Dolphins placing former Pro Bowl receiver Odell Beckham Jr., linebacker David Long Jr. on PUP list to start training camp

MIAMI GARDENS — The first practice reps for Miami Dolphins quarterback to have Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle and Odell Beckham Jr. together will still have to wait.

Beckham, the former Pro Bowl star wide receiver the Dolphins signed in May , landed on the team’s physically-unable-to-perform list Tuesday as veterans reported for training camp. An NFL Network report that broke the news said Beckham, 31, is “working through minor things and this is part of the plan for easing him back into football.”

The Dolphins also placed starting linebacker David Long Jr. on the PUP list late Tuesday afternoon.

Beckham did not participate in practice reps during voluntary organized team activities or mandatory minicamp this offseason.

He is expected to play a critical role in the Dolphins offense this season, being the No. 3 option who, with his ability can easily find openings when opposing defenses become too consumed with stopping the standout combination of Hill and Waddle.

Beckham, 31, is a three-time Pro Bowl selection, but those were in his first three seasons in the NFL, from 2014 to 2016, as an elite talent out of LSU that was taken with the No. 12 pick 10 years ago by the New York Giants.

A pair of ankle injuries slowed the 5-foot-11, 200-pound pass-catcher in 2017, but he bounced back for 1,000-yard seasons in 2018, his final year with New York, and 2019, his first with the Cleveland Browns.

Suffering two significant knee injuries in the years since, that was the last time he put up those kind of numbers. His 2020 season with the Browns was cut short with a torn ACL. Waived midway through 2021 and then picked up by the Los Angeles Rams, he contributed to a Super Bowl title, but he tore his ACL again in the big game, costing him the 2022 season.

Related Articles

• Miami Dolphins | Dolphins Deep Dive: Will Tua be a full participant during camp, or will there be a ‘hold-in’? | VIDEO
• Miami Dolphins | Chris Perkins: Dolphins’ Chris Grier enacting offseason of fiscal responsibility, especially with Tua
• Miami Dolphins | Dave Hyde: Called out for ‘folding’ by veteran newcomer, Dolphins need for team toughness sits atop to-do list
• Miami Dolphins | Tua reports to Dolphins training camp; teammates expect him to practice amid contract negotiations
• Miami Dolphins | Dolphins bring back Emmanuel Ogbah after Shaq Barrett’s sudden retirement; players react to new arrivals of Calais Campbell, Marcus Maye

Beckham returned with the Baltimore Ravens for 2023 and posted 35 receptions and 565 yards. His 16.1 yards per catch were a career high.

Long’s placement on the PUP list, like Beckham, is unexpected.

Long is coming off a successful first season with the Dolphins in which he had a team-leading 113 tackles. He was strong in run defense, but there are questions about his pass coverage.

Beckham and Long join outside linebackers Jaelan Phillips, Bradley Chubb and Cameron Goode and offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn on the PUP list.

The news also comes days after veteran edge rusher Shaquil Barrett made the surprise decision to retire Saturday.

The Dolphins also announced they signed wide receiver Kyric McGowan on Tuesday.

McGowan, a Georgia Tech product, has appeared in two career games with Washington, where he spent the 2022 season and training camp in 2023.

Miami also activated running back Salvon Ahmed and safety Mark Perry from the non-football injured list. It moved wide receiver Tahj Washington from PUP list to injured reserve.