If Jonathan Woodard suits up for the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, it will be the culmination of an unexpected story.

Woodard was a track and field jumper and sprinter in Brentwood, Tennessee, who played some football, but didn’t have many options after high school.

“No stars,” Woodard recalled Wednesday in the Dolphins locker room. “I had to use a recruiting service to get my name out.”

Woodard was a good student and targeted Cornell, when suddenly the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas, became his best option.

He redshirted his freshman year with the Bears.

“We’re most known now for a purple and gray field,” Woodard said. “Alternating stripes. It didn’t really give me a headache. I felt like it was a home field advantage.”

Woodard finished his career at Central Arkansas of the Southland Conference of the former Division I-AA as the school’s all-time leader in sacks (30.5) and tackles for loss (53.0).

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And on April 30, 2016, while sitting in the living room of his parents’ new home in Jacksonville, Florida, he was selected in the seventh round by — the Jacksonville Jaguars.

But a dream quickly turned into a nightmare.

Only 23 days later, Woodard tore an Achilles during a drill. By September, he was waived.

“It was hard,” Woodard said. “I had finally gotten where I had worked so hard to reach. And then you feel it’s all taken away from you. That rehab is hard. It was about 11 months for me. It’s different for some people. But mine ended up taking longer. I had to learn from the guys I was around. And try to not get down. And just keep that vision of being able to come back. It was a long road but when I finally got back it was definitely worth it.”

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Woodard had a brief stop with the Falcons’ practice squad last season, as he worked to rebuild his strength. At 6-foot-6, 271 pounds, Woodard can provide pass rush as well as run defense.

Woodard signed with the Dolphins in December of 2017, was waived, signed again and then today, promoted from Miami’s practice squad to active roster.

In the preseason, Woodward was third on the Dolphins with eight tackles, including one sack.

Highest-graded #Dolphins through the first three weeks of preseason (minimum 35 snaps):



ED, Jonathan Woodard - 85.1

DB, Minkah Fitzpatrick - 82.7

WR, Kenny Stills - 77.9

DI, Jordan Phillips - 77.5

ED, Robert Quinn - 74.7

WR, Albert Wilson - 72.5

RB, Kenyan Drake - 71.1#FinsUp

— PFF MIA Dolphins (@PFF_Dolphins) August 28, 2018

Asked if he thinks he’s closer in style to William Hayes (out for season with a knee injury) or Andre Branch (out this week with a knee injury), Woodard indicated he’s a bit of a hybrid.

“I feel like a little bit of both,” Woodard said. “Not an exact copy. I mean, I like the violence and intensity Will brings. How violent he is at playing the rush and setting the edge. The leadership he plays with. And Branch plays with a swagger and confidence that’s contagious. You like to play with guys like that. It hurts to not have them here. But you have to keep pushing. And do everything for them.”

In August, defensive line coach Kris Kocurek was asked who could on the roster could handle a role similar to Hayes, who played both defensive end and defensive tackle.

“There’s a couple of guys on the roster,” Kocurek said. “You look at a guy like (practice squad member) Cameron Malveaux. He’s a bigger, taller, linear guy that can move down in there. In my past, in Detroit, we had a guy named Jason Jones, who had a very similar body type as Malveaux. Another guy is (Jonathan) Woodard. He’s a big, tall, linear guy, heavier defensive end who can go inside there and rush.”

Consider the pedigree of the players Woodard may rotate with on Sunday. Cam Wake is one of the greatest players in Dolphins history. Robert Quinn is one of the most feared pass rushers in the NFL. Charles Harris is a former first-round draft choice.

Woodard, 25, is a highly intelligent player and individual. He has an undergraduate and masters’ degree in health care administration. One day he’d like to be a hospital administrator and/or own a gym or training facility.

But on Sunday, in all likelyhood, the player with no stars, few offers, and a torn Achilles on his resume, may very well line up with the chance to sack Tom Brady.

It’s someone worth rooting for.

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