Dolphins center Mike Pouncey is unlikely to play in any more preseason contests and could potentially miss Week One with a hip injury, head coach Adam Gase told reporters, including Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald and James Walker of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Pouncey had offseason surgery on his right hip, but this injury is on his left side, tweets Salguero.
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Miami’s offensive line is undergoing a wave of change along its interior, so losing Pouncey as the anchor, for any amount of time, is all the more troubling. First-round pick Laremy Tunsil is competing with Dallas Thomas to start at left guard, while free agent signee Jermon Bushrod is pushing against Billy Turner for playing time on the right side. Anthony Steen, a former undrafted free agent who spent 2015 on Miami’s practice squad, appears to be the next man up at center.
Pouncey, 27, had hip surgery back in 2014, and ultimately missed four games to begin that campaign. He rebounded, however, starting 12 games while appearing mostly at guard, and ended up making the Pro Bowl. In 2015, Pouncey once again made the Pro Bowl after returning to center and starting 14 games, though he was derailed by a late-season ankle injury. The sixth-year pro graded as the league’s No. 11 center last year, according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics.
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