Former Oregon Ducks’ star may play with broken hand with the Miami Dolphins

When Jevon Holland suffered a broken hand two weeks ago, the expectation was he would miss some time.

Now, there's some hope the Miami Dolphins safety will not miss a game. The former Oregon Ducks' star broke a bone in his left hand during the team's 15-10 Week 5 win over the New England Patriots and there was talk of him having surgery.

Holland was limited in practice on Wednesday, but told reporters he feels good. However, he's still adjusting and learning to play with the injury. He reportedly wore a protective brace on the hand during practice.

"I've never done it before," Holland told reporters on Wednesday. "I assume it's going to be a little difficult if I have to club it. Not really sure yet. I'm going to assume it's going to be a little hard to catch because it's kind of in the way. Honestly, it's my first broken bone for real. It kind of feels like a bad jam."

Holland told reporters his status is "day-to-day" and no decision has been made on whether he would play when the Dolphins face the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

"Don't get it twisted, football players got into football to play football," Miami head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Wednesday. "He's going to be smart with the team and not be irresponsible with forcing a round peg into a square hole. But he also knows he's a very good player that we're better off with when he's playing. So I'm very comfortable with all parties involved making an appropriate decision for the right reasons and definitely spending a lot of time in the training room to try to make that come to life."

Holland wants to play to help his teammates. However, there is also the risk of aggravating the injury and missing multiple games. Holland's situation is even more tricky because he's in the final year of his contract and wants to sign a new deal. He knows that a player's best ability is availability and after missing five games in 2023 and possibly missing games this season will likely affect his price tag.