Another Issue Pops Up on Offensive Line

The struggling Miami Dolphins offensive line apparently has another issue on its hands.

Starting center Michael Deiter was not seen at practice Thursday during the portion open to the media, this after he appeared on the first injury report of the week with injuries listed as foot/quad. Because he was listed as a limited participant Wednesday and played every snap against the Raiders, it’s possible (maybe even likely) that Dieter was injured in practice and had to leave.

Based on the roster, it seems almost certain that the replacement would be training camp acquisition Greg Mancz because he’s the only one of the four backup offensive linemen who has started a game at center in the NFL.

The Dolphins picked up Mancz in the offseason in a trade with the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for a 2022 sixth-round pick, with Miami also getting a 2022 seventh-round selection.

For anybody wondering about the really low price tag, understand that Mancz was not expected to make the Ravens’ 53-man roster at the time of the trade Aug. 28.

Mancz played in four games with the Houston Texans in 2020, all of them after being elevated from the practice squad and then joined the Ravens practice squad in the playoffs.

By all appearances, Deiter actually might have been the team’s best offensive lineman over the first three games — though what exactly that means given the state of the O-line …

For example, it was Deiter who got the best grades on the offensive line from Pro Football Focus for the game against Las Vegas on Sunday.

If Deiter can’t play, it will mean a fourth different starting offensive line in four games for the 2021 Dolphins.

Liam Eichenberg started at left tackle in the opener at New England, but was replaced by Austin Jackson in Week 2 against Buffalo. Then Eichenberg started at right tackle and Jesse Davis moved to left guard for the game against Las Vegas.

The problem is that the offensive line has not performed at high efficiency in any of those games.