JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Miami Dolphins wide receiver Daewood Davis was carted off the field in an immobilized position after a collision in the fourth quarter of a preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday night.
Davis was taken to a hospital for evaluation, the Dolphins announced, adding that he was conscious and had movement in all his extremities. The game did not resume, the second straight week an NFL exhibition was halted in the aftermath of a scary injury.
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Davis ran a slant route and was trying to catch a pass from James Blackman when he took a hard hit from Jacksonvile's Dequan Jackson, who was flagged for unnecessary roughness. The entire Miami bench emptied, and Jaguars players also came onto the field as Davis laid face-down on the turf for several minutes.
“For Daewood, I don’t think he woke up this morning understanding that there are repercussions playing this sport, that this was going to happen,” said Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who suffered two high-profile concussions last season. “I don’t think anyone wakes up thinking things like that are going to happen.”
After Davis was carted off, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel and Jaguars coach Doug Pederson spoke on the field and agreed to stop the game with 8:32 remaining in the fourth quarter and the Jaguars leading 31-18.
“I think it would have been extremely hard for the guys to have gone out and continued to play. The kind of person that Daewood is, a lot of guys respect him,” Tagovailoa said. “He’s very well respected in the locker room. He’s a great player. He’s a great teammate. He’s a great person. It just would have been hard to have gone back out after seeing something like that.”
Said McDaniel: “The two teams agreed that football shouldn’t be played anymore tonight. Without a shadow of a doubt it was the right call.”
Last week, New England's preseason game at Green Bay was called off in the fourth quarter after Patriots cornerback Isaiah Bolden collided with a teammate and was carted off the field. Bolden was taken to a hospital and released the next day.
“It’s the right thing to do at that time. This game is all about player safety,” Pederson said. “I know it’s a preseason game and some guys are fighting for spots and all that, but at the same time we want to make sure that everybody’s 100 percent.”
EARLY ACTION
Trevor Lawrence played two series for the Jaguars, completing 8 of 10 passes for 92 yards. Jacksonville totaled 168 yards of offense during its starting quarterback's time on the field.
Lawrence's night included a 28-yard completion to Calvin Ridley, who made the catch as he was falling out of bounds.
Ridley finished with three receptions for 50 yards in his first action at home with the Jaguars. He was suspended all of last season for gambling.
“I love where we’re at. I love the relationship me and Calvin have,” Lawrence said. “I think that chemistry is becoming really strong and he’s doing a great job.”
Jacksonville's first series ended when rookie running back Tank Bigsby had the ball punched out of his hands at the 1-yard line by Miami's Jerome Baker. The Dolphins recovered just short of the goal line.
Tagovailoa also played two series, going 4 of 6 for 67 yards.
The Dolphins started strong with Tagovailoa finding Tyreek Hill for 32 yards on the opening play. But on the next play, center Connor Williams snapped the ball over Tagovailoa’s head and forced the Dolphins backwards.
After an incompletion and a short pass to Raheem Mostert, Miami was forced to punt.
BACKUPS
Skylar Thompson took over for Tagovailoa and played until the fourth quarter, completing 15 of 24 passes for 135 yards and two interceptions.
Chris Brooks had two rushing TDs for the Dolphins in the second half, each from 4 yards. Jason Sanders kicked two field goals for Miami.
C.J. Beathard relieved Lawrence and finished 8 of 10 for 134 yards, including a 74-yard touchdown pass to Tim Jones on the second play of the third quarter that made it 24-6. Beathard also directed a short touchdown drive in the second quarter, with D’Ernest Johnson scoring on a 7-yard run.
In the third, Seth Williams nabbed a 43-yard reception from Nathan Rourke to set up an 8-yard touchdown by JaMycal Hasty that put the Jaguars ahead 31-12.
ROOKIE REPORT
Bigsby's fumble derailed what could have been a long scoring drive on the Jaguars' first possession. He finished with six carries for 37 yards.
Safety Erick Hallett was one of two rookies with an interception, catching a tipped ball in the second quarter to give Jacksonville the ball. Outside linebacker Yasir Abdullah also had a pick, dropping into coverage to catch an errant pass from Thompson.
INJURIES
Jaguars: OL Walker Little was held out as a precaution. Rookie LB Ventrell Miller was taken to the locker room during the third quarter.
UP NEXT
Jaguars: Open the regular season at Indianapolis on Sept. 10.
Dolphins: At the Los Angeles Chargers on Sept. 10, the first of two straight road games to start the season.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl