off the field.
As per team protocol, they do not discuss injuries, but most of the best sportsbooks online are betting that Delmas will be lost for the season. He injured the same knee that he tore his ACL on last year, and is undergoing an MRI, however the initial prognosis is that he tore the same ligament in the same knee, which means good bye Delmas. Unfortunately when we signed Delmas in 2014 we knew he was an injury prone player. Even after he did not complete the season, the Dolphins still decided to take a gamble by resigning Delmas, because when he did play he proved to be a perfect compliment to Reshad Jones, and was the glue that held the secondary together. However, now it appears that someone else on the team will need to step up and become his replacement.
The two likely candidates at the moment are Walt Aikens and Michael Thomas. My money is on Walt Aikens, he is entering his second year in the league, and played at a small school at Liberty, but he was able to gain some valuable, but limited playing time last season in his Rookie year. He has excellent size at 6’1” and 208 pounds, and is a very athletic young man that has a nose for the football, and has really made a big leap in his second off-season. Sure he may experience some bumps along the learning curve, but the best way to learn is in the heat of the battle, so I have no problem giving Aikens a chance to play, because I think he has a high ceiling, and can develop into a very good player in this league.
What does the rest of the Miami Dolphins News fans think about losing a player like Delmas, and who if anyone can replace him on this team?
One other side note from Wednesday’s joint practice with the Panthers, is that Tannehill continues to look sharp. Unlike some professional athletes that take their foot off the breaks after they cash in on a big long term contract, Tannehill looks very focused on becoming a better football player and leading this team to the playoffs. He completed every pass during his reps vs the Panthers starting defense, and his accuracy looks much improved. If the offensive line can keep Tannehill on his feet this season, this offense and team is going to be poised for a big year.
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