Bradley Chubb has spent the 2024 season rehabbing his ACL tear from late last year. Whether or not the veteran edge rusher would play down the stretch remained a question until today. 
Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said on Tuesday (via ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques) that Chubb will not be activated from the reserve/PUP list. The two-time Pro Bowler had his practice window opened on December 4, giving him three weeks to practice in preparation for a return to the lineup. That time will expire tomorrow, though, and McDaniel noted Chubb and the team agree he is not currently in a condition to perform at his usual level.
As a result, Miami’s push for a wild-card spot will continue without Chubb in the fold. The former Bronco posted 2.5 sacks with the Dolphins upon arriving via trade midway through the 2022 campaign. He signed a five-year, $110MM extension shortly after joining his new team, however, so expectations remained high moving forward. In 2023, Chubb was a key presence along the edge with 11 sacks and 33 pressures; that campaign came to an abrupt end with an ACL tear, though, the timing of which left his 2024 availably in doubt.
McDaniel noted Chubb (whose injury also included a torn meniscus and patellar tendon) has made considerable progress in his rehab, and his outlook for the coming offseason is much brighter than this past one. Still, not having the former first-rounder available for any portion of the season – or the playoffs, should they make it – will be significant for the Dolphins. That is especially true considering Jaelan Phillips‘ season-ending knee injury from earlier this year.
With neither member of that pairing available the rest of the way, Miami will continue to lean heavily on first-round rookie Chop Robinson to lead the team’s edge contingent. The Penn State product got off to a slow start at the beginning of the campaign, but he has emerged as a key pass-rush contributor lately. As Louis-Jacques notes, Robinson ranks third in the NFL in pressure rate since becoming a starter in Week 6. He has six sacks overall, and adding to that total will be key if the Dolphins are to stay alive in the playoff hunt.
Chubb remains on the books through 2027, but none of his salaries for the final three years of the pact are guaranteed. Considering his cap hits for each of those campaigns are scheduled to check in at over $29MM, it would come as no surprise if adjustments were to be made in the offseason. In any case, Chubb will not see the field again until the start of the 2025 campaign.
So many things would have to break their way to make the playoffs, so it makes sense that they don’t push Chubb before he’s ready.