MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins, as of late Thursday, had not placed Bradley Chubb on injured reserve.
That shouldn’t be seen as a sign that Chubb has a chance to play again this year. He’s definitely out for the season with a torn ACL.
Rather, they seem to be holding the roster spot for Jerome Baker, the veteran linebacker who’s been dealing with a knee injury of his own.
Baker practiced this week for the first time since early December, and if all goes well, the Dolphins plan to activate him to the 53 and play him against the Buffalo Bills.
And while Baker is predominantly an off-ball linebacker, he does have 22.5 sacks and 46 quarterback hits in his career.
So Baker could return this week with an at least slightly different role than what he held at the time of his injury.
Jerome Baker, Miami Dolphins Pass Rusher?
Certainly, he’s not Plan A.
The Dolphins have expressed confidence in the trio of Andrew Van Ginkel, Emmanuel Ogbah, and Melvin Ingram as their top pass-rush options.
Vic Fangio on life after Bradley Chubb pic.twitter.com/ibme8dQr37
— Adam Beasley (@AdamHBeasley) January 4, 2024
“It’s gonna be by committee for sure,” Fangio said. “[Ogbah is] a good pass rusher for the most part, Mel’s a little bit more rounded in the OLB position, the ability to drop and stuff like that.”
At 225 pounds, Baker certainly isn’t going to be a hand-in-the-dirt player and probably won’t operate on the line of scrimmage in non-passing downs.
MORE: Miami Dolphins Depth Chart
But in 2020 and 2021, when he totaled 12.5 sacks and 26 hits, Baker blitzed 190 times. He’s done so just 86 times in the 29 games since.
Expect that rate to go up — potentially significantly — beginning Sunday.
“He’s always been a guy that’s done a lot of things here, you know,” Dolphins linebackers coach Anthony Campanile said Thursday. “He’s got a wide range of skills. In the past, we’ve done that with him. And he’s got a knack for it — really does have a good gauge of that, you know, rushing on the edge or blitzing from the second level.
“Any time he’s in there, you feel good about him as a pass rusher.”
Campanile told reporters that he FaceTimed with Chubb this week. How did he seem?
“He’s just an upbeat guy,” Campanile said. “He’s a guy that kind of looks at it like adversity is an opportunity, and he’s gonna push through it. He’s excited, I think, to get back to work and get himself healthy.
“In this business, [there’s a] mentality you have to have, and he’s got the right mentality. Just a super upbeat guy, great person.”
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