MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — This could be the last week the Miami Dolphins have to limp by with untenable options at WR3.
Both Odell Beckham Jr. and River Cracraft are eligible to come off injured lists and practice with the team as soon as Wednesday.
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Beckham has been on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list while rehabbing from a procedure that kept him out of all of OTAs and training camp. Cracraft, meanwhile, hurt his shoulder in the Dolphins’ second preseason game and has been on injured reserve for the past month.
Both are eligible to return to the active roster in Week 5. Beckham, in particular, seems close to contributing to a receiver group that has been collectively underwhelming the first three weeks of the season.
“I’ve seen some good progress, and I’m optimistic for when his window opens up and we will see how his body responds,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Tuesday. “I do know that there’s been some very intentional good work and that he hasn’t had the setbacks that we’ve made sure to avoid.”
With Beckham, Cracraft, and rookie Malik Washington hurt, teams have been able to blanket Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, knowing that no one else will beat them.
When Dolphins quarterbacks this year have targeted wide receivers not named Hill and Waddle, they have completed just three of 14 passes for 48 yards, zero touchdowns, and two interceptions.
That’s a combined passer rating of just 1.8 and an average of 3.4 yards per attempt.
Washington is certainly the closest of the three to playing this week. The rookie sixth-round pick practiced on a limited basis last week with a quadriceps injury, and McDaniel, before the Seahawks game, hinted that he would play in Week 4 if he couldn’t get back in Week 3.
Of all the Dolphins receivers, none has more familiarity with potential starter Snoop Huntley than Beckham. They were teammates on the Baltimore Ravens in 2023.