Isaiah Wynn earned starting left guard duties with the Miami Dolphins in 2023, but it was short-lived. The former New England Patriots first-round pick suffered a season-ending quad injury in Week 7 and hasn’t yet played in 2024.
But with Wynn ready to make his return to the field as early as Sunday, Miami Dolphins offensive line coach Butch Barry told reporters Thursday that the veteran lineman won’t be walking back into the starting lineup.
“[Robert Jones] has done an excellent job for us,” Barry said. “[He] continues to hone in on his craft the way we ask them to do things. He’s a great leader in the room. He’s great on the field in terms of standard and how we want to work how we go about our business.”
Jones spent most of his first three seasons with the Dolphins as a reserve lineman, but has stepped into the starting lineup on a full-time basis in 2024.
According to Pro Football Focus, Jones has given up a team-high four sacks, but his 62.1 grade is higher than Liam Eichenberg’s 53.7 and Austin Jackson’s 60.0. During the 2023 season, Wynn earned a 47.8 grade before his season-ending injury.
The Dolphins re-signed Wynn in the offseason to his second one-year deal with the team, but it seems he’ll be a backup after he’s activated from injured reserve.
“He is a professional in his approach,” Barry said of Wynn. “He’s got a great relationship with everybody in the room so he does a great job with that. … He’s getting better every day and he’s working his tail off.”
Wynn returned to practice earlier this month, but kept him on injured reserve for a Week 11 game against the Las Vegas Raiders. They can keep him on IR for the next two games as well, but can activate him to the active roster anytime prior to that.
