Teddy Bridgewater was seen throwing “significantly farther” after practice Thursday, and the injured Miami Dolphins quarterback could be trending toward playing against the New York Jets in a must-win game in NFL Week 18. The latest Teddy Bridgewater injury update, plus a Mike White injury update for the Jets quarterback, have moved the line for the Jets-Dolphins game Sunday.
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Miami is now as much as a 2.5-point favorite (DraftKings) after the Jets opened as a 1.0-point favorite. The opening line was set when it was thought that Skylar Thompson would be the Dolphins quarterback with Bridgewater having dislocated his pinky on his throwing hand in Week 17, and with White expected to be able to again play through his ribs injury for the Jets.
The Dolphins (8-8) need to win, and have the New England Patriots lose to the Buffalo Bills, to make the playoffs in the AFC, if the current format is maintained. A report from The Associated Press on Thursday said the NFL might be considering expanding the field to eight teams in each conference and giving a bye to the top two seeds in the AFC and NFC, instead of just to the No. 1 seed. That is in response to the NFL likely not resuming the Buffalo Bills–Cincinnati Bengals game from Monday that was suspended due to the medical emergency involving Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
Last week, Bridgewater was playing in place of injured Tua Tagovailoa against the Patriots and left in the third quarter of a 23-21 loss, Miami’s fifth in a row. Thompson started against the Jets in a 40-17 loss at New York in Week 5.
“Nothing is more important to [Teddy] right now than making himself available for the team,” Miami coach Mike McDaniel told the Dolphins website on Wednesday. “… I know he’s going to do everything in his power.”
White injured his ribs in a Week 14 loss to the Bills. He did not get cleared by doctors to play in Week 15 or Week 16, and returned against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 17 but was not effective, completing 23 of 46 passes for 240 yards and two interceptions. The Jets were eliminated from playoff contention with the 23-6 loss, their fifth in a row and sixth in seven games.
White was expected to play in Week 18 but was downgraded on the Jets injury report to limited Thursday after a full practice Wednesday. It is possible he could play Sunday, with the Jets seeming to prefer to keep Zach Wilson inactive to complete the season. Joe Flacco could start with Chris Streveler possibly his backup Sunday.
The Jets-Dolphins and Bills-Patriots play in the 1 p.m. ET window Sunday. The Bills are 9.5-point favorites, using our OddsShopper tools for the best NFL odds. Check OddsShopper throughout the weekend for Teddy Bridgewater injury updates and other NFL news.
“I’ll check the scoreboard to see what’s going on, but I’m not going to let it affect our play, how I go out there,” Miami pass rusher Bradley Chubb told the Palm Beach Post. “And I know the guys around me, they’ll do the same. We check it, we look at it, but it’s not distracting.”
