While it was expected — or at least likely — that the Miami Dolphins would experience some growing pains this season, there was legitimate hope that the offensive line could lead the way on offense.

With few exceptions, though, it hasn't played out that way and the offensive line has had its share of struggles. And now comes the disappointing news with center Aaron Brewer, who missed a second consecutive practice with a concussion Thursday and now looks at best like a long shot to play against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

This looks like the same path as rookie guard Kadyn Proctor, who missed the Week 8 game against the New England Patriots, after not practicing at all during that week because of a concussion.

This makes it almost a certainty that third-year player Andrew Meyer will be starting at center against the Colts, and that's obviously not going to do anything to help the offense.

Brewer and wide receiver Chris Bell were the only two Dolphins players who didn't practice Thursday.

OFFENSIVE LINE OBSERVATIONS

Because of the arrival of Proctor as the 12th overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft and the return of Brewer following his All-Pro performance of 2025 and Patrick Paul having established himself as a solid, maybe more, left tackle, there were some expectations that the offensive line could make a big step forward this season.

It just hasn't happened.

A lot of the focus has gone on right tackle Austin Jackson and his struggles in pass protection, but it's not fair to point the finger only at him for the offensive line not performing up to expectations.

Brewer, for one, hasn't played nearly as well as he did last year when he emerged as one of the top centers in the NFL. For those who trust Pro Football Focus, Brewer is ranked 17th out of 36 qualifying centers (based on snaps). Not terrible, but also not great and certainly not up to the 2025 standards.

The other PFF rankings for the Dolphins starting offensive linemen have Paul at 47th out of 71 tackles, Jackson at 71st, Proctor comes at 35th among 75 guards, with Jonah Savaiinaea landing at number 69, which isn't great but still better than last year when he was dead last at his position.

The run blocking had a nice little stretch right before and after the bye, but it's also not been quite consistent enough, but it's in pass protection where the deficiencies have been glaring.

Those absolutely played a key role in the struggles of Malik Willis and the passing game, though there are contributing factors ranging from receivers not getting open or running the wrong routes, to Willis sometimes not seeing open receivers or hesitating a bit before letting the ball go.

With Brewer, Paul and Proctor, there clearly is potential on this line, and the hope is that progress starts happening in the final weeks of the regular season.

Not having Brewer against Indianapolis is the kind of setback that offensive line could do without, though.