Phillips Offers Update
Jaelan Phillips faces a long recovery from the Achilles injury that cut short his 2023 season, but the Miami Dolphins edge defender offered a positive update on social media Wednesday.
Phillips indicated on Twitter he walked without a boot for the first time since he had surgery in the aftermath of the injury he sustained during the Dolphins' Black Friday victory against the New York Jets.
The last part of Phillips' message also was encouraging, as he wrote, "Well on the road to recovery."
Exactly how long that recovery will take is one of the key questions the Dolphins are facing heading into the 2024 regular season, particularly when considering that follow edge defender Bradley Chubb has to recover from a torn ACL sustained in the Week 17 loss against the Baltimore Ravens.
On top of everything, the team's third edge defender, Andrew Van Ginkel, is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent March 13.
Barring an unexpected hiccup in Phillips' recovery, it's very difficult to imagine the Dolphins doing anything other than picking up his fifth-year option for the 2025 season.
PHILLIPS' IMPRESSIVE 2023 SEASON
The Achilles injury put a damper on what was headed to become Phillips' best season to date, despite injuries that slowed him in September and October.
Philips finished with 6.5 sacks in only eight games, to go along with his first career interception.
At the time of his injury, Phillips was on a five-game streak with at least a sack. He had two sacks in the 20-13 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders.
