Chris Bell went through his first NFL practice Monday. The Dolphins rookie wide receiver had been sidelined since suffering an ACL tear last November, but Miami has activated him from the active/NFI list.
On the first-round radar prior to the tear, Bell fell to Round 3. The Dolphins chose him 94th overall. Bell is not yet a full participant in practice, as ESPN.com’s Marcel Louis-Jacques notes; the Louisville product sat out 11-on-11 work in his return to work after participating in individual drills.
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With far more money tied to players no longer on the roster than players still employed by the team, the Dolphins resided in a good position to wait on a player like Bell. Miami is squarely in a rebuilding stage, carrying a record-smashing $179.23MM in dead money, and the team is expected to ease Bell back into action. A July report indicated Bell was unlikely to receive full clearance before the regular season, but today’s move will make him ineligible for the NFI list to open the campaign.
Because the Dolphins activated Bell today, he will need to be moved to IR — if the Dolphins are to save a roster spot, should the rookie wideout need more acclimation time — after the August 30 roster-setting deadline. Due to where Miami’s rebuild stands, though, the team could certainly benefit from having Bell continue to practice during September. That would point to the team carrying Bell on the 53-man roster and going week to week with his return timetable.
Ranking 47th on Dane Brugler’s The Athletic big board, Bell posted 917 yards and six TDs in 11 games last season. He displayed consistent explosiveness before the injury, and our Ely Allen recently pointed to a possible future in which Bell becomes the Dolphins’ No. 1 wide receiver. The Dolphins’ other third-round WR pick (Caleb Douglas, No. 75) has been one of camp’s standouts, Louis-Jacques adds. Douglas started Miami’s preseason opener.
The Dolphins are going through a near-complete overhaul at receiver. Cutting Tyreek Hill and trading Jaylen Waddle to Denver, Miami added Tutu Atwell and Jalen Tolbert on low-end free agency deals before drafting Douglas and Bell in Round 3. With Atwell and Tolbert profiling more as placeholders than long-term cogs, Douglas and Bell figure to see plenty of time as rookies. Bell may not be in top form until next season, but the Dolphins passed an important checkpoint on his recovery road today.