Dolphins give Jalen Ramsey an uptick in practice, designate River Cracraft to return

MIAMI GARDENS — Miami Dolphins star cornerback Jalen Ramsey could be nearing his debut with the team.
Ramsey will see an uptick in practice participation this week, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Wednesday, ahead of Miami’s first practice in preparation for the New England Patriots (2-5) on Sunday.
McDaniel didn’t want to commit to whether Ramsey would play Sunday, after the six-time Pro Bowl cornerback recovered from a torn meniscus suffered in late July. He did say Ramsey, who was officially listed as a limited participant on the Wednesday injury report, would see an increase in reps this week and not just with the scout team.
“It’s been all positive so far, but you don’t want to get ahead of yourself,” said McDaniel, who added the team is prepared to go with or without him against New England.
Whenever Ramsey does play his first game with Miami, after being acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams this past offseason, McDaniel is not certain if he would require snap count limitations initially. The coach said who the player is, their experience level and what the injury is are factors in determining that.
“Although he’s new to this team, the crossover in scheme is huge to him,” McDaniel said. “He’s actually the most experienced player that we have in this system.”
Ramsey was in a similar scheme with the Los Angeles Rams under defensive coordinators Brandon Staley and Raheem Morris, who run the same defense as Miami’s Vic Fangio — and Staley was even an assistant under Fangio in Chicago.
Cracraft’s window open
As elite receiving threat Tyreek Hill missed practice with a hip injury, the Dolphins (5-2) designated fellow wide receiver River Cracraft to return. They opened his 21-day practice window to be activated off injured reserve, which began with Wednesday’s session.
Cracraft injured his shoulder in the Sept. 24 win over the Denver Broncos and was subsequently placed on IR. He served his minimum four-game absence from the injured reserve designation.
Cracraft is now the fourth Dolphins player they have designated to return from IR, joining Ramsey, running back Jeff Wilson Jr. and offensive lineman Robert Jones. NFL teams have a maximum of eight they can bring back from either IR or the reserve/non-football-injury list.
Miami will also have to use spots on left tackle Terron Armstead and running back De’Von Achane. That puts the team at six and means they will only be able to bring back two between left guard Isaiah Wynn, wide receiver Erik Ezukanma and running back Chris Brooks — or on any other players that end up on IR but able to return before the end of the season.
Wynn and Brooks are on IR with quadriceps and knee injuries, respectively, and Ezukanma is on the NFI list with a neck ailment. Wynn was placed on IR Tuesday, as the team also activated cornerback Nik Needham off the physically-unable-to-perform list.
The outlook doesn’t sound positive on Wynn from McDaniel’s Wednesday update on the starting lineman that went down in the first quarter of Sunday night’s loss at the Philadelphia Eagles.
“Isaiah has a long journey ahead of him. I’m not going to rule it out,” said McDaniel, who already indicated Monday his injury would take weeks to recover from. “I’m not going to say zero chance.”
He said Ezukanma is further along than Wynn.
Other injuries
Safety Jevon Holland is “progressing” in concussion protocol as of Wednesday, according to McDaniel, but did not practice.
“It’s been positive at each stage,” the coach said.
Along with Holland and Hill, running back Raheem Mostert (ankle), fullback Alec Ingold (foot) and Jones (personal reasons) did not participate in Wednesday’s practice.
Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (back), cornerback Xavien Howard (groin), center Connor Williams (groin), cornerbacks Kader Kohou (neck), Nik Needham (Achilles) and Cam Smith (foot) were limited in the day’s drills. Needham was activated Tuesday off the PUP list. Linebacker David Long Jr. was a full participant Wednesday after being evaluated for concussion during last Sunday night’s game and also receiving treatment on his knee.