Liam Eichenberg has the distinction of being one of the few NFL players who has started games at every position of the offensive line during his brief career.
The Miami Dolphins likely will lean on the third-year player's versatility again Monday night and have Eichenberg replace starting right guard Robert Hunt, who likely will be shut down for a couple practices and games because of the left hamstring injury he suffered a month ago aggravated in Sunday's 45-15 win against the Washington Commanders.
"I can do whatever they need me to do," said Eichenberg, a 2021 second-round pick who started games at left and right tackle in his rookie season, manned the left guard spot for most of 2022, and has started games at center, left and right guard this season. "Whatever is going to happen, I know I can do it."
Preventing Hunt from regressing
The Dolphins are concerned that Hunt's soft tissue injury could impact the way the four-year starter performs down the stretch, so the right approach might be to shut him down till the soreness subsides.
While he's sidelined, Eichenberg, Lester Cotton and Robert Jones are Miami's options to handle the starting guard spots. The left guard spot has been vacated because of the quadriceps injury Isaiah Wynn suffered in Miami's loss to Philadelphia in late October.
Offensive coordinator Frank Smith said the Dolphins will create an offensive line based on how the players perform, and the contingency plan for injuries, and there are numerous injuries — Hunt, left tackle Terron Armstead (knee, quadriceps and ankle), and swingman tackle Kendall Lamm (back) — the Dolphins are working through.
Armstead and Lamm participated in their first practice of the week on Friday. But their status for Monday night's game won't be determined until after practice Saturday.
Eichenberg's resurrection
Eichenberg started at left guard against Washington because of Hunt's return. Miami's coaches had determined that his performance at right guard in the previous two games warranted him being with the first team at the position where he started 10 games last season.
However, Eichenberg has admitted he prefers the right guard spot because his experience at center has taught him that he's more comfortable being on the right side of the offensive line.
"We'll look for where the consistency is and that drives our decision," Smith said. "We try to limit [players moving from one side to the other] as much as we can because that's hard."
But switching sides is something Eichenberg is capable of doing and that would allow Cotton to return to left guard, where he's started four games this season, though he played right guard after Hunt left the game against Washington in the second half.
"I'm going to do whatever the team needs me to do," Eichenberg said. "The biggest thing for me, playing inside, if I ever did go back out to tackle, it would be easier for me to anchor myself. Being inside you have to deal with guys with more power, so your ability to anchor needs to be quicker. That's one of the things I've tried to improve on and have gotten better with."
Even though Eichenberg has struggled at times over the past two seasons, he's seemingly turning the corner and become a reliable starter the past two months.
"I always kept working," Eichenberg said. "Just because two games went well doesn't mean the third and fourth would. I'm just going to keep working and keep improving."
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