Tuesday Dolphins Notebook: Pili Back, Jones and Jones, Odds, and More

The Miami Dolphins officially are in bye week mode after a short practice Tuesday.

The Dolphins will go into their bye with a 6-3 record, the second consecutive year they're above .500 at the break — they were 7-3 at their bye in 2022.

On the flip side, though, the Dolphins entered their bye after a loss for the first time in four years. They were on a four-game winning streak at their bye in 2022, a five-year streak in 2021, and a two-year streak in 2020.

PRACTICE REPORT

Given that it was the only practice of the week — and a short one at that — the list of players not spotted during the portion open to the media was quite extensive.

That's not unusual for a bye-week practice because anybody who is nursing any sort of injury or ailment is going to be kept out for precautionary reasons.

That said, here's the rundown of those players not seen by the media at practice: T Terron Armstead, WR Tyreek Hill, WR Jaylen Waddle, WR Braxton Berrios, WR Chase Claypool, TE Durham Smythe, RB Raheem Mostert, FB Alec Ingold, G Robert Jones, G Robert Hunt, CB Xavien Howard, LB David Long Jr.

Safety Brandon Jones was back at practice after staying in South Florida last week because of a concussion, though he was in a red (no-contact) jersey.

Before practice, head coach Mike McDaniel indicated that guard Robert Jones' knee injury against the Chiefs would not require surgery.

PILI RETURNS

As expected, rookie defensive tackle Brandon Pili was re-signed to the practice squad after clearing waivers.

Pili, who made the team as an undrafted free agent out of USC, played in four games for the Dolphins this season before being waived Saturday to make room on the roster when Armstead was activated off injured reserve.

To make room for Pili, the Dolphins released fellow defensive tackle Rashard Lawrence.

To keep everyone up to date, here is the current Dolphins practice squad:

LB Quinton Bell

CB Ethan Bonner

TE Nick Bowers

TE Tanner Conner

DT Byron Cowart

RB Jake Funk

T Ryan Hayes

OL Chasen Hines

LB Alexander Johnson

S Verone McKinley III

CB Parry Nickerson

DT Brandon Pili

WR Braylon Sanders

WR Freddie Swain

OL Alama Uluave

WR Raleigh Webb

AWARD ODDS UPDATES

The Dolphins loss against the Kansas City Chiefs, as one would expect, provided a pretty significant shift when it comes to the betting lines for the major NFL awards.

After the Dolphins' 21-14 loss in Germany, Tua Tagovailoa went from the favorite to win the NFL MVP Award to fifth with 8-to-1 odds. He now trails new/old favorite Patrick Mahomes (9/4), Jalen Hurts (7/2), Joe Burrow (21/4) and Lamar Jackson (6/1).

Wide receiver Tyreek Hill, meanwhile, went from 25/1 to 50/1, and he's now tied for 10th-favorite with Dak Prescott and Jared Goff.

In the Coach of the Year race, Mike McDaniel went from second-favorite to third-favorite after being jumped by Houston coach (and former 49ers colleague) DeMeco Ryans. Former Dolphins interim head coach Dan Campbell, now with the Detroit Lions, remains the favorite at 2/1, followed by Ryans at 4/1 and McDaniel at 5/1.

Finally, Tua remains second to Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin in the Comeback Player of the Year odds, though he went from 2/1 to 11/4.

THIS AND THAT

-- Former Dolphins RB Myles Gaskin's roller-coaster year took another downturn Tuesday when he was waived by the Los Angeles Rams. Gaskin appeared in one game with the Rams after being signed off the Minnesota Vkings practice squad. He's played two games this season, one each with L.A. and Minnesota, but also got a total of eight snaps on special teams.

-- The NFL announced Tuesday that 9.6 million viewers (TV and digital) watched the Dolphins-Chiefs game on Sunday, making it the most-watched NFL Network international game on record. The total, which does not include viewership from the Miami and Kansas City markets, represented a 66 percent increase over the viewership for the 2022 Munich game between Seattle and Tampa Bay.

-- On this date in Dolphins history: 1999, current CB coach/pass game specialist Sam Madison records three interceptions when the Dolphins shut out the Tennessee Titans, 17-0, in a Sunday night game in Miami.