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*** DOLPHINS NEWS ***
Nov 16, 1996: -- Cross to Remain Inactive --
DOLPHINS NEWS:
The Miami Herald is reporting this morning that defensive end
Jeff Cross, who has been sidelined since July following back surgery,
is still not ready to start and will remain sidelined this weekend.
Cross had back surgery in July to correct problems with a disk in his
back and began to practice 2 weeks ago, but is still apparently not
ready to play.
The Dolphins must make a decision by Monday evening about
whether they will keep Cross on the active roster, place him on
injured reserve, or cut him. If they keep him on the active roster,
they must cut one player to stay at the 53 man roster limit.
Also inactive this weekend will be Jerris McPhail, who is
still recovering from his wrist injury, Charles Jordan, who has been
having personal distractions from practice lately, LB Anthony Harris
and CB Jerry Wilson.
Making his second start of the season in place of Trace
Armstrong will be Shane Burton, a 5th round draft choice out of
Tennessee. Burton started his last game against the Buffalo Bills in
place of Danny Stubbs, but this time will line up with Stubbs against
the Oilers. Trace Armstrong has been slowed down by bruised ribs that
he suffered against the Patriots.
My Comments:
Presumably, the performance of the defensive line on Sunday
will determine whether or not Jeff Cross gets a chance to play this
year. If Cross was having a good week of practice, JJ would have
activated him for Sunday's game, so if the defensive line plays well
this coming Sunday, I expect that Cross will be placed on IR for the
rest of the season.
On the other hand, if the defensive line has a bad day, Cross
may well be activated on Monday. If he is, the question will be who
gets cut to make room for him. Some possibilities include Charles
Jordan, Kirby Dar Dar, Anthony Harris and Robert Bailey, but that's
just speculation on my part.
The last time Burton started, JJ was trying to make a point to
Danny Stubbs and Trace Armstrong. They responded with their best
performance of the season against Buffalo. Somehow, though, I don't
think that's the case this time. Burton had a good game against the
Colts, especially defensing the run, so I believe that JJ thinks that
Burton is a better run stopper than Armstrong and is playing him to
help stop Eddie George and the Houston running game.
Still, with the Dolphins defensive line rotation system, I'm
sure we'll see plenty of Armstrong, especially on passing downs.
Related Info:
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Curt Fennell,
curt@phins.com, DOLFAN in New England
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