Dolphins shake up their roster ahead of Week 13 showdown with the Saints, officially bringing back two starters while risking two youngsters to waivers
The Miami Dolphins are officially up a pair of starters for the final six game stretch. There's plenty of pressure to win in South Florida as the Dolphins' head coach,
So it should come as no surprise that the Dolphins, as this season turns to December, are emptying the chamber and calling all hands on deck. For Miami's first game out of the bye, Miami is officially welcoming back both
Dolphins waive two, officially activate both tight end Darren Waller and right tackle Austin Jackson
Miami's roster moves feature the release of two young players who have gotten at least sparing opportunities this season to play and move the needle for their respective futures. Kion Smith was a promising developmental tackle back in 2023 before suffering a season-ending injury in the preseason of 2024. He'd been given the first crack at playing right guard upon the injury to James Daniels this season but lasted less than two starts before being pulled. Tight end Hayden Rucci is a second-year tight end who has done well for himself when filling in for Julian Hill midseason.
Now, Miami must allow both players to pass through the NFL's waiver system before they're able to entertain the idea of re-acquiring the rights to either player.
The numbers game makes sense for Miami in the sense that they're welcoming back a tackle and a tight end, so they've now released a tackle and a tight end. Jackson and Waller are unquestionable needle-moving talents at their respective positions but both players have seen their careers marred by availability issues. The bet the Dolphins are now making is that both will be able to string together six weeks of available play — and if they're right, it should offset the risk of exposing both Rucci and Smith's rights to the rest of the league.
NFL Makes Surprising Punishment Decision on Raiders QB Geno Smith
Though Geno Smith is a veteran quarterback who has dealt with a lot of hardship in his career, the Las Vegas Raiders
Fans have quickly turned on him, as he has yet to have a game to warrant their admiration. Things got ugly during the Week 12 loss to the
The Raiders had to issue a statement
The NFL announced its fines from Week 12, and Smith was not among them. Perhaps it was because the video was caught by fans, and not the broadcast. Regardless, it’s still surprised considering Smith and the Raiders have addressed the incident.
Smith Apologized for Incident
As a veteran quarterback with over a decade of experience, there aren’t many excuses for Smith to be acting immature with fans. It’s been a tough season, but he should keep those feelings to himself.
He understands that and apologized for his actions.
“I would like to apologize to the fans (and) Raider Nation,” Smith said. “I made a poor judgment out of frustration. And that’s not an excuse. I’ve got to be better than that and hold myself to a higher standard. In that moment, I didn’t. I’m sincerely apologetic and very sorry for doing that.”
Smith also said that it won’t happen again. If it does, that would be the third time he’s flipped off a crowd this season, which might lead to the NFL taking tougher action.
Smith Still Confident in Pete Carroll
In many cases, Smith likely would’ve been benched already. He’s not playing well and not setting a great example as a leader of the team.
He’s fortunate that head coach Pete Carroll is very loyal to him. Many are questioning if Carroll still has what it takes to be a head coach in the NFL, but Smith is standing behind him.
“I have tremendous confidence in Coach [Pete] Carroll,” Smith said. “He hasn’t changed one bit since he’s gotten here. Coach Carroll is the same guy every single day. That’s what you can appreciate about him. No matter what the situation is, it doesn’t dictate his mood or his effort or just the juice and the energy he brings to the building.
“And so, for us, man, we just got to, like I said, man, continue to believe in what he’s preaching and continue to hold the rope which guys are doing. Guys are in the weight room working hard, in the classroom studying, working hard, and we’re really trying to turn it around and get better as a team. And so, Coach Carroll is doing the right thing, and we’ve got to keep following him.”
Smith and Carroll have each other’s back, but it remains to be seen if that will matter at the end of the season when the Raiders have to make some tough decisions.
