Justin Houston headlines new veteran pass rusher additions for Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins have been ravaged by the injury bug this season. After losing Andrew Van Ginkel during the loss to the Buffalo Bills, the team added veteran edge help ahead of their second battle with the Kansas City Chiefs. Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the Dolphins are signing Bruce Irvin, Justin Houston, and Malik Reed […]
The Miami Dolphins have been ravaged by the injury bug this season. After losing Andrew Van Ginkel during the loss to the Buffalo Bills, the team added veteran edge help ahead of their second battle with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the Dolphins are signing Bruce Irvin, Justin Houston, and Malik Reed to their practice squad.
This defensive front has lost Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, and the aforementioned Van Ginkel for the season. Therefore, reinforcements are needed to overcome how thin they are, currently.
Age is nothing but a number…right?
Two of the three new additions are past the age of 30. Bruce Irvin will be 37 years old on January 11. He appeared in three games for the Detroit Lions, accumulating one sack, two quarterback hits, and two hurries.
Justin Houston will be 35 on January 21. He spent seven weeks this season on the Carolina Panthers roster. During that stint, Houston finished with seven hurries, two quarterback hits, and one sack.
Meanwhile, the 27-year-old Malik Reed played in four games with the Las Vegas Raiders and did not amass any significant sacks. If Dolphins fans are less optimistic about these latest additions, I would not argue with them.
Justin Houston is bringing plenty of pass-rush production over his 13-year career, with 127 sacks. If either of these veteran pass rushers should be expected to give something of substance, my vote would go to Houston. Reluctantly.
Bruce Irvin would be receiving my next vote over Malik Reed at this point. Reed had two good years with the Denver Broncos with six and eight sacks from 2020-2021.
Irving had five sacks last season with the Seahawks on 195 pass rush snaps as compared to Reed's single sack on 224 pass rush snaps with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Dolphins are in a tough spot heading into a road game versus the Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes. Whoever is on the field will need to be ready to do everything within their power to stop the run in the projected eight-degree weather.
This is a must-win game for the Dolphins and their thin front seven.
