Dolphins place left tackle Austin Jackson on IR, promote Salvon Ahmed to active roster

Rookie left tackle Austin Jackson had been mightily impressive during the first four games of his career. Now, it appears that strong start will be put on hold. Per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald, the Dolphins are placing Jackson on injured reserve due to a foot injury he suffered during Week 4’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Through 244 offensive snaps played, Jackson allowed zero sacks and had just two penalties.

With Jackson out of the starting lineup, the Dolphins will likely turn to Julien Davenport as the team’s left tackle. Davenport replaced the former USC Trojan in spurts during last Sunday’s contest as the rookie attempted to gut through the injury. Miami could also swing Jesse Davis over from right tackle to left tackle and play rookie second-round draft pick Robert Hunt on the right side of the line.

Ryan Fitzpatrick will continue to start at quarterback for the Miami Dolphins for Week 5’s contest against the San Francisco 49ers. It’s fair to wonder whether Jackson’s injury had any impact on the team’s decision to continue playing Fitzpatrick over rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Many fans and pundits wondered whether Fitzpatrick’s failure to convert drives into touchdowns against the Seahawks would force head coach Brian Flores’ hand and push him towards playing the rookie. Jackson’s injury won’t make the eventual decision to play Tagovailoa any easier.

With an extra spot on the roster, the Dolphins promoted practice squad running back Salvon Ahmed. The undrafted rookie out of Washington has reportedly impressed the coaching staff during his time in South Florida and will provide depth behind Myles Gaskin, Matt Breida, and Jordan Howard this week. Ahmed ran for 1,020 yards (5.4 ypc) and 11 touchdowns in his final collegiate season.