How Armstead Keeps Persevering

Miami Dolphins tackle Terron Armstead having another Pro Bowl-caliber season

Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Terron Armstead (72) talks to reporters after joint practice with the Washington Commanders at Baptist Health Training Complex. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

It's been another season dealing with various injuries for Terron Armstead, and here we are again with his status uncertain for the Miami Dolphins Week 12 game against the New England Patriots at Hard Rock Stadium.

But while he likely will be listed as questionable on the final injury report of the week when it comes out late Friday afternoon, you probably can expect Armstead to take his spot at left tackle on the Dolphins offensive line.

And you also can probably expect to be very effective against the Patriots.

That's just what Armstead does.

Armstead again did not practice Friday after sitting out the previous day as he continues to deal with a knee injury that popped up after the Week 8 loss against the Arizona Cardinals. This marks the second consecutive week with no practice for Armstead, who didn't practice at all ahead of the game against the Las Vegas Raiders last week, started and turned in a typical Armstead performance.

"One of the assets that T-Stead gives us is the ability to know his body, how many reps he needs to perform, and to try to gain as many games with him as possible when he's battling through something by way of rest," head coach Mike McDaniel said before practice Friday. "I think this was execution of that. Pending today's practice, I feel optimistic about him playing.

"We were able to utilize him and his connectivity to what we're trying to get done, and his experience where it's very, very rare that left tackles can feel comfortable playing in a game without at least two to three days. He's proved to be the exception. So when we can, we try to enhance his ability to play on game day by giving him rest when needed."

Armstead accomplished a first this season for the Dolphins in playing in a game without practicing at all during the week. It's something that never happed during the 2023 regular season, either, though since-departure safety DeShon Elliott — he of the controversial statements about his former team — did it in the playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs when he started despite a calf injury.

ARMSTEAD AS GOOD AS EVER

If he indeed does start against the Patriots on Sunday, Armstead will match his number of regular season games from last season and will move closer to his Dolphins high of 13, which came in his first season with the team in 2022.

More importantly, Armstead sure looks on track for a sixth Pro Bowl selection.

By all measures, he has performed very well, with Pro Football Focus ranking him as the second-best tackle in the NFL in 2024 behind only Jordan Mailata of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith was the assistant offensive line coach for the New Orleans Saints for Armstead's first two seasons in the NFL, and he saw first-hand the athleticism and the work ethic that would lead him to having such a great pro career.

“He is a worker," Smith said. "He is a worker. It was him, Senio Kelemete and Bryce Harris were the three guys every day, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. It’s really a lot of things is – there’s two positions on the football field that has challenging movements, it’s defensive back sand offensive linemen. You’re doing your job backwards, so it’s learning how to control your body and your movements because if you don’t move to load to power or don’t move to load to carry yourself, you expose edges of your movement. An offensive tackle, you’re the width of the pocket. If you’re not in balance, you’re exposing a soft edge of your body that gives a beeline to the quarterback. For him, he was so explosive, we were asking him to pass set different. It was teaching him how that the angle, how it plays out, now rush patterns of the defender, how you need to play, run game, here is what it is. He was just – him, Senio and Bryce were machines. They just went every day, wanted to get better and it was awesome because Bryce ended up playing for us in New Orleans, had a six- or seven-year career. Senio ended up leaving and signing a big contract in Houston. He played all five spots, and then Terron has been Terron. Success isn’t by chance; it comes from hard work and he’s earned it.”

Additional reading:

-- Flexing and the remaining Dolphins schedule

-- Why Wynn returning as a starter is not a lock

-- Patriots presenting a different challenge