DAVIE, Fla. -- Miami Dolphins backup offensive tackle Jason Fox finds himself in familiar territory this week.

Earlier this season, Fox had to start two games at left tackle for the injured Branden Albert, who had a hamstring injury. The veteran backup most likely has to do the same at right tackle this week for starting right tackle Ja'Wuan James, who injured his toe in Thursday’s 36-7 loss to the New England Patriots.

James suffered the injury in the first half and didn’t return to the game. Dolphins (3-4) interim head coach Dan Campbell said James’ toe “doesn’t look good” and the right tackle is not expected to practice this week and leading up to Sunday’s important rivalry game against the Buffalo Bills (3-4). The team is even considering surgery for James, according to Campbell.

“We’re kind of looking at all of the options and all the scenarios,” Campbell said. “We know it’s not good, but we don’t know quite how bad it is yet.”

Enter Fox, who is a swing tackle and the first option off the bench. The Dolphins need Fox to be at his best this week – and potentially for the next few weeks. The usually-durable James could miss several games at a crucial point in Miami’s season. The team is 3-4 and have little margin for error in order to make a push in the second half of the season.

The Dolphins’ offensive usually struggles against Buffalo’s talented defensive line led by defensive end Mario Williams and defensive tackle Marcell Darues. The Bills sacked quarterback Ryan Tannehill twice in their 41-14 blowout win over the Dolphins in Week 3.

Fox has been up and down and must work on his consistency. The Dolphins must also be more consistent after suffering a humbling loss to New England, which snapped a two-game winning streak.

“Everybody is hurting, and nobody one is in a good mood right now,” Fox said. “But at this point we can’t mope around. We got another big game coming up next week.”