Dolphins Notebook: Brissett Faces Former Team, Waiver Watch, Practice Squad Move, and More
Miami Dolphins quarterback Jacoby Brissett will be going against his former team Sunday, but it's apparently really not a big deal to him.
The way he sees it, it's a storyline that's simply overblown.
“Yeah, and it makes it more than what it is," Brissett said after practice Wednesday. "I’m not here for like a revenge game or anything like that. I want to go win just because I’m playing football and I’m playing in the National Football League. We need a win, so that’s what the purpose of this game is.”
Brissett spent the past four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts after arriving in a trade with the New England Patriots and started 30 games (in 2017 and 2019) after Andrew Luck was injured and then retired.
Brissett was asked whether he felt he was a different player now than he was with the Colts.
“For sure," he said. "I think I’m a way better player, better teammate, better man from my time there. Yeah, I think I’m better.”
PRACTICE SQUAD MOVE
Offensive tackle Adam Pankey was removed from the team's practice squad injured list and is now back on the practice squad.
The team had an opening after Reid Sinnett was signed to the active roster Saturday when quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was placed on injured reserve.
As a reminder, here is the complete Dolphins practice squad, starting with the two players protected from poaching this week: defensive end Jabaal Sheard and linebacker Calvin Munson.
The others are CB Javaris Davis, RB Gerrid Doaks, LB Milo Eifler, WR Isaiah Ford, LB Shaquem Griffin, T Roderick Johnson, DT Benito Jones, RB Patrick Laird, WR Kirk Merritt, CB Jamal Perry, WR Brandon Powell, G Durval Queiroz Neto, T Kion Smith and C Cameron Tom.
The Dolphins have 17 players on the practice squad because of their exemption for Queiroz, who arrived in Miami in 2019 via the International Player Pathway Program.
WAIVER WATCH
This might or might not come into play at any point this season, but the fourth week of the NFL season always brings an important change when it comes to the waiver wire.
With three weeks in the books, the priority order moves from the 2021 draft order (prior to trades) and now involves the standings, with the worst teams having top dibs.
The tiebreaker is the same involved in the draft order, which is opponent strength of schedule — with the worst SOS going first and so forth.
Based on the current standings, the Dolphins currently are 13th in the waiver claim order and eighth among the 11 teams with a 1-2 record because their current strength of schedule is .667 based on the Patriots, Bills and Raiders' combined 6-3 record.
ROWE REMEMBERS
Safety Eric Rowe will be facing former Philadelphia Eagles teammate Carson Wentz on Sunday, even though the two never played a regular season together.
Let us explain.
Rowe was heading into his second NFL season in 2016 when the Eagles drafted Wentz with the second overall pick.
But days before the start of the regular season, the Eagles traded Rowe to the New England Patriots for a draft pick.
"Obviously, he’s lightyears away from that (season)," Rowe said. "I remember when I first got there, he was just throwing deep bombs off the rip the first practice, and he had an arm. I was like, ‘Jeez, who is this guy?’ That was like, five, six years ago now. Obviously, he’s a lot better now.”
GESICKI'S NEW PLAY
Tight end Mike Gesicki had 10 catches against the Raiders on Sunday, and two of them were shovel passes.
Both plays came in third-and-3 situations, one in the second quarter and one in overtime. The first completion gained 4 yards and got the first down; the second gained only 1 yard and preceded Jason Sanders' game-tying 50-yard field goal, though the Raiders came back to kick a game-tying field goal of their own.
Gesicki said Thursday it was the first time he'd been on the receiving end of a shovel pass since a 2018 game against the Detroit Lions in Adam Gase's final season as Dolphins head coach. That play came on a first-and-goal from the 4-yard line and lost 1 yard.
It was part of a busy day for Gesicki, whose targets have doubled each of the past two games, from three against New England in the opener to six against Buffalo in Week 2 to 12 against the Raiders.
So it should be 24 against the Colts, right? Obviously not, but it's clear that Gesicki has resurfaced as a major part of the passing game.
"My thing is just making the most of my opportunities," Gesicki said. "When an opportunity presents itself, I’ve got to go out and make a play. That’s what I’m out there to do."
